
Indian curry born in cafeteria spicing up Suzuki Motor's business
The Japanese automaker began selling four different varieties of Indian curry online on June 25 -- daikon radish sambar, tomato lentil, chickpea masala and moong dal green -- for 918 yen ($6) each, after months of tasting tests.
The dishes were added to the menu at the head office's cafeteria with other Indian curries in January 2024 for vegetarian employees from India.
The number of Indian employees, both short- and long-term, at its headquarters in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, has been steadily growing, the company said.
Suzuki offered Japanese-style curry at the cafeteria but not Indian vegetarian curry until the new menu was introduced.
The maker of motorcycles and small cars asked Torizen Co., a local bridal and restaurant business, to cooperate in developing the boil-in-the-bag versions of the four flavors.
The packaging was designed by the company's vehicle designers based on its Swift hatchbacks and Jimny compact SUVs, known as the Samurai in some markets, and the Hayabusa and V-Strom1050DE motorcycle models.
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