Indian ‘tapas’ style restaurant in £3m Piazza at Mercia Marina to welcome first customers
Published On Thursday 12 Jul 2018 by Sticky Beak
See Recent News Articles
An opening date has been set for an Indian ‘tapas’ style restaurant at Mercia Marina’s new landmark £3m Piazza building.
One of the first of its kind in the East Midlands, Lotus Indian Kitchen is based on a dining concept of sharing plates and the restaurant will open to the public on Saturday, July 14th. The soft opening was on Friday 6th July.
A group of family friends are behind the new venture including Sunny Chandhoke, a Chartered Accountant, and Sanj Kumar, director of NK Motors at Pride Park. The restaurant’s general manager will be Vid Patel, of Littleover, who is the former owner and founder of Jee Ja Jee's restaurant.
There will be around 15-20 members of staff, including six chefs, and the restaurant will be open from 11.30am to 10.30pm seven days a week.
The menu will be split into grills, street food and curries, with two weekend specials on offer. There will also be Indian infused cakes and cocktails for customers to enjoy.
Sunny said the atmosphere of the restaurant would be relaxed, casual and modern and unlike traditional Indian fine dining restaurants.
He said: “There will be no tablecloths, the cutlery will be in authentic Indian lassi glasses and the décor is quite minimalist. The bar will be open for anyone who wants to just come in and have a drink. We will be serving Indian infused cocktails which are unique to the area such as our masala mojito, as well as ales from a local brewery. The food will be very authentic street food that you would find in India.
Sanj added, “We’ve spent a lot of time sourcing the décor for the restaurant including an apothecary chest from Rajasthan and large wooden shutters which were from a mansion in Kerala, both dating from the 19th century. It will be very different from a traditional Indian restaurant, much less formal and more casual and relaxed.”
Mercia Marina, in Findern Lane, Willington, is a major regional tourist attraction with over 900,000 visitors a year. The new £3m Piazza landmark building has been completed. It is Bionical’s global HQ and as well as Lotus it also houses the Bluebird Gallery, Twigg Home, William Wheelwright Hair Salon and Black By Design’s showroom and shop.
| No Badge, No Boundaries: How The Cupola Is Riding the Wave of a Growing Hospitality Shift Whats in a name? Increasingly, not a lot - at least in hospitality. Across the UK, more venues are stepping away from traditional titles like pub, tearoom Read The Article | |
| Peak Edge Hotel Launches Luxurious 'Peaks & Plates' Package to Mark National Walking Month Set against the rolling hills of the Peak District, Peak Edge Hotel has launched a new luxury walking experience that invites guests to slow Read The Article | |
| Taste Of Italy: Grappa's Bottomless Brunch On Course To Be City's Hottest Weekend Ticket A newly re-launched city centre Italian restaurant is making a name for itself with its own take on bottomless brunch. Grappa has had Read The Article | |
| Casa Hotel's Cocina invests in Dry Ager to elevate its own native breed, farm-reared Beef Cocina is now the only restaurant in Derbyshire with a Josper Grill and Dry Ager, enabling their expert chefs to deliver the ultimate steak experience. Read The Article | |
| Derby Wing Fest 2025 - Derby Wing Fest: One Weekend. Endless Wings Wing Fest, the world's largest chicken wing festival, is soaring back into the Midlands for another epic celebration of one of the globe's favourite dishes. Read The Article | |
| Derby restaurants pre-match snack gets Rams fans cheering A Derby Indian restaurants take on the UKs most popular lunchtime snack has kicked-off a new craze among hungry Derby County fans this season. Nicco Restaurant & Bar Read The Article | |
| TV Chefs bring flavour and flair to Thoresby Park this September Festival of Food and Drink is back for its 12th year on Saturday 20th and Sunday 21st September, and is preparing to unwrap another great weekend of Read The Article | |
| Get Ready For National Bakewell Tart Day On 25th June 2025! The Bakewell Tart Shop, the first business to create and sell Bakewell Tarts more than 100 years ago, has announced that National Bakewell Tart Day will take place Read The Article | |
| Longbow Venues Shortlisted For Talent Development Award At Generation Next Awards 2025 Peak District-based independent hospitality group Longbow Venues is celebrating after being shortlisted in the Talent Development Read The Article | |
| Derby Indian restaurant 'spices up' Easter treats for kids Nicco Restaurant & Bar is among a number of Derbyshire businesses helping parents cut the cost of entertaining their kids this Easter. The popular Pride Park-based Indian restaurant Read The Article | |