Part memoir, part survival guide, NC restaurateur Molly Irani’s debut book traces the origins of her award-winning restaurant group
By Kendall Campos
It’s been a milestone year for Molly Irani. In March, the cofounder of the James Beard Award-winning Chai Pani Restaurant Group released her memoir, Service Ready: A Story of Love, Restaurants, and the Power of Hospitality. In June, she helped launch the highly anticipated Botiwalla by Chai Pani at Raleigh Iron Works. The book chronicles how Irani and her husband, Meherwan, transformed a vision of bringing Indian street food to America into a nationally acclaimed restaurant empire with multiple Chai Pani locations and the fast-growing Botiwalla brand. She also shares lessons from building a people-first workplace, offering insights on the leadership, hospitality and resilience required for a strong organizational culture.
What made you want to tell your story?
After the growth of the company, we noticed the importance of having a clear ethos for our business. We spent a while compiling quotes and ideas from various sources into a binder, but our ultimate goal was always to write our company culture. I also felt that it was important to share the story of how we got started. This book allowed us to accomplish both of those things at once.
What was it like translating your experiences into a memoir?
It was a wonderful, therapeutic experience. For a while, I struggled to step back from the hands-on tasks of running our business, but when I visited a friend in Greece, I finally found the time to reflect and the oxygen to fuel my creative fire.
How do you define hospitality?
I love the distinction between service and hospitality made by Danny Meyer in his book Setting the Table, where he writes, “Service is the technical delivery of a product. Hospitality is how the delivery of that product makes its recipient feel. Service is a monologue… Hospitality, on the other hand, is a dialogue.”
What stands out to you about Raleigh’s food community?
We’re new to Raleigh and were immediately struck by the excitement level here. People were ready to embrace us from day one, and we’ve been happy to observe the community of food lovers here — we’ve felt so much warmth.
This story begins with a major leap of faith. Looking back now, what would you have told yourself?
Two things. First, that you’re going to fall in love with this industry. I was hesitant to get into it after growing up with my parents owning a restaurant and seeing the sacrifices they made, but I was able to learn from their experiences and use it to my advantage when starting out. Secondly, I would tell myself that the best part isn’t the awards or recognition, but ultimately it’s the crew. Working alongside them — some of whom have been with us since the very beginning — is what makes it all worthwhile.
What is one thing you hope readers get from the book?
The idea I’d want readers to take away from this book is that being of service to each other is a gift.
This article first appeared in the August 2026 issue of WALTER Magazine.
