A young Teesside entrepreneur is making his mark on Middlesbrough's hospitality industry - just seven months after opening the doors to a new eatery on Linthorpe Road.
Last September, Muneeb Akram launched Teesside's first branch of Cha Cha Chai, a growing tea house chain famed for serving loaded donuts and all-day breakfasts. The 21-year-old said he found a "gap in the market" and decided it was time to bring something different to the town for Teesside's Asian community.
Located in the former De Melo dessert shop, the venue serves up everything from curries, samosas, and kebabs to cheesecakes, mocktails, and Karak spiced tea. And just months after the university student cut the ribbon on the new site, Cha Cha Chai has been welcomed with scores of positive reviews praising the "delicious" food and "chic" vibe.
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Muneeb told Teesside Live: "We've been open for around seven months and its been steady away. Everyone is enjoying it - there has been nothing like this for the Asian community in the area - everyone has been going to Bradford. So I found a gap in the market - why should people have to go to Bradford?"
Cha Cha Chai - which has branches in Yorkshire and in Newcastle - was first confirmed to be opening up on Teesside back in February 2022. Muneeb continued: "Most of the other Cha Cha Chai's do tea but I thought, why just tea? I thought why not expand on food - and now we have a mix of curries, biryani, lamb chops, and both Asian and English breakfasts."
The Ingleby Barwick resident has always had an entrepreneurial mindset, even going to meetings with his father, who is also a businessman. Muneeb - who attended All Saints Academy before moving to Prior Pursglove in Guisborough for college - also studied business during his time in education.
He's now at Teesside University completing a business and management degree - and is even trying to get more students through the door with tempting offers and discounts.
It's not just Cha Cha Chai that Muneeb, who grew up in Acklam, is in charge of either. He's also the man behind the popular Mist Lounge, a shisha, snooker, and pool venue also located on Linthorpe Road. The venue is highly regarded as the "best shisha in Middlesbrough" by customers online.
Cha Cha Chai has also been announced as one of the latest venues to join the upcoming Teesside Restaurant Week, the popular initiative that sees venues offer up to three courses for £20 or less per head. The event - run by James Watson of hospitality business consultancy Over Ice - will return on May 13 and then once again later in the year on August 12.
Other venues confirmed for the upcoming restaurant week include The Raby Arms Pub and Kitchen, in Hartlepool, The Vane Arms in Thorpe Thewles, and several spots in Middlesbrough such as the Treebridge Hotel, Panuozzos, Mist, and The Mill in Stokesley. Chains also include Tomahawk Steakhouse and Rio Brazilian Steakhouse.
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