Service Ready: A Story of Love, Restaurants, and the Power of Hospitality
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The cofounder of the restaurant group behind Asheville’s Chai Pani offers a thoughtful look at what it takes to build a restaurant culture that lasts. Part memoir, part management guide, the book traces the evolution of a small, unconventional idea (serving Indian street food in the American South) into a widely recognized and influential business.
Irani focuses less on growth or acclaim and more on the systems and values that sustain a restaurant over time. She outlines a set of core principles centered on staff retention, workplace culture, and the daily practice of hospitality, drawing from years of navigating expansion, partnership, and crisis.
Interwoven with the practical lessons are reflections on working alongside her husband, balancing personal and professional life, and redefining leadership within an industry often marked by burnout. The result is a candid and useful perspective on restaurants as places not just to eat, but to work and to belong.
Hardcover.
Published on March 24, 2026
