Has it really been 15 years since we started the Cambridge Curry Community? I cannot believe we have been going for this long but here we are!
For those of you who are reading about us for the first time, the Cambridge Curry Community is a Facebook group started all the way back in 2010. Back then, it was known as the Cambridge Curry Crew, a cheesy yet light-hearted name that was started by a small group of friends to arrange curry meet ups.
In the beginning (2010)
In the beginning, we travelled across the UK for our curry fix and wrote reviews on our experience in the group. We frequently hit London, including Brick Lane, Whitechapel, and Queensbury, as well as other cities, like Bristol and Brighton.
Over time, more members began to join us; including people we met at our events or random locals who saw the group on Facebook and wanted to share our passion. Eventually, restaurant owners and members of the Indian & Bangladeshi community got involved too, turning the Cambridge Curry Crew into a thriving community full of thousands of people.
We were a group that never took ourselves seriously and we never pretended to know it all. Our entire angle was “honest reviews from everyday people”. We shared short and concise reviews that were easy to reference in order to promote the local Indian and Bangladeshi restaurant industry. Here is an example of Ed’s review of our first ever event at the Kohinoor on Mill Road (boy, do I miss this place!).
Maybe we should bring back the beard system? 🧔♀️
The Blog (2014)
In 2014, we started a blog to accompany Facebook group. We were visiting so many great places back then that I wanted to keep a log of everywhere we had been. Many of the reviews were getting lost in the group and I wanted an easier way for our members to reference.
The blog has since been merged into the Cambridge Foodies blog but all the original Cambridge Curry Community reviews are still there (if you fancy reminiscing about old Indian restaurants that are no longer with us in Cambridge, here are a few links below).
• Kohinoor
• Cafe Naz (The Cambridge Curry Centre)
• Moza (all you can eat buffet)
The conquering of Cambridgeshire! (2014+)
Once the blog was up and running we were on a roll and entirely committed to reviewing every Indian restaurant we possibly could, slowly crossing off Indian restaurants and writing reviews throughout Cambridgeshire and beyond.
The start of my journey was the usual right of passage for an English person, trying to eat the hottest curry you possibly can, then repeat. But the more I explored the menus and spoke with restaurant owners, the more I learned about Bangladeshi and Indian food. This drove my passion further, as I started to understand that there is so much more to their cuisine than most of us Brits realise.
From there, I started to write numerous pieces looking to push the Indian restaurant scene.
• Here is a post I wrote about going for a curry being better value than fast food!
• Here is another of me looking to promote Indian restaurants outside of the then dominant Mill Road.
• Read my piece of Cambridge curry house nostalgia.
The Rebrand (2020)
Several years later, we officially changed the title of the group to the Cambridge Curry Community, giving it a more mature and sensible name that better reflects the nature of the group. It was no longer a small “crew” of close friends but a thriving community with different characters and numerous dimensions. It has evolved beyond its original purpose!
New Heights! (2020 onwards)
As I got noticed by the Bangladeshi community, many of them reached out to me and were delighted to see someone take such an interest in their industry. I was genuinely surprised and flattered by this, as, after all, it was just a small blog but I was never going to turn down such an opportunity. I was invited to numerous events, including the Catering Circle Awards and getting a chance to be on live TV on Channel S.
It has been the journey of my life, as I have met remarkable people and learned many interesting things along the way. I want to thank everyone or making me feel a part of their community. I never thought a Facebook group and a blog would end up with such an incredible experience and influence.
The Cambridge Foodies era (2021)
In 2021, we decided to branch out and start the Cambridge Foodies. The purpose was to cover ALL food types in Cambridgeshire, under the same “group + blog” model we used for the Cambridge Curry Community. We were tempted to start a Facebook page instead of a group, but I liked the idea of other people being able to join in and make their own posts in our community.
The Cambridge Foodies blew up in no time and overtook the Cambridge Curry Community within a matter of months (it has a wider appeal, after all). And though the Cambridge Foodies take up a lot of my time now, my heart will always belong to the Indian and Bangladeshi community (even till this very day, my comfort food is the chicken tikka vindaloo and rice or some pani puri).
Thank you to everyone for supporting us through the years and making this wonderful journey possible!
Here is to another 15 years! 🫣
You must be logged in to post a comment.