How it all began

Sukhi and Joanna Gill began with a dairy, with a small fish and chip shop adjoining, in Ravensbourne just outside Dunedin.

When Sukhi’s mother and father visited from India, Sukhi decided to add a few Indian dishes to the fish and chip shop’s menu. Soon there were lines of people down the street wanting to enjoy the new Indian dishes. With a single electric stove struggling to keep up with demand, Joanna (a chef) and Sukhi (an accountant) decided to open a New Zealand Indian restaurant.

After training in a family friend’s restaurant in Australia, Sukhi returned and opened the first Little India restaurant in Dunedin in 1991.

There are now over 13 Little India restaurants throughout New Zealand.

Our food

Our family’s recipes come from North India, the Punjab region, and the kitchen of our Grandmother Premjit Kaur Gill. She’s individually trained every one of Little India’s head chefs in her own kitchen in Chandigarh.

We also use traditional tandoors which have a clay pot and are fired by charcoal. They give our naans and meat their authentic flavour.