Sadananda Hira is launching a new, takeout-only Indian restaurant in Unit 5 of 151 Main Street in Stowe. Hira, 31, said he will open Saffron by Dodo’s Kitchen on February 20, serving northern Indian dishes such as chicken tikka masala, butter chicken and vegetable pakora. Saffron replaces Raja Restaurant, which offered Indian and Nepali food. Hira said he named his new business for the nickname, Dodo, that he gave his young niece after the extinct bird. This is Hira’s second Vermont restaurant venture. In January 2025, he took over Montpelier’s Café NOA with his cousin Amit Mojumdar. The pair grew up together in Kolkata, formerly known as Calcutta, in West Bengal. Hira studied hospitality and hotel administration for three years in India before moving to the U.S. to work in the restaurant sector. Hira said Saffron will also offer recipes and ingredients from his home region, such as Bengali-style salmon with coconut curry and the sweet rice pudding called kheer, made with aromatic gobindobhog rice from West Bengal. “I want to take this opportunity to serve people our home food,” Hira said. Saffron by Dodo’s Kitchen does not yet have a website, but orders can be placed at 802-760-6685. The post Saffron by Dodo’s Kitchen Brings a New Indian Menu to Stowe appeared first on Seven Days. ...read more read less