Molly Irani

I’m loving this flashback 90’s trend that’s suddenly everywhere. @meherwanirani and I fell in love waiting tables in my family’s restaurant and never imagined that one day we’d start our own! Going through our albums made me think: if these kids only knew that one day there’d be a book coming out about their adventures together. Pre-order Service Ready in my linkinbio! 🙏📕 📷: @mollymil

Thank you LitHub for the opportunity to rattle on about the magic that’s possible when we come together with chai. Check out the full piece in my linktree now. 🫖✨ #author #avl

@sara.abernethy saw a need: more female leaders being amplified in our industry, and real honest talk about how to figure out all the challenges. Being the powerhouse that she is, she started her own podcast! Her Seat at the Table is a true delight. SO needed, and so inspiring. She takes time to dig into the gritty stuff, and I love it. In our convo (recorded live at @thedurhamhotel ), we dive into finding balance during challenges, working with your partner, and what it means care for people. We hit it all! Thank you Sara. 🙏🏼❤️ Our full episode is linked in my bio, friends. 🔗

To Mother… This phrase holds so many different meanings for all of us. Becoming a mother to our daughter was the greatest blessing and teacher of my life. My understanding of the notion of mothering continued to evolve through the confounding role of becoming the “Chai Pani Mom”. I learned about grit, leaning into my inner strength and voice, and how ultimately mothering is about being a lighthouse. Anyone can mother. It’s a decision about how we care for others and ourself. Choosing care over greed, compassion over anger, love over division. Its power lies in shining the light to guide people home through the darkness. In my book, Service Ready, I tell the story of Chai Pani’s wild beginning and recount how Mikey (now our creative art director) set up a video camera in the front of house while the adventure of renovating and building a restaurant in 2 months unfolded. In an early chapter I bemoan, “if only I could find those video tapes!” Well, big news friends... I found them!! In honor of Mother’s Day, please enjoy this quick clip of the madcap birth of Chai Pani - the origin story about how a little restaurant, an incredible crew, and a whole lot of love made a big dream come true... And taught us all what it means to be a lighthouse.

Service Ready is a story about us. It’s a collective, a crew. They bring the stories to life every day with their boots on the ground, working hard to make the magic happen. Taking a job and turning it into a love story. They give me faith in what love can do! 🙏❤️✨

I could talk with @mattrodbard about shoelaces for an hour and I’d still be entertained. But don’t worry, we cover all kinds of interesting topics in this chat! ✨ Matt is the master of creating a cozy conversation that feels like you’re tucked in by a fire with your favorite drink and friend. Thanks for having me, Matt! Chatting with you is so natural I forgot we were recording. Our full conversation is in my linktree now! ❤️

Returning from book tour for Service Ready has my heart FULL. 💗 Such a joy hanging out with so many of you far and wide and meeting new friends on the road. Launching the book tour in my home town (such a big part of our story), with these beautiful humans in @chaipani was heaven. The memories have taken up residence in my heart and will remain there always. 🙏 #author #authorlife #asheville #nc #restaurant

Happy Independent Bookstore Day, friends! The openness, encouragement, and support of local bookstores really means everything. Not only as a new author, but also as a book lover and community member. 🙏 Take some time to give YOUR local bookstores a little extra love today, and while you’re there look for my book Service Ready! 📚 1. @malapropsbookstore in Asheville, NC 2. @boldforkbooks in DC 3. @politicsprose in DC 📸: Khine Bonner @justwritemusic

What does it mean to show up for your community? Service Ready author Molly Irani shares how community helped build their restaurant, Chai Pani—and how Chai Pani was able to show up for the community when it was in need. Read more about Molly’s story of turning the hospitality industry on its head in Service Ready, available now!

Meet the characters of Service Ready! 👋✨ If you’ve started reading you know that this is a story about a group of remarkable people who were brave (crazy?) and tenacious enough to rally around a dream. The OG crew has weathered a lot of storms together and are the bedrock foundation that made our story a success in the end. There are SO many who contributed something special through the years, but I’d love to introduce you to some key characters so you can bring their darling faces along with you as you read our story… Isaac Clay: aka our island of calm. The first believer and Jedi level master in the art of Jugaad. Michael (Mikey) Files: the big hearted mad genius creative mind behind our art and design. Daniel Peach: the sweetest Southern white boy with an old Indian soul and palate. James Grogan: master of grace under pressure, loyal to the core, with fierce culinary instincts. Gustavo: aka Gusi, the hardest worker with a heart the size of Texas. Charlotte Stack: the wizard who brought her superpowers to operations, becoming Meherwan’s right hand (which ensured the best care of our people and also probably saved my marriage 😉) Aaaand my husband Meherwan and I: here we were as baby restaurateurs in year one, learning on the job.

Join us at The Durham Hotel on 4/23 from 6-8pm! We’ll be talking with THE @chaipanimom from @chaipani  Restaurant Group about her new book Service Ready. Sipping, snacking, and learning all the secrets of their success, what leading with love is all about, and how to rewrite the rules of leadership! Tickets are ready in Molly’s Linktree! 📖❤️ #nc #northcarolina #author #local

HERE WE GO! Since retiring, I have had a (not so secret) plan for our home @a_street_on_a_hill By hosting purpose-driven gatherings, I aim to amplify the voices of women in hospitality and small business through community, advocacy, and promotion. The first one was this past Thursday! I couldn’t have asked for a better kickoff! My friend @chaipanimom graciously shared wisdom from her new book, “Service Ready”, interviewed by the GOAT @nyccinellis . The book, Molly admits, was written because she wished she’d had a roadmap when she and her husband set out to open their first restaurant, now a @beardfoundation award winner! Molly emphasized how much the world can learn from the hospitality business right now: the care, the humility, and the heart that it takes to make it. Pick up “Service Ready” if you want to read a female leadership perspective that balances compassion with practicality, all told with Molly’s wit and openness. Available online or @boldforkbooks . Donations were also made to @indprestaurants who help shape policy for independent restaurants at a national level. Please check out their work! A huge thank you to @chaipanidc team for providing the Pani Puri station, smiles, and MORE! And to @table81 for cohosting and giving me the nudge I needed to JUST START! Photos by @mariahmirandaphoto