Last Monday, Dec. 2,  students may have noticed a sudden change in the popular breakfast cafe, Dawn to Dusk while walking down Rowan Boulevard, as it transitioned to Spicy’s Bar.

While the abrupt change in the name and hours may have shocked students, the decision was not impulsive. Owners Cindy and Nick Minhas bought the popular breakfast spot back in January, and have been working behind the scenes to obtain a liquor license and make the change.

The Minhas’ are also the owners of Spicy Affair Indian Cuisine, a popular BYOB restaurant in Swedesboro, NJ, approximately 20 minutes from their new location. The name “Spicy’s” stems from a running joke in their friend group to differentiate between two Nicks, one with the nickname “Spicy” and the other “Salty.” 

“I told my husband that I think it’s very important that we have our own brand and so we’re known as like, ‘This is Cindy and Nick, they’re the ones who own this now it’s not the previous owner,’” said Cindy Minhas. “So with Dawn to Dusk, that was never going to happen, because that was always going to stay with us so that’s why it was very important to change the name and just start fresh.”

Spicy’s, even though it has transitioned from a breakfast cafe to an all-day bistro, will keep the breakfast and lunch menu items the same, while adding in some new dinner options.

“The food is still there. Everyone thought that when your ownership changes, everything is just gonna go crazy, but really didn’t. We still have the same customers coming in, the only thing that’s different is that there’s a bar and we just changed the name,” Minhas said. 

The new dinner menu offers classic bar items, like mozzarella sticks, smash burgers, and calamari, fancier dinner options like filet mignon, as well as Indian fusion items like “Penne Tikka,” “Masala Chicken Wings,” and “Gobi Manchurian.”

The Indian fusion pays homage to the Minhas’s Indian heritage. Both owners are of Indian descent and wanted to bring a new, authentic cuisine option to students. 

“We’re both Indian. I was born and raised out in Canada, Vancouver, and Nick was born in India. We both were in Canada and then moved to the US. We’ve been here for, it’ll be 19 years in December,” Minhas said. 

The decision to make the transition without a “grand opening” or stereotypical ribbon cutting was to give staff adequate time to prepare new food and drinks before a large volume of customers came in. Minhas reflected on her experience opening up Spicy Affair, and how chaotic the beginning was. The “soft opening” was a way to still attract new customers, and provide them with the best customer service they could.

“I wanted to do it the way we did it so that we could figure things out slowly and not have to interrupt our customers, not have to have our customers be inconvenienced because we made a mistake or something,” Minhas said.

However, the possibility of a grand opening is not out of the picture, after the “glitches” and small interruptions that come with opening a new restaurant are out of the way.

“We just wanted to get all the glitches out of the way and figure all that out before we do an actual grand opening, which may be early next year. We haven’t really decided,” Minhas said.

While students are excited to have another option of places to dine on campus, many shared a frustration with a large number of Rowan Boulevard restaurants being “too expensive” for the average college student’s budget.

“I thought the bartender was super nice and the mozzarella sticks were probably the best I’ve ever had. It was super expensive but I had a good time,” said 21-year-old Gwen Beatty.

This attitude seemed to be similar amongst college students, with an appreciation for the cuisine and drinks but a sense that it was too expensive to become a regular weekend spot for them.

“It was really nice in there. We did enjoy the atmosphere,” said senior, Celea Goodrich who visited the new spot on its opening day with her friend Alex Fuhrmeister. “It was very, I’ll say, grown up in there. But the only problem is, I don’t think that the prices are realistic for being on a college campus.”

Fuhrmeister had a similar experience, while they both enjoyed the food and drinks, the bar felt like it was more of a spot for residents than college students. 

“I just wish they would cater more to college students instead of whatever they’re catering to. I want another Landmark, I don’t want another La Scala’s bar,” Fuhrmeister said.

Spicy’s will remain in the same location as its previous spot, Dawn to Dusk, and will be open seven days a week, Monday through Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., Thursday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m., and on Saturday and Sunday from 9:00 a.m. to 11 p.m.

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