CHAI HAUS IN EAST STREET, HORSHAM

Horsham Tandoori in East Street has converted its front-of-house into Chai Haus, a welcoming new cafe.

Chai Haus is run by brothers Thanbir and Thafsir Moktadir, whose father Shah helped establish Horsham Tandoori 14 years ago. As well as serving the usual selection of café favourites, Chai Haus offers a range of Matcha and two varieties of Chai – a spicy, milky black tea originating in India.

Thanbir said: ‘Our father, Shah, has lived in Horsham for a long time and we both grew up in the town. He built his reputation as a chef, working at restaurants including the New Curry Centre, which also provided us with our first jobs. When he had the opportunity to run his own business, he took it. It wasn’t something he could afford to do alone, so many relatives helped, making the Tandoori a true family business. It has been a great success, but the  hospitality industry has changed. The Tandoori has always been a takeaway and in the early days, we engaged with many customers face-to-face, as they collected a phone order or ordered a curry on the way home from work or after a night out.

‘Now, most people order online and we deliver directly to their door. We were one of the first Indian restaurants to recognise the potential of Facebook and other social media platforms to drive sales, while we also invested in e-commerce, rather than relying on companies like Deliveroo, where customers tend to choose from offers rather than somewhere they know and trust. So, most orders come through our own website. 

‘We are lucky to have a loyal customer base, but these are hard times and people have less money in their pocket. Those who once ordered several times a week can now perhaps afford a takeaway once a week, or even less. With fewer people coming into Horsham Tandoori, and with business rents and rates continuing to rise, we explored ways to grow the business. 

‘We wanted something that would provide daytime trade and utilise the front-of-house area, separate from the kitchen. For my brother and I, this gave us a chance to contribute something new to the family business and introduce ideas we have picked up from our university experiences and extensive travels.’

EXTRA SPICE

It was Thafsir – having recently graduated from Sussex University with a degree in Business Management – who suggested introducing chai to complement Horsham’s burgeoning café culture. With the Tandoori closed for two and a half weeks to allow their parents to take a January holiday, the brothers began the refurbishment project. However, it ended up being more of a renovation, as ageing electrical and plumbing systems required modernisation before they could start decorating. It wasn’t until June that Chai Haus was ready to open, although this helped to build anticipation…

Thafsir said: ‘Because of our location, we needed to be more than just another café. We work with a brilliant London roaster and invested in a great coffee machine, but we needed something else too. Chai was perfect, as it complements the cuisine of the Tandoori and offered something new to Horsham. I’ve always enjoyed chai, but there are few places where it’s available. We used to drive to Chaiiwala, a chain with a branch in Brighton (they recently opened in Crawley too) for chai, and felt there was a market for it in Horsham. 

‘Chai is a traditional drink in India and Asia, made by boiling black tea with a mixture of aromatic spices, sweeteners and milk. We serve two kinds at Chai Haus. Masala Chai is made with cinnamon, peppercorn, star anise and ginger. We also make Karak Chai, which is the one we grew up with. Our family are originally from Bangladesh, where Karak is widely consumed, as it has Middle Eastern influences. It’s a stronger brew with cardamom being the dominant spice. In some regions, it can be very sweet, so we add honey to give it depth. On cooler days, we brew it in large pans and the moment you walk into Chai Haus, you are hit by this amazing aroma of warm, soothing spices. Lots of people have come in to try chai for the first time, and we serve it in ceramic Indian cups too, adding to the authenticity.’

MATCHA MAN

Thafsir leads day-to-day operations at the café, as Thanbir has other commitments. As well as being co-owner of Horsham Tandoori and Chai Haus, he has interests in finance and AI Technology which also demand attention. Shah is ever-present too – in a framed photo, looking resplendent as he rides a motorcycle! Thanbir has made his mark on the business by developing a matcha range alongside coffee and chai. Matcha – a bright green powder made from green tea leaves – originated in China, but is more commonly associated with Japan, where Thanbir first came across it…

‘I was in Tokyo last year with my wife and we visited cafés every morning. It’s a wonderful place, but exploring the city involves an awful lot of walking and you need caffeine to keep you going! There would often be queues outside the door of matcha cafés, but we found two places we really loved. It turned out both were owned by the same person, who had a small plantation of tencha leaves in Kagoshima, a city on Kyushu Island. 

‘We started talking and he agreed to supply us with high-quality, JAS-certified (Japanese Agricultural Standard) organic leaves for our new venture. He’s passionate about matcha and insists we follow his specific formula for brewing, and this attention to detail is reflected in all our products.

‘Working in the city gives you an insight into developing trends, before they trickle down to towns, and I could see matcha was growing in popularity. We’ve sold a lot of it this summer, because as well as having a similar caffeine content to coffee, it has an element of theatre. There’s an art to balancing the components and blending together the contrasting colours of the ingredients.’ 

‘We are working with content creator Faith Harding (pictured on page 30) to promote the business on TikTok and Instagram, which has attracted younger people to Chai Haus. It has generated trade for the Tandoori too, with people enjoying a drink here in the daytime, then later ordering a takeaway. So, Chai Haus has helped re-shape our family business, just as we hoped it would.’ 

Further information: Visit Chai Haus at 42 East Street, Horsham, RH12 1HN. www.chaihaus.uk

Photos: Alan Wright Photography/Words: Ben Morris. Published on 1st September 2026.