| Industry | Food Service, Consumer Packaged Goods |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1977 [1] |
| Headquarters | , |
Area served | nationwide |
Key people | Bhagwati Amin (Founder), Arvind Amin (Former CEO), Deep Amin (Current CEO) |
| Products | Indian foods |
Number of employees | Approximately 1,800 (as of 2010) [2] |
| Website |
www |
Deep Foods is an Indian food manufacturer based in Union Township, Union County, New Jersey.
It was founded in 1977 by Bhagwati Amin after the Gujarati delicacies she made became popular among her neighborhood families and local grocers. To meet the growing demand, Bhagwati and her husband, Arvind, began working on what is today Deep Foods Inc. They established a factory in Lyndhurst, NJ and named their company after their son, Deepak. In 1981, Arvind resigned from his accounting job to assist Bhagwati full time at Deep Foods. [3]
As the population of Indian Americans increased, so did the demand for their products. [3] They are currently one of the largest Indian food brands in the US. [4] As of 2024, around 20,000 stores carried their products, and Bhagwati's son Deepak is the CEO. [5]
Their first product was Hot Mix, which The New York Times described as "a spicy Indian trail mix of fried noodles made from chickpea flour and tossed with cashews, pistachios and spices". [3]
The company specializes in frozen prepared Indian foods. [2] [3] The company also produces products such as frozen vegetarian naan pizzas, which are produced entirely in India, [2] and 14 flavors of ice cream. [3]
Around 2009, they launched their Tandoor Chef line of frozen food products, designed to appeal to non-Indian customers. Ten years later, they rebranded Tandoor Chef into Deep Indian Kitchen. [6] [7] [8]
The company obtained Halal certification for its frozen chicken and lamb products in 2012. [9]
In 2021, their chicken vindaloo was declared "Best Frozen Dinner" by People. [10]
They launched a fast-casual restaurant chain in New York City in 2015, which offers a Chipotle-style ordering menu for Indian cuisine. The restaurants were previously called Indikitch and were rebranded to Deep Indian Kitchen in 2019. In 2020, they opened a location in Union, New Jersey. [4]
- ^ "Company Overview of Deep Foods, Inc". Bloomberg Businessweek. Archived from the original on January 18, 2013. Retrieved October 2, 2012.
- ^ a b c Fox, Jennifer Barnett (April 1, 2010). "Crossover Market: Deep Foods expands its line of authentic Indian cuisine with a frozen naan pizza." Baking & Snack Magazine.
- ^ a b c d e Nathan, Joan (April 23, 2003). "From a Deep-Fryer in a Garage to an Indian Food Empire". The New York Times. Retrieved October 3, 2012.
- ^ a b Intersimone, Jenna (2020-01-14). "Indian food giant Deep Indian Kitchen had humble beginnings in Union County garage". MyCentralJersey.com. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
- ^ Fox, MeiMei. "4 CEOs Bringing International Flavors To The US Prepared Foods Market". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-07-11.
- ^ "40 Years In, Deep Plans for the Next Decade". NOSH. 2019-05-16. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
- ^ "Tandoor chef continues to expand vegan product line." Vegetarian Journal. January 1, 2012. (subscription required)
- ^ "Tandoor Chef's Balanced Vegetarian frozen meals." Gourmet Retailer Magazine.
- ^ Cerra, Allison (January 11, 2012). "Deep Foods gains halal certification for frozen chicken, lamb dishes". Drug Store News. Retrieved October 2, 2012.
- ^ "People Food Awards 2021: The Best Supermarket Products of the Year". People. Retrieved 2024-07-11.