A black-and-white illustration of a monkey.

Cheeni is …

Preeti

A black-and-white illustration of a monkey.
A black-and-white illustration of a monkey.
A black-and-white illustration of a monkey.
A black-and-white illustration of a monkey.
A black-and-white illustration of a monkey.
A black-and-white illustration of a monkey.
A black-and-white illustration of a monkey.
Chef Preeti, the owner of Cheeni, a woman with dark hair and a beige outfit, stands in front of a pink-curtained booth. She holds a cup of chai. A brass pendant hangs from the ceiling, over a wooden table, in Cheeni's Research Triangle Park location.

First and foremost, Cheeni is a heartfelt endeavor. From tiny market stands evolved into YMCA kiosks, to a fast-casual café that turned heads & won Eater’s “Best New Restaurant”, Cheeni has been an ever-evolving concept since 2017.

At the forefront is Preeti, the heart and soul of Cheeni, and the story behind the menu, the space, and that warm, maternal feeling that permeates the experiences that Cheeni has to offer.

Her restauranteuring accomplishments are great, and nearly all of them took her by surprise. Three James Beard Semifinalist nods, multiple local & statewide awards, press recognition, and more—her objective has not wavered. At the end of the day, her goal is to feed people, and feed them well; it’s all she’s ever wanted to do.

Now that she’s the owner of two restaurants and two market concepts, Preeti finds the most peace and solitude when immersed in a good book, an excellent plate of food, or when surrounded by family—particularly, her grand-dog, Moo.

As a family-owned and operated business, Preeti works closely with Amy, her daughter, who designed the menu for The Bar Beej, and manages both locations. Together, their particular brand of hospitality and family-style service has shaped Cheeni into what it is today.

curious about the Bar Beej?

but it’s also…

  • Preeti was born and raised in Chennai, India, but her family heritage & history were never her fondest memories of home.

    As a lifelong cookbook collector, a lover of good eats, and a person deeply enamored by travel, most of her valuable memories were rooted in food—food cooked by family members, but also, food eaten while exploring her motherland, freed by adulthood.

    Cheeni explores Preeti’s food memories from then to now, across both locations. Her interest in cooking Indian food stemmed from her desire to reconnect with the culture she came from, though she felt ever so disconnected, especially after making the United States her home.

    Cheeni: Durham is based on this principle of reconnection, serving homestyle, larger plates, inspired by the stories that brought Preeti to where she is now, and the food memories that shaped her perception of her first home.

    Cheeni Indian Food Emporium serves a lunch menu that feels more like fusion, but the dinner menu is inspired by Preeti’s reconnection with herself, as a chef, who she is now, as the owner & operator of two restaurants, and who she’s become, as she’s grown in that role, and as a person.

  • Cheeni has grown, changed shape, and completely evolved since it began, as all the best endeavors do.

    As a restaurant, the evolution from fast-casual to sit down dining was a significant change. With no formal experience in kitchens or restaurants, Preeti & Amy were thrown into a whole new world with Cheeeni: Durham—once daunting, and now, more so an extension of their home.

    With this change came the bar, additional James Beard nods, and plenty of newfound attention. This added spotlight provided Preeti with the opportunity to use her kitchen at Cheeni: Durham for something greater than just dinner service; now, it operates as a commissary, as well as a hub for classes, collaborations, and a community meal program.

    The jump from one to two restaurants came with its own set of changes. At our RTP location, we serve lunch and dinner, but with a totally different concept than our Downtown Durham spot. Cheeni’s newest evolution features a nostalgic menu from Preeti’s early days in North Raleigh, as well as a brand-new, preset menu for dinner, inspired by the abundance of a family-style dining experience. That menu rotates monthly, and features six courses.

  • We often recieve reviews that label our food as “fusion” or “inauthentic”, when in reality, there’s an element of reinvention necessary to everything that we do.

    Preeti’s story is one of reinvention, and her restaurants are no different. Regional cooking practices may differ, and may need adaptation stateside, but North Carolina is rich in fertility and agricultural diversity, lending itself exceptionally well to the locally-driven Indian cuisine that we cook at both locations.

    We choose to reinvent wherever possible—how we staff, how we design our menus, how we approach service, and sometimes, how we cook.

    It’s an effort to create something real, personal, intimate, and reflective of truly, who we are, where we came from, and where we’re going.

& at our core, we’re just a mother-daughter duo,

duo-ing what we love.

Chef Preeti, the owner of Cheeni, a woman with dark hair, wearing a white shirt and a colorful embroidered vest, pictured smiling in front of a green shuttered background.
Two women with long hair and smiling faces are standing in a room. They are partially hidden behind black curtains at an open window or doorway, with one woman on the left, and the other on the right, laughing with her hand near her face. Behind them, there is a black wall with framed artwork, a chandelier hanging from the ceiling, and a dining table with chairs. The room appears cozy and decorated with artwork and a lace lampshade.
A woman with shoulder-length dark hair and a warm smile, sitting at a kitchen counter, wearing a tan long-sleeve shirt with a textured pattern. The background features the bar at Cheeni RTP. The woman's name is Amy. She manages Cheeni and the bar.

Reservations (Cheeni: Durham)
Order Now (Cheeni: Durham)
Reservations (Cheeni: RTP)
Order Now (Cheeni: RTP)
A round wooden dining table set with various drinks, bowls of food, and snacks, surrounded by a mustard-colored upholstered banquette and colorful patterned wallpaper.
A person using tongs to hold a piece of cooked chicken over a metal plate, from the tandoor.
Bowl of chaat, garnished with green herbs, alongside pink sauce or chutney on a yellow patterned tablecloth.
A woman wearing a yellow apron and a black hair clip smiles as she shows a person wearing a blue plaid shirt a ceramic object in what appears to be a kitchen. The background features kitchen shelves and a brick wall. The woman is Chef Preeti Waas.
A woman with gray hair, smiling and holding a glass, sitting at a wooden table in Cheeni RTP. The woman is Chef Preeti Waas.