FOOD
77 Square is the definitive arts, culture and entertainment guide for Madison, Wis., and the surrounding area.
Let's Eat for $7.70: Curry in the Box spices up a strip mall
enlargeA meal for less than $7.70 at Curry in the Box. - Michelle Stocker/The Capital Times
The name sounds like a chain restaurant -- Curry in the Box -- and the setting in a strip mall off of Fish Hatchery Road in Fitchburg suggests the same thing.
But the ethnic eatery at 3050 Cahill Main is a true original, specializing in curries from both Thailand and India.
The fusion mix is fun and affordable, and the jewel-toned colors of the little restaurant make it a pleasant place to eat in as well as take out.
For the menu, husband and wife co-owners Anne and Apichart Santipiramkul use their family recipes from Thailand, as well as some of the Indian recipes of a former owner who sold the couple the business.
In its previous location at University Square, the restaurant was known as Curry N' Hurry, owned by Vinay Patel, who has since moved to California. He sold the restaurant to the Santipiramkuls a couple of years ago but left some of his signature dishes behind as part of the kitchen's legacy and unique heritage.
The prices on the lunch menu are particularly reasonable, with eight specials that are $5.99. We especially recommend the Yummy Green Bean curry dish, which features chicken breast, green beans and bamboo shoots in red curry sauce served with jasmine rice. At that price, it's possible to add a veggie egg roll for $1.50 and still remain under our $7.70 ceiling.
The servings are both plentiful and nicely spicy, and would probably serve as lunches for two consecutive days for most diners, making the food very affordable indeed.
Curry in the Box: 3050 Cahill Main, Fitchburg
Address
Contact: 273-9100, www.curryinthebox.com
Hours: 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Friday; noon-9 p.m. Saturday; 4-8:30 p.m. Sunday
Have a suggestion for "Let's Eat for $7.70"? E-mail 77tips@madison.com.