This is the story of four kids who met in college and became instant friends. This is also the story of how all four were bitten by the entrepreneurial bug. Before even out of school, they had launched their new company—Gigamunch.
Atish, Chris, Enis and Piyush met at Tennessee Tech in Cookeville. One day, Atish invited his friends over to his mom’s house for Indian food. Chris was blown away.
I thought it was going to be really casual, but it was like seeing a new color. The food was amazing. I had no idea. That’s when we first started talking about it. I’m going to buy this from you. I mean it. I want it way more than is socially acceptable.
Then they got this idea: Why not have home cooks make food so others could have this kind of authentic experience? Because, unless you know someone who makes it (or someone’s mom), there’s an entire world of ethnic food inaccessible to you. It’s totally different than going to a restaurant.
The four friends pitched the idea in a Shark Tank-style competition at their school and won. So, with $8,500 in their pockets, they started Gigamunch with the goal to make each meal a journey. Each week (or month, your choice) you receive a complete meal in a nifty delivery bag at your door. The food is in reusable containers with reheating instructions. Our first delivery was a Syrian meal of hummus, salad, and pita, prepared by Rahaf Amer (who happens to be a sous chef at Salt & Vine) whose parents immigrated from Damascus thirty years ago. The second was Chicken Adobo, rice and Sitaw (Asian long beans) prepared by Janelle Razo whose parents moved here from Manila, Philippines. Both meals were absolutely wonderful.
Regardless of cuisine, Gigamunch’s goal is to deliver an authentic experience. Each meal comes with a pamphlet in which a “tour guide” tells you a bit about the country and its culture. There’s even a carefully curated playlist. So far, we’ve been to Damascus, Tehran, Manila, and Naples with delicious meals. And they do it all with almost zero waste as the containers can be sent back in the delivery bag. They also do it with a worldly hospitality that seems to have no limit. After each meal, they follow up for feedback, which is a nice touch.
Gigamunch is on the move, growing their subscriber list to over fifty and even catering events, a recent one being at Vanderbilt to support Nashville’s refugees. Now, more than ever, we need to understand our friends and neighbors both abroad and at home. As the Gigamunch founders know, food is an international language that speaks to us all.
Find them at gigamunchapp.com and @gigamuncapp
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