Bayleaf Indian Restaurant focuses on respecting community for support

During his eight to nine years of experience in the restaurant industry, Krishnan has worked his way up from service assistant to service manager and said that, during that time, not only did he improve his cooking skills, but he also learned the inner workings of the culinary industry.

But it is not just a business — it is Krishnan’s passion.

As of Sept. 10, 2025, Bayleaf is one of the newest additions to The Village. However, Krishan said opening this business came with its fair share of challenges.

For example, the restaurant was initially scheduled to open in August 2025, but the opening was delayed due to difficulties obtaining approvals from the required departments: fire, sanitation and health.

“There is some protocol they need to maintain for any kind of food industry,” Krishnan said. “And they will not compromise for any kind of errors. Everything should be 100 percent.”

Once their approval from the fire department was finalized, the grand opening was in sight.  Krishnan took it upon himself to introduce a raffle for customers who showed up to support Bayleaf on its first official day in business. For the raffle, he collected the names, phone numbers and email addresses of over 100 customers and even asked another customer to draw the winners.

Those winners received a personal phone call from Krishnan, along with a Walmart gift card to use wherever they wanted. As far as good impressions go, Krishnan said he wanted to make a lasting one within the Muncie community.

Despite having lived in Fishers for 10 years before Bayleaf opened, Krishnan said he had never ventured to Muncie. However, that all changed when Kumar, Krishnan’s business partner, found an open space in The Village to lease and begin their joint restaurant.

Krishnan said Muncie was already their ideal location for Bayleaf — because of Ball State University.

With thousands of students in attendance, Ball State meant Muncie would be a city guaranteed to have a lot of people of all ages. Ensuring the business was near campus was the only compromise that Krishnan and Kumar had to make.

“We always like any kind of business, but the younger generation — like students — are playing a vital role in any kind of business,” Krishnan said. “Whenever the new transition is happening, they are the ones that immediately grab the attention and they will give the support.”

With over 120 dishes, ranging from Krishnan’s personal favorite — chicken curry — to famous dishes such as naan bread, butter chicken and tikki masala, hundreds of customers have left Bayleaf with full stomachs and satisfied taste buds.

However, it is not only the quality of food that is important to Krishnan, but the overall experience for his customers.

“I kept my mind very strong that any one customer should not be disappointed in my restaurant,” Krishnan said. “So I should be more welcoming, address them with respect, treat them with quality and give them good quality food. At the same time, the prices should be within their budget.”

At the end of the day, Krishnan’s basic goal for the restaurant narrows down to one thing: that his customers leave just as happily — if not happier — than they arrived.

Jennifer Christman, a professor in the Department of Criminal Justice at Ball State, said she and her colleagues had been waiting for the restaurant to open since they first saw the storefront signage. Since its opening, Christman said, Bayleaf made a lasting impression on her coworkers, her family and herself.

“I would definitely recommend it. Even though I think sometimes it is intimidating for individuals who are not regularly on campus to come onto campus for something — especially in this area — but I think it is definitely worth venturing out to campus for,” Christman said.

Christman’s daughter, Alex Christman, heard about the restaurant from her mother and has attended several times. She said she has also told her friends about Bayleaf and has encouraged them to visit The Village to try their array of delicious food.

Even though Bayleaf is new to the Muncie culinary scene, Krishnan has big dreams for the future of this business. Aside from his hope of Bayleaf blossoming into a successful and thriving restaurant, Krishnan hopes to one day expand and open up more restaurants, which might differ in name and cuisine.

But for now, Krishnan said he is more than happy with the attention that Bayleaf is getting — and is more than grateful for the love and appreciation that the Muncie community has given him. Whether that be customers posting about the restaurant on social media or writing articles to promote it, the love for this cuisine has not stopped.

“I do not know how I will tend to the community,” Krishnan said, “but I will definitely respect them, and I will give my quality service, quality food and I will treat them the same way I treated them on day one — the same way I will treat them forever.”

Contact Jayden Vaughn via email at jayden.vaughn@bsu.edu.

This article is republished as part of a collaborative content-sharing agreement between Ball State Unified Media and Indiana Public Radio, established to expand access to high-quality journalism and to better inform and serve the public through trusted, in-depth reporting.