Bite Club: Italian-Indian pizza at Curry N Crust

A new Indian fusion restaurant in Tempe is taking an untraditional approach to the local pizza shop.

The big picture: Curry N Crust touts itself as a place "where Indian spices meet Italian flair."

• The restaurant opened in May on Scottsdale Road in Tempe, just south of Loop 202.

What they're saying: Co-owner Sam Singh, who also owns Guru Palace in Mesa with his father and brother, said he wanted to create something new and different that people hadn't had before.

• "So here we are, trying to build Indian pizzas," he tells Axios, adding that the restaurant's location near Arizona State University seemed like an ideal place.

What to expect: Curry N Crust's menu features Indian-inspired pizzas based on classic dishes including chicken tikka, lamb tikka and spicy paneer.

• The mains aren't all pizza-centric, or even all Italian-influenced, such as the naan tacos, masala fries and samosas.
• Don't forget to leave room for dessert with some gulab jamun, doughnut-style balls in sweet syrup; matka kulfi, an Indian ice cream dish; or a mango ice cream sandwich made with Indian Parle-G biscuits.

Best bites: I love chicken tikka masala, so I decided to see how it tasted as a pizza.

• But I couldn't leave without sampling the tacos as well. You get your choice of filling, so I went with the paneer and the lamb tikka.
• The pizza was great. It reminded me of taking a hunk of warm naan and dipping it in the sauce of chicken tikka masala.
• But with its tender meat and savory spices, the lamb taco was probably my favorite.

What's next: Singh hopes to open a second Curry N Crust in downtown or central Phoenix.