Lavanya Mahate, an Indian-origin woman who arrived in the United States on a dependent visa, is now a successful restaurateur. She reveals how she never gave up, even when she wasn’t sure what path lay ahead. In a video shared on Instagram, Mahate shared her inspiring success story of starting from scratch, eventually owning 12 restaurants and creating opportunities for women.
Dependent visa to award-winning entrepreneur
Lavanya Mahate was born in a small town called Kakinada in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. She spent her childhood there before being relocated to Chennai for her school and college education. Later, she went to Mumbai to get her Master’s degree in Mass Communication.She arrived in the United States in 2001, at the age of 23, on a dependent visa. She couldn’t work on the visa and was uncertain about her future. Twenty-five years later, she’s the founder and CEO of Saffron Valley Restaurants, Bix Bakery & Café, and RISE Culinary Institute. She was also named Utah Businessperson of the Year in 2024 and was a semifinalist for the James Beard Foundation’s Outstanding Restaurateur award.“25 years ago, I came to America on a dependent visa, unable to work and unsure of where I belonged. I could never have imagined where that beginning would lead,” Mahate said in the Instagram reel. She had a master’s degree, but the visa prevented her from working. For the first two years, she volunteered without a paycheque. She interned before getting her work visa. It was during this period that she learned the importance of following her passion and recognised the power of women in business.
Going after her passion for food
Pic courtesy: Instagram/ Lavanya Mahate
By the age of 33, she realised her true calling. She knew what mattered to her: food, community and culture.“Food has always been a big part of my life growing up in India. I remember that, as young as age six, I would go into my kitchen, cook sweets, and learn how to make spice blends with Kanthama. Kanthama was our family help who would come and help us cook, a common thing in India. She was an older lady, and I loved her wisdom and how she wanted to share her knowledge and teach me how to cook,” she wrote in the Utah Business founder series note.She didn’t immediately open a restaurant. But she tested the waters first. Mahate started a line of spice blends for the Farmers’ Market, which was very successful. She wanted to be sure whether entrepreneurship was something she wanted or just something she thought she should want.In 2011, she opened her first restaurant, Saffron Valley, in South Jordan. She had no formal culinary training or prior restaurant experience. But she knew she had to do this. With a loan and pure conviction, she designed the menu. She knew food was her love language and waited to see if it resonated with anyone else. And it did.During that time, Indian restaurants largely focused on either North Indian or South Indian cuisines. Mahate wanted to bring the diversity of Indian cuisine. “I wanted to bring in more food from the north, south, east, and west parts of India because the food throughout the country is so diverse.”She wanted to bring more. “I wanted to elevate the image of Indian restaurants from being a hole-in-the-wall to a warm, welcoming ambience with good food and good service—nothing Michelin-star extraordinary, but consistently good, classic favourites. That’s why our menu has just a few items from each category, representing Indian food at its best.”The locals enjoyed the food and the experience, and they kept coming back.
Her business grew
The one restaurant became two, then twelve. In 2001, when she arrived in the US, she was uncertain about what the future held for her. But she didn’t stop. “Looking back, I realise that so much of my life was built without knowing exactly where I was going. I simply kept taking the next step. Volunteering. Learning. Building. Starting over. Saying yes when something felt aligned, even when I couldn’t see the whole path ahead,” she said.During this journey, Mahate had her own share of failures and detours. She confesses that there were also moments when she questioned herself. “But somewhere along the way, I stopped trying to follow the life I thought I was supposed to build and started listening more closely to the life that was calling me. Maybe purpose isn’t something we find all at once. Maybe we discover it by having the courage to keep becoming. 25 years later, I’m still becoming. And I’m so grateful for the journey,” she said.Lavanya Mahate has one message for people who are standing at the crossroads of life. “If you’re standing at the beginning of something and can’t see the whole path yet, you don’t have to. Just take the next step. And if you’re creating your own next chapter, follow along. We’re just getting started.”
