Bradford's booming Mumtaz Asian food chain will open a new eaterie in the planned £35 million city centre Leisure Exchange.

The multi-thousand pound restaurant will be in the heart of the massive leisure complex on Vicar Lane car park.

It will be the first time the company - which has made its mark across the world - has operated in a leisure centre.

Joint owner Dr Gul-Nawaz Khan Akbar said it would be unlike other big name fast food outlets which operated in similar developments.

"We will take on a new dimension dealing with a large flow of people. But we will not compromise the high quality of food,'' he said.

"Curry is now the favourite food of the nation and we have received many approaches about outlets. I believe the Leisure Exchange will bring a lot of tourism to the city. We want to fly the flag for the city. It is not a run-down city; it is culturally rich and diverse."

The company already supplies all Britain's major airports and massive retail chains including Asda, E H Booth and Morrisons.

The Mumtaz Paan House and Mumtaz food product chain, which are based in Great Horton Road, are in the throes of a major expansion plan.

A big extension to the restaurant will give a total of 480 seats. The company is also building a new food processing factory.

The Vicar Lane development will bring about 50 jobs and a further 400 are expected through expansion.

Work is due to start at Vicar Lane in October but no finishing date has been given.

A spokesman for the developers' agent Dunlop Heywood said: "We are delighted to welcome a company of this quality into the scheme."

Dr Akbar and his brothers Rab-Nawaz Khan Akbar and Mumtaz Khan Akbar, founded the Mumtaz Paan House in 1980.

The business, which started life as a takeaway, quickly established itself as a top name in Kashmiri food both in Bradford - Britain's curry capital - and beyond.

In 1995 it hit the headlines by signing a deal with Harrods in Knightsbridge to supply its food hall with a range of Asian delicacies.

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