Convenience Big Store: League City fried seafood spot blends Indian, Pakistani influences

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How new owners are blending Indian, Pakistani influences at a League City fried seafood joint.

Lilly Seafood in League City – known over a decade for its fried catfish, hush puppies and shrimp po boys - sounds like the perfect place to get a bowl or plate of curry, right?

Because somehow it is - at least since Farheen Khan and son, Kashif, bought it from its original owners.

As I meet owners of different restaurants, I notice that more often than not, they seem to start from an emotional place: whether it's to honor a family member, or cultural traditions.

That's Lilly Seafood.

When Salim Khan suddenly died of a heart attack two years ago, his wife, Farheen, wasn't sure what she was going to do. She was 48 years old at the time and had never worked outside the home because she was busy raising her children and taking care of the family home.

Farheen talks a lot about blessings. When her son, Kashif, found out the restaurant was for sell, he saw something his mother did not see - at first.

Farheen told me that she now sees the blessing in Lilly Seafood.

Salim Khan had always wanted to open a family restaurant that served traditional Indian and Pakistani food. Farheen lets her son handle the business side of the restaurant while she helps to reshape its menu to reflect the family's Indian roots.

Farheen told me she taught her children to never "chase money," and she believes that good things come from pure intentions. For her, Lilly Seafood is more than a business.

And it just might be the only place in League City to get curry.

Yvette Orozco, Suburban reporter producer

yvette.orozco@houstonchronicle.com

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