Terrance and Tiffany Hopkins-Dei opened Royal Zarasa in Elkins Park in July 2021 after spending years in the Philadelphia food truck world.

The takeout-centric restaurant offers an array of comfort soul foods and a lively atmosphere featuring music, conversation, and board games on the counter for waiting customers.

“Sometimes they stay for an hour after they get their food because they’re having fun playing,” Tiffany said. “We wanted to give people something to do since we make everything fresh. Our customers don’t mind the wait.”

The family-owned restaurant’s logo features a lion and the lamb, an international symbol of peace, and the name “Zarasa” is a tribute to the names of their four children.

“The name represents the saying, ‘God remembers the pure and sweet,'” Terrance said. “We focus on hospitality and family. We try to make sure that we feed people as we would want to be fed. It’s a homecooked meal away from home. Everyone is welcome. We try to make it an inviting environment.”

The married couple slash business partners made their culinary debut as a food truck in 2018. Tiffany went to school for the culinary arts, and when they attended the Philadelphia Night Market Northeast edition in 2017, the idea to open their own eatery culminated.

By that time the following year, Royal Zarasa was an official vendor at Philadelphia’s largest outdoor market.

“We were at all the main events. When we got into the building in Elkins Park, things started to happen and people started to notice us,” Tiffany, who creates the cuisine, said. “Our fried fish is our staple. I always like to try different things, and comfort food and soul food can mean a lot of different things to different people. We try to stay familiar, but we also like to switch things up.”

As such, the menu includes seasonal dishes as well as familiar favorites.

“Our Moorish curry is a big hit in the wintertime, and people tend to really enjoy that. We also like to bring in a younger crowd with our chicken and waffles, loaded fries and hot dogs, and our new item, the fried fish cheesesteak. That’s really taken off within the last couple of weeks,” Tiffany said.

“We’re about to introduce our bulgogi cheesesteak this week. It’s Korean-style, marinated,” she said.

For more on Royal Zarasa, located at 411 Township Line Road, you can visit their Facebook page and website.

For all the latest news, follow us on Facebook or sign up for Glenside Local’s “Daily Buzz” newsletter here.