As The Grand launches a new garden grill at their Italian restaurant IT, we sit down with Executive Chef Nilesh Dey to pick the brains that go behind creating some of the contemporary Italian dishes. Starting off by graduating in Hotel Management from Bangalore University, he initiated my career with the Taj group of hotels as a Hotel Operations Trainee in Taj Residency, Ernakulum, Kerala. His next appointment was at Radisson Blu Plaza Mahipalpur, New Delhi followed by stints at Carnival Cruises and The Imperial before rejoining the Taj group. After working with chefs like Amit Chowdhury, Alian Passard, Pierre Bougard, Bruno Cerdan, J.F Palez ,Julian and Masaharu Morimoto, Chef Nilesh Dey’s range of specialization starts from Modern European Cuisine to Modern Indian and Contemporary Oriental. But he reserves his best for a range of wine and whisky pairing events. A few snippets of our conversation as we drooled at his picturesque food.
Salt and Sandals: What drives you to be in the food and beverage industry?
Chef Nilesh Dey: Innovation, challenges and an ever changing palate.
SnS: Where do you draw you inspiration from?
ND: My mentor Chef Amit Chowdhury.
SnS: What would be your advice to upcoming chefs?
ND: Stay simple, honest and be yourself
SnS: What is the most essential item in your kitchen?
ND: Knife and hygiene
SnS: What do you cook at home that you never cook at your restaurant?
ND: Kacchi Hydrabadi Gosht Biryani & Burrhani Raita
SnS: What are 3 tips for running a successful kitchen?
- Team work create miracles for you
- Be close to technological advancement in culinary with a innovative approach
- “Pull attitude” where your customer decided what they want & deliver with utmost precision.
SnS: What’s your regular comfort meal?
ND: Yellow Dal Tadka and Tandoori Roti or Pasta with pesto an pepper flakes
SnS: If you were to open a new restaurant, what style of food would you pick and where would you want it to be located?
ND: Modern Indian & European in a farm house some where near to Delhi where I can produce my own organic vegetables and greens.
SnS: When you’re at home or someone else cooks for you, do people feel pressured to cook you something fancy because you’re a big a celebrity chef yourself?
ND: First of all I am not a ‘big celebrity chef’. I am just a Chef who wants to do simple and creative food as per the palate of my guests. I love to eat a simple home cooked meal by my mom and wife
SnS: Mention one project which is very close to your heart?
ND: Getting “The Grand” the culinary class it deserves apart from “Grill by the Garden” in IT’s alfresco and the new Crystal Lounge and Caraway menu.
Stay tuned as we bring you the latest news from The Grand.
