About the chef

From a farmer's family in Raigad to two MICHELIN Guide kitchens in New York.

I grew up in Mandad, a coastal village in Raigad, Maharashtra, in a farming family. Sunday mornings meant the first gift from the ocean, carried straight to the kitchen and seasoned with whatever the house had. I started at seventeen washing dishes. There was no culinary school and no formal training, so the kitchen itself had to be the education.

Twenty years later that has meant Mumbai rooms like Pali Bhavan, Mirchi and Mime, ISHAARA and Farzi Cafe, then New York, where I opened and ran the kitchens at Kanyakumari and Kebab aur Sharab. Both are listed in the MICHELIN Guide. Most recently I was Consultant Head Chef for BiBi in Riyadh, a London brand, which I continue to advise remotely.

Based in Mumbai · New York

Practising since 2006

Milestones

2006

First kitchen, Mumbai

Commis at Mogambo Cafe, Churchgate, at seventeen, then five years at de Gustibus Hospitality in Mahalaxmi, working up to Chef de Partie.

2012

Jr. Sous Chef, Pali Bhavan

Bandra West. Building menus to a house style, running the schedule, and holding food safety across every stage of prep.

2015

Head Chef, Mirchi and Mime

Promoted to run purchasing, event scheduling, menus, hiring and training across Mirchi and Mime and Madeira and Mime.

2017

Corporate Chef of India, FLYP MTV

New dishes and menu planning across the group, with responsibility for payroll, food supply and kitchen budgets.

2018

ISHAARA, then Bastian

Head Chef at ISHAARA in Lower Parel, then Bastian Hospitality under Chef Vicky Ratnani, controlling the preparation process and finishing every plate before it left.

2020

Brand Chef, Farzi Cafe and +94 Bombay

Menus and recipes designed to be executable at volume without dropping the standard, working with the corporate chef on special projects.

2022

Executive Chef, New York

Kanyakumari and Kebab aur Sharab. Built the kitchens, hired and trained the brigades, handled press and media. Both restaurants are listed in the MICHELIN Guide.

2025

Consultant Head Chef, BiBi Riyadh

A London brand in Saudi Arabia, November 2025 to March 2026. Menu pricing to market, standardised recipes and portioning, hygiene and safety systems. Continuing now as remote consultant.

Specialities

Menu planning & innovation Coastal Indian technique Kitchen management Team leadership & brigade training Food safety & hygiene Cost control & budgeting Standard operating procedures Recipe standardisation & yield Press & media handling Opening operations

“It may sound cliché, but it is my grandmother who taught me that food isn’t linear and can encapsulate a range of emotions.”

Dipesh Shinde