Art ,Action and Drama in our kitchen

Coming back to my Saturday kitchen was very interesting. After all these years it has become like a second skin for me. I live on the excitement,the high adrenaline and the action.Those who do adventure sports such as wild river rafting or sky diving would understand what I mean. The calm and peace gathered in the short break to India flew off like pigeons after a gunshot! I was back to my primal state. There were new chefs to be trained and hungry customers to be fed.Service in those peak hours take you to a different level of concentration . It brings the best and worst out of the team. Its fine art created amidst heat, sweat and blood . The pain of anticipation in your guts when order tickets are piling up and plates are getting stacked are second to none. Your senses are open and you are drunk with passion. The sweat on the brows and the aching backs stand witness to our toil. The joy of seeing a finished plate and the thought of your art being appreciated is also second to none. My chefs say that working shifts with me is baptism in fire. You are either this side or that side and mediocrity is not an answer. I wish somehow our customers understand what it takes to create what they are enjoying on their plates. It will enhance the dining experience even further!

Culinary rendezvous in India.

The most memorable destination amongst all in my culinary rendezvous this time was the South Indian City of Hyderabad. It is the I.T hub of South Eastern India and also a mecca for food lovers. I was impressed by the depth and intricacy of flavours and spicing in Hyderabadi cuisine. I had heard a lot about the famous Hyderabadi Biryani. Now was the time to experience it. The scale of production of this delicacy in this city is astronomical. Its something that is seen to be believed. The Biriyani restaurant was almost like a mini food festival! In fact encouraged by my Biriyani adventures, I did something even more radical. I went for a late night food foraging session with some local friends! We got up at four in the morning and visited the old cities’s famous eateries. It was as if time stood still there amongst the imposing and impressive Turkic and Mughal architecture. I felt as if I was transported back 500 years to times of Qutub Shah the founder of the city . All around me were people relishing offal of animals at dawn just before sunrise. I must admit I was impressed and intimidated at the same time. My hosts ordered tongue and sheen followed by kidneys and brain! And all this was being lapped up with thick Hyderabadi bread.We ended the meal with some warm saffron tea...A great aphrodisiac...

I am carrying the spirit of the regal Hyderabadi Biryani back to Margate. Wouldnt it be simply amazing to set up street side eateries with people enjoying warm exotic delicacies!

Foraging for herbs,spices and inspiration in India

It is time to get inspired. My travels are most of the time culinary adventures into the hinterland of exotic cuisine. This time I am foraging for two mysterious flavours. “Black stone flower” and Cubebs pepper”. Both spices are rare and unknown to most connoisseurs today. I have come across them now and then being used by traditional chefs throughout India.My hunt for these rare herbs will take me from the bustling western coast of Maharastra to the serene and quite foothills of the Himalayas.

Black Stone Flower" is a rare dried flower. It has a strong woody aroma and flavor and resembles lichens.Cubeb (Piper cubeba), or tailed pepper, is a plant cultivated for its fruit and essential oils. Cubeb came to Europe via India through the trade with the Arabs.In Europe, cubeb was one of the valuable spices during the Middle Ages. It was ground as a seasoning for meat or used in sauces.

The Ambrette flower blossoms

The Ambrette seems to be in full bloom now. We feel a new buzz around the restaurant with the new look and feel. My intention was to change the menu slightly to introduce a few new main courses and starters. Local Ramsgate crabs were an excellent discovery. Crabs have a special place in my list of preferred ingredients. It brings some mouthwatering memories back from childhood days in India. My mother makes the best crab in the world. Crabs in India are smaller and packed with flavour. I would compare them to the famous Cromer crabs in the UK. It was a sense of pure joy to recreate her recipe in the crab jus with mustard oil.The wedding season has been great at The Hannah Dining Suite at Quex Park.

My heart goes out to the flood victims in Pakistan. The sight of human suffering melts way conditioning and blocks in our hearts. Petty voices of political opinion and dislike die out and gives way to feelings of compassion . We feel the pain as if we are all connected by this invisible thread of humanity.

Thanet is special!

Taking Thanet produce to Earls court in London.

It is a matter of great pride to show case produce from our area at National forums. The Real Food festival at Earls court in London was great fun. Quex Rapeseed oil was our star product. There is a buzz around Rapeseed oil . It seems as if it is the cooking oil of the future.Cold pressed oil from our fields produced using environment friendly farming clearly stood out in the crowd for the most distinct flavours. Its the fertile soil of Thanet after all!

The sky is the limit!

A big thank you to dearest dada (Big brother).Thursday was one of the greatest escapes I had since months. Flying is addictive. It is a strange sense of freedom...almost as if it is intrinsic human nature to be air borne. May be the exhilaration comes from being able to challenge your intrinsic natural capabilities. I do not know as yet .Perspectives change in the cockpit and you realise how insignificant our day to day pursuits are in the bigger scheme of things. The most mind blowing sight is our coast. Its pristine. It looks like a perfect piece of art by the greatest artist in the universe.Canterbury looks like a chess board with the mighty cathedral as the centre piece. The most amazing sight is the landing at Headcorn . You feel transformed back in time landing amongst sheep in the flat lush green meadows of Kent.

Promoting Quex Park , Thanet and specially Margate at Kent 2020

Hi everybody.


Kent 2020 was an interesting experience. I am not an early bird. In fact sometimes I forget what the wee hours of the day looks like. Anyways this was a exceptionally early start. Nick Hewer the man from the TV series The Apprentice was our special guest of honour. His speech started with a comment on Margate and how the challenge of reviving our town was extremely difficult. The rest of his speech was the story of The Apprentice and Sir Alan Sugar. A few of the other speakers indulged in some more Margate bashing .I felt some how the isle of Thanet had the status of an unknown and uninhabitated island in the agenda of most speakers.Anyways, I believe any publicity is good publicity and Margate got a fair share of it! I was lucky enough to introduce myself to one of the speakers later on in the day. I said we are a michelin recommended restaurant and we serve fine food and draw people from all over the county. "So where are you based?" he asked. "We are in MARGATE sir" I said with mixed feelings of pride and humility.