Abhijit Saha

THOUGHTS ON YCO
YCO is an important platform for young chefs because they’re at a formative stage. The experience that comes with it, of competing for your country at such an early stage, prepares the participants for the future. There are also a lot of cultures coming together and it is interesting to see how people approach a particular dish or a basket of ingredients. When the spirit of competition goes global, it becomes a different story alto-gether.

CHOP CHAMP
Cooking comes down to skill, skills like chopping and knowing how to play with the flame help determine the finest of the finest.

CREATIVE BUG
Besides cooking skills I was look-ing for discipline, ability to per-form on a big stage, determina-tion and creative streaks.

SEVEN NOT OUT
As coach of Team India, we just competed in Bocuse d’Or Asia Pacific in Guangzhou, China. Running seven restaurants itself keeps me busy all the time. I am also looking at a couple of new in- ternational projects.

Hometown : Bangalore (born in Siliguri).

Hometown : Bangalore (born in Siliguri). Restaurants: Co-founder, director and chef of Avant Garde Hospitality Pvt Ltd, which owns and manages three of Bangalore’s finest restaurants — Caperberry, that serves Modernist European cuisine, Fava and Fava Bistro, that serves Mediterranean cuisine. His signature Indian restaurant Saha in Singapore is currently in the process of moving from the National Gallery to a new location. Other outlets for which Chef Saha is a consultant include Red Rhino — Micro Brewery and Inspired Kitchen, The Pizza Bakery — Neapolitan Style Pizzeria and RockSalt— Indian Kitchen and Bar.

Careergraph : Began at Taj Palace Delhi. Was part of the opening team at The Manor, Delhi. Worked at The Park, Bangalore. Helped run Saffron at The Park, Calcutta. Loves: Wine, travelling and photography.

• Twitter : @ChefAbhijitSaha
• Instagram : @saha_abhijit