6. Rang Mahal BY ATUL KOCHHAR, JW Marriott Marquis Hotel Dubai
In December, Atul Kochhar opened his Rang Mahal restaurant in Dubai’s new JW Marriott Marquis Hotel Dubai with an emphasis on locally-sourced Indian cuisine, a concept that helped him snag the first Michelin star ever awarded to an Indian chef.
Though the Indian celebrity chef currently employs an all-Indian kitchen, he recently told sister title Caterer that his real goal is to build a kitchen that is rooted in “multiculturalism”.
The London-based chef’s previous food and beverage outlets have all incorporated international kitchen staff. He is now looking to Dubai to bring that ideal to the UAE.
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“I think authenticity is in the concept,” said Kochhar.
“I strongly believe a good Japanese restaurant can also be run by English boys,” he says, implying the same is true of Indian cuisine.
“And there are many examples. It’s fantastic. It’s a matter of thinking how we make the cultures meet; it’s not about pulling them apart. For me, it’s pulling people in.”
He currently sources much of Rang Mahal’s menu from both the United Arab Emirates and India, which he says outlines the close relationship the two cultures share through a growing expatriate population.
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