Chef Bakshish Dean

Lost mother at the age of 13 and took it upon himself to make meals for his sister and father. Originally intended to become a doctor. Education : He was accepted to the Institute of Hotel Management in Ahmedabad and graduated in 1991 Career : he got the opportunity to work as an assistant chef to Hemant Oberoi at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in Mumbai. He also trained under celebrity chef Antony Worrall Thompson at the exclusive restaurant Ménage à Trois, which is famous for its lunch menu of starters and puddings. He then joined the exclusive Orient Express at Taj Palace Hotel, New Delhi in 1995 as the chef-in-charge where he remained for four years. In 1999, when the newly opened Indus Cruising Culinary Institute offered him the post of the Principal, he said yes and trained 340 students on food production, food handling and advanced cooking techniques, among other things. He then went into freelance consulting for restaurants with his wife Rupali in 2001. They became the brains behind the pub Buzz and the popular Lodi Garden Restaurant in New Delhi. Dean advised the restaurateurs on everything, from the conceptualisation of the restaurant to its menu. He was offered his current position of Executive Chef at The Park, New Delhi in March 2002 He became very interested in molecular gastronomy and the efforts of Heston Blumenthal. His kitchen executive, Chef Gaurav Bajaj, went on to train at Saint Pierre The Restaurant in Singapore, where the chefs had been combining traditional cooking and when Chef Bajaj returned to India, he and Dean were able to successfully implement molecular gastronomy and incorporate it into their menus at the Mist and Fire restaurants at The Park. Named 'Chef of the Year' in 2007.