Atul Kochhar

 ( British People Of Indian Descent ) 

Atul Kochhar is an Indian-born, British-based celebrity chef, restaurateur, television personality and writer. Kochhar is widely regarded as one of the most influential Indian chefs of all time and has been credited with changing the way Indian cuisine is perceived by the world.

He was the first ever Indian chef to receive a Michelin star, awarded in London in 2001 whilst at Tamarind. He later opened his own restaurant called Benares, which won him a second Michelin star in 2007. Since then he has opened several other restaurants, both in the United Kingdom and internationally including Kanishka in Mayfair, London.

Kochhar makes regular appearances on television shows, and has written a number of cookbooks: Curry Everyday, Simple Indian, Fish, Indian Style, Curries of the World, and 30 Minute Curries.

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Early life Kochhar was born in Jamshedpur, India, and began his cooking career at The Oberoi Group of hotels in India (1989–1994). He gained his diploma in Hotel Management from The Institute of Hotel Management Chennai. In June 1993 Kochhar graduated to the five star deluxe Oberoi Hotel in New Delhi. Here he worked as a Sous-chef in one of the five restaurants in the hotel supervising a staff of 18 and immediately raising the standards in the kitchen.

In 1994 Kochhar moved to London to continue his cooking career at Tamarind in Mayfair and in January 2001 at the age of 31, Kochhar was the first Indian chef to be awarded a Michelin star, a milestone widely regarded as a turning point in the recognition of Indian cuisine at fine-dining level.

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Restaurants Atul Kochhar has been involved in the opening, operation and development of numerous restaurants in the United Kingdom and internationally.

Tamarind	Mayfair, London, England	1994–2002 /ref>
Benares	Mayfair, London, England	2003–2018	Kochhar opened his own award-winning restaurant on /ref>
Vatika	Wickham Vineyard, Hampshire, England	2008–2011 /ref>
Ananda	Dundrum, Dublin, Ireland	2008–2010 /ref>
Colony Bar & Grill	Marylebone, London, England	2010–2011 /ref>
Zafran	Dubai, United Arab Emirates	2010–2012 /ref>
Sindhu (P&O Cruises)	Azura and Britannia	2010–2018 /ref>
Indian Essence	Petts Wood, Kent, England	2012–present /ref>
Rang Mahal	JW Marriott Marquis, Dubai, United Arab Emirates	2012–2018 /ref>
Simply India	St. Regis Mauritius Resort, Mauritius	2012–2014 /ref>
Sindhu	Marlow, Buckinghamshire, England	2014–present /ref>
Benares Madrid	Madrid, Spain	2015–2018 /ref>
NRI (Not Really Indian)	Mumbai, India	2016–2018 /ref>
Lima	Mumbai, India	2016–2018 /ref>
Hawkyns	Amersham, Buckinghamshire, England	2017–2024 /ref>
Kanishka	Mayfair, London, England	2019–present	Kochhar's new flagship restaurant, opened on Mayfair's /ref>
Vaasu	Marlow, Buckinghamshire, England	2020–present	Kochhar' /ref>
SAGA: Cuisines of India	Gurugram, India	2021–2024 /ref>
Mathura	Westminster, London, England	2021–2022 /ref>
Kanishka Kitchen	Heathrow Airport, Terminal 5, England	2021–2023	A spin-off on Kochhar's flagship restaurant Kanishka in Heathrow Airport' /ref>
Masalchi	Wembley Park, London, England	2021–present /ref>
Riwaz	Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, England	2022–present /ref>
Essence at The Pantiles	Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England	2024–present /ref>

He has gone on to open several other restaurants alongside Kanishka since his departure from Benares including Masalchi in Wembley Park, Vaasu in Marlow, Riwaz in Beaconsfield and Essence in Royal Tunbridge Wells. These new openings as well as with his two older restaurants: Sindhu in Marlow and Indian Essence in Petts Wood have taken Kochhar's current portfolio to 7 restaurants in the /ref>

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Media Kochhar has been featured on BBC Two's television series Million Pound Menu. He previously presented a series called Curry on with Atul Kochhar on the B4U network and a series on Malaysia called Kochhar's Spice Kitchen. Kochhar appeared in Masterchef Goes Large, season two and BBC2's Great British Menu in a bid to create a menu in honour of the Elizabeth II 80th Birthday. He also appeared in Market Kitchen and Saturday Kitchen series 1–3.

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Controversy In 2018, Kochhar faced public backlash after making an Islamophobia tweet, tweeting that Islam had ‘terrorised’ Hindus for 2,000 years. As a result of this, the JW Marriott Marquis Hotel in /ref> Later that year, Kochhar also let go from Michelin‑starred flagship restaurant, /ref>

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Personal life /ref>

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Publications

• Fish, Indian Style (2008), Absolute,
• Atul's Curries of the World (2013), Absolute,
• Benares: Michelin Starred Cooking (2015), Absolute,
• Simple Indian (2016), Quadrille,
• 30 Minute Curries (2017), Absolute Press,
• Curry Everyday (2022), Absolute Press,

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