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Vivek Singh (born 6 May 1971) is an Indian celebrity chef, restaurateur, and media personality known for his Indian cuisine. He is the CEO and Executive Chef of five London-based modern restaurants. Singh is a regular face on BBC's Saturday Kitchen,[1] and has been featured on television shows including Madhur Jaffrey's Curry Nation,[2]At Home with Rachel Allen,[3]NDTV Good Times – Will Travel for Food and My Kitchen Rules UK.
Early life
Singh grew up in a coal-mining community in Bengal where his father worked as an Engineer. He attended a Christian Brothers school in Asansol called St. Patrick's Higher Secondary School. Like most traditional Indian families, it was expected that Singh would follow in his father's footsteps and go on to become an engineer. Instead, he announced that he wanted to become a chef.[4]
Career
Singh went to catering college at The Institute of Hotel Management in New Delhi from 1990–1993 and was selected to join the Oberoi Centre for Learning and Development that year. In 1995, having completed three years of training at The Oberoi, including at the Maidens Hotel and on The Oberoi flight services in Delhi, Singh was offered the job of running the kitchen at The Oberoi flight services in Mumbai. Following this, Singh joined the five-star Oberoi Grand in Kolkata.[5] In 1997, Singh took over the running of Gharana, an Indian restaurant specialising in the cuisine of India's Royal Courts. The following year, he became the Indian chef at RajVilas in Jaipur.
Singh met PR guru Iqbal Wahhab, at a wedding reception at Rajvilas hotel and talked about Indian food using French cooking methods.[6] They opened their first flagship restaurant, The Cinnamon Club, in London in March 2001. On 21 January 2015 Singh received an honorary doctorate from the University of Warwick for his contribution to the development of Indian cuisine in the United Kingdom.[7][8]
Restaurants
Modern Indian dish prepared at London based Indian restaurant- The Cinnamon Club
The Cinnamon Club – In 2001, Singh opened his first Indian restaurant, The Cinnamon Club in London. The Cinnamon Club is awarded as one of the "Best Indian Restaurants"[9] by squaremeal Food guide in London, UK.
Now converted into a Modern Indian restaurant on 30 Great Smith Street, London SW1P3BU
Cinnamon Kitchen & Anise – Food critic and writer Fay Maschler called Vivek Singh "a gifted cook creating striking and exciting dishes" when he opened his second restaurant Cinnamon Kitchen & Anise in 2008.[10]
Cinnamon Soho – In 2012, Singh opened his third restaurant, Cinnamon Soho, and published his fourth cookery book, Cinnamon Kitchen: The Cookbook. "Singh is a master of flavour" & "highly innovative", said Guy Dimond, food critic at Time Out.[11]
Cinnamon Bazaar – This restaurant inspired by the hustle and bustle of bazaars in antiquity and of modern days opened in 2016 in Covent Garden. In 2017 it gained a Bib Gourmand from Michelin for its high-quality but affordable food.[12]
Afternoon tea by Vivek Singh
Cinnamon Kitchen Oxford - Closed permanently in 2021 [13] – In 2017 this fifth restaurant part of the Cinnamon Collection opened its doors. This is Singh's first restaurant in the UK that is located outside of London.
Created by Indian Chef Vivek Singh at Cinnamon Soho, the third official restaurant under Cinnamon venture.
Public appearances
In 2006, Singh was invited to Hangar 7 in Salzburg, Austria. Singh is the only Indian chef to be invited to Hangar 7, where he worked side by side with Chef Eckart Witzigmann and Roland Trettl.[14]
In 2007, Singh helped recreate an Indian-inspired sausage based on Daljit Singh's childhood memories.[15]
In 2011, Singh was invited to Gourmet Abu Dhabi to showcase modern Indian cuisine.[16] He was also invited as a guest speaker on Maharaja Express "A passage through India" with Allan Jenkins.[17]
The following year Singh was invited to New York City for a week-long pop-up event at Desmond's NYC.[18]
Charity work
In 2008, Singh became an ambassador for Wooden Spoon, a rugby charity that offers help to underprivileged children. Singh collaborated with former rugby union stars Jason Leonard, Martin Offiah, Lee Mears and Nick Easter to raise funds through an event called Scrum Dine With Me.[19]
Singh has worked with Action Against Hunger since 2002, and for the past four years has been hosting an annual Diwali Charity Event in their aid.[20] He also supports Find Your Feet and helps out with yearly campaigns to raise awareness through the Curry for Change campaign.[21] Singh works with The Prince's Trust charity, Mosaic Network,[22] which aims to inspire young people from deprived communities to realise their talents and potential. Other charities include the Asian Restaurants Skills Board which aims to attract new talent to the Indian restaurant sector through college courses, work experience placements and apprenticeships.[23]
Controversy
In 2008, Singh was approached by Virgin Media to create the world's hottest dish to commemorate the launch of their Bollywood movie channel. Singh's entry caused quite a controversy as several curry house owners claimed that their curry was "the hottest". Singh responded by saying that although his dish made it into the Guinness book of world records,[24] there is no real way to measure whose curry is the hottest as it depends on the taste buds of the individual eating it. The dish became known as The Bollywood Burner.[25]Jonathan Ross tried the fiery dish on his Friday night show in July 2008, and Steve Carell also attempted to taste the dish.[citation needed]
Personal life
In May 1997, Singh married Archana in Bilaspur, India. They have two children together: Eshaan (born October 2001) and Maya (born in July 2006). Singh lives with his wife and two children in South London.
Cookbooks
The Cinnamon Club Cookbook. Absolute Press. 2003. ISBN9781904573012.
The Cinnamon Club Seafood Cookbook. London UK: Absolute Press. 2007. ISBN978-1904573418.
Curry, Classic & Contemporary 3rd book by Vivek Singh. London: Absolute Press. 2008. ISBN978-1904573883.
Walker, Chrissie (2012). Contribution in Capital Spice. London: Absolute Press. ISBN978-1906650728.
Cinnamon Kitchen The Cookbook by Vivek singh. London: Absolute Press. 2012. ISBN978-1906650803.
Singh; Yaseen, Vivek; Nagaraj, Abdul; Hari (2011). Cinnamon Club: Indian Cuisine Re-invented by Vivek Singh, Abdul Yaseen & Hari Nagaraj. India. ISBN978-8184001143.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
