Vikas Khanna, one among India’s most celebrated cooks and a choose on GraspChef, opened a restaurant known as Bungalow in New York final 12 months. Now among the many metropolis’s hottest eateries, Bungalow not too long ago obtained the celebrated Michelin 2024 Bib Gourmand Award. Speaking to CNN, Vikas Khanna devoted the accolade to his late sister, Radhika Khanna, who handed away three years in the past. A designer, writer, and entrepreneur, Radhika succumbed to lupus. Vikas Khanna revealed that she affectionately known as him “Mera sher” (my lion) and performed a key position in shaping Bungalow by commissioning artefacts for the restaurant from her deathbed. He shared, “I used to be not sure if Bungalow ought to be a profitable restaurant or an enormous one. She (Radhika) wished it to be a deeper restaurant.”
When the interviewer referred to Bungalow as Vikas Khanna’s “child,” he corrected her, describing the restaurant as his “daughter.” Vikas Khanna defined, “I’ve a really clear definition of the gender of this restaurant. This restaurant was born as a feminine, it’s going to dwell as a feminine,” including that the institution’s essence, or “shakti,” is female.
Vikas Khanna additionally shared a heartfelt reminiscence of his late sister, whom he described as his “solely good friend” and “soulmate.” Recalling an incident from 2003, he mentioned Radhika had taken him to a fine-dining restaurant for his birthday. After a pleasant meal, she wished to satisfy the chef, however the supervisor knowledgeable them that solely prospects who ordered the “tasting menu” may accomplish that.
As they left the restaurant, Vikas Khanna tried to consolation his sister, saying it had been his finest birthday. However, she replied, “I failed.” On her deathbed, she requested him to vow by no means to behave like that chef. Vikas Khanna quoted her phrases, “We had nice meals in that restaurant, however we have been made to really feel much less. ‘Un-restaurant’ your self.”
