Jehangir Mehta

Last updated

Jehangir Mehta
Photo of Chef Mehta.jpg
Born
Education Culinary Institute of America
SpouseHinata Jambuserwala Mehta
Culinary career
Current restaurant(s)
  • Graffiti
    Mehtaphor
    Me and You

Jehangir Mehta (born in Mumbai, India) was the executive chef and owner of New York City restaurants Graffiti, Mehtaphor and Graffiti Earth. He is the chef and owner of the private dining experience, Me and You. He is also the author of the 2008 HarperCollins cookbook "Mantra: The Rules of Indulgence," offers a cooking class at his restaurant for children 4-14 called "Candy Camp" designed to build interest in more diverse foods, hosts exclusive in-home dinner parties and runs an event planning company.

Contents

In August 2009, Jehangir appeared on "Iron Chef America" on Food Network, and was the runner-up on the second season of "The Next Iron Chef" later in 2009.

Personal life

Jehangir Mehta was born to Petras and Kolly Mehta in Mumbai, India where he was raised. He is Zoroastrian. [1] After moving to the United States, he met and married his wife, Hinata Jambuserwala. They currently live in New York City

Professional life

Jehangir holds a bachelor of arts in sociology from the University of Mumbai. Jehangir then moved to the United States to attend The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York and graduated from there in 1995.

After graduating from culinary school in 1995, Jehangir began his career at L'Absinthe in New York City. From there, he moved on to Typhoon Brewery where he worked as the pastry chef to James Chew, formerly of Vong fame.

Jehangir's next move was to Jean Georges. In 1998, Jean Georges Vongerichten selected him to open his new restaurant, Mercer Kitchen, quickly to become one of the hottest destinations in New York City.

In 1999 he moved on to work with Rocco DiSpirito at Union Pacific, and in 2001 joined Didier Virot, who had left Jean Georges to open the highly acclaimed although short-lived restaurant Virot. Jehangir's next move was to Compass, where he became known for unorthodox but creative and intellectually driven desserts.

In 2002, Jehangir teamed up with Didier Virot as the pastry chef at Aix, located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, where he received acclaimed reviews for his pastry creations, while also consulting with Patricia Lo at Sapa and Michael Symon at Parea.

In 2007 Jehangir opened his first restaurant, Graffiti, where he is currently the executive chef and owner. Started consulting with Umass Amherst on food sustainability.

In 2008, he authored his first cookbook, "Mantra: The Rules of Indulgence" which was published by HarperCollins.

In 2010 Jehangir opened his second restaurant, Mehtaphor, in TriBeCa within the Duane Street Hotel. This restaurant transformed to Graffiti Earth in 2016.

In 2013, Jehangir partnered with the non-profit patient advocacy organization Beyond Celiac (then known as the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness) as a chef ambassador to help launch their Gluten-Free Chef's Table Tour. The aim of the program was to educate chefs about the gluten-free diet and the needs of customers with celiac disease. [2]

In 2016, Graffiti Earth opened in the same spot as Mehtaphor. A complete renovation and rebranding, Graffiti Earth has the same signature eclectic cuisine as the original Graffiti with a more vegetable-forward menu and a focus on sustainability throughout. At Graffiti Earth Chef Mehta consciously works with underutilized vegetables, produce and seafood.

In 2017, Chef Mehta opened Me and You, a private dining boutique concept experience. This concept also travels to different venues in cities and countries.

In 2018, Chef Mehta started his consultancy in mindfulness, culture, and impact with Gourmet Dining, Compass USA.

Television and media coverage

Food Network

Other television appearances

Media coverage

Jehangir has been featured in numerous publications in the United States, including Gourmet , Bon Appétit , Vogue , The New York Times , New York , Time Out , Gotham , Daily News , New York Post . He has also been written up on various blogs including DailyCandy, Strong Buzz, Restaurant News, and Grubb Street.

Books

In 2008, Jehangir published his first cookbook:

Web show

Mehta debuted his do-it-yourself cooking web show, J Walk, in November 2009. [3]

Awards

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Masaharu Morimoto</span> Japanese chef (born 1955)

Masaharu Morimoto is a Japanese chef, best known as an Iron Chef on the Japanese TV cooking show Iron Chef and its spinoff Iron Chef America. He is also known for his unique style of presenting food.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Craig Claiborne</span> American restaurant critic, food journalist and book author

Craig Claiborne was an American restaurant critic, food journalist and book author. A long-time food editor and restaurant critic for The New York Times, he was also the author of numerous cookbooks and an autobiography. Over the course of his career, he made many contributions to gastronomy and food writing in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marcus Samuelsson</span> Ethiopian Swedish chef

Marcus Samuelsson is an Ethiopian-born Swedish-American celebrity chef, restaurateur and television personality. He is the head chef of Red Rooster in Harlem, New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elizabeth Falkner</span> American consulting chef

Elizabeth Falkner is an American chef and restaurateur. She has appeared as a competitor and a judge on reality television cooking competitions, and she is a Top Chef television series alum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Hastings</span> American chef

Chris Hastings is the owner and executive chef of Hot & Hot Fish Club, a restaurant in Birmingham, Alabama, and was twice a finalist for the James Beard Award "Best Chef in the South" award. In 2012, Chef Hastings was the winner of this award.

<i>The Next Iron Chef</i> American cooking competition show

The Next Iron Chef is a limited-run series on the Food Network that aired its fifth season in 2012. Each season is a stand-alone competition to select a chef to be designated an Iron Chef, who will appear on the Food Network program Iron Chef America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Symon</span> American chef and media personality

Michael D. Symon is an American chef, restaurateur, television personality, and author. He is seen regularly on Food Network on shows such as Iron Chef America, Burgers, Brew and 'Que, Food Feuds, and The Best Thing I Ever Ate, as well as Cook Like an Iron Chef on theCooking Channel and The Chew on ABC. He has also made numerous contributions to periodicals such as Bon Appétit, Esquire, Food Arts, Gourmet, Saveur and O, The Oprah Magazine. He is of Greek, Sicilian, and Eastern European descent.

Gale Gand is a Chicago-based pastry chef, cookbook author, television personality, and winner of the 2001 James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef. Gand was the host of the Food Network show Sweet Dreams. She was the Chef-in-Residence at Elawa Farm, in Lake Forest, Illinois. Gand is a partner and was the founding Executive Pastry Chef at Tru, a contemporary fine-dining restaurant affiliated with Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises. Gand and her partners at Tru won the 2007 James Beard Foundation Award for Service. She has blogged for the Huffington Post, was a contestant on Iron Chef America in the 2006–2007 season, and was a judge on Bravo's Top Chef in 2008 for the episode Wedding Wars. Gand was also featured on the Great Chefs television program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jose Garces</span> Ecuadorian American chef and restaurateur

Jose Garces is an American chef, restaurant owner, and Iron Chef. He was born in Chicago to Ecuadorian parents. He won in the second season of The Next Iron Chef.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Momofuku (restaurants)</span> Culinary brand

Momofuku is a culinary brand established by chef David Chang in 2004 with the opening of Momofuku Noodle Bar. It includes restaurants in New York City, Toronto (defunct), Las Vegas, and Los Angeles, a bakery established by pastry chef Christina Tosi, a bar (Nikai), and a quarterly magazine.

Frank Stitt III is the owner and executive chef of Highlands Bar and Grill, Bottega Restaurant, Bottega Cafe, and Chez Fon Fon in Birmingham, Alabama. He was inducted into the James Beard Foundation's "Who's Who of Food and Beverage" in 2011. The foundation also named him the "Best Chef in the Southeast" in 2001 and he was a 2008 finalist for its national "Outstanding Chef" award. Highlands Bar and Grill was selected the winner of its "Outstanding Restaurant" award in 2018. The restaurant's pastry chef, Dolester Miles, was the winner of its "Outstanding Pastry Chef" award in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vivek Singh (chef)</span> Indian celebrity chef

Vivek Singh is an Indian celebrity chef, restaurateur, and media personality known for his Indian cuisine. He is the CEO and Executive Chef of four London- based modern restaurants and one Oxford-based modern restaurant. Singh is a regular face on BBC's Saturday Kitchen, and has been featured on television shows including Madhur Jaffrey's Curry Nation, At Home with Rachel Allen, NDTV Good Times – Will Travel for Food and My Kitchen Rules UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manish Mehrotra</span> Indian chef

Manish Mehrotra is one of the India's highly esteemed chef, widely recognized as one of the most dynamic figures in modern Indian cuisine globally. Serving as the Culinary Director of Indian Accent Restaurants located in Delhi, Mumbai, and New York, as well as at Comorin in Gurugram, Mehrotra has garnered acclaim for his innovative approach to Indian gastronomy.

Pichet Ong is a 5 times James Beard Award nominated chef who specializes in desserts. As a self-taught chef with no formal training Chef Ong is best known for pioneering savory techniques and forgoing the heavy use of sugar in his desserts. Ong mixes classic technique and whimsical culinary style which are inspired by his heritage and local ingredients.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ranveer Brar</span> Indian chef

Ranveer Singh Brar is an Indian celebrity chef, Masterchef India judge, author, restaurateur and actor. He is well known as the host of popular Television food shows, actor and as a judge in MasterChef India, alongside fellow chefs Sanjeev Kapoor, Vikas Khanna, Vineet Bhatia, Garima Arora and Pooja Dhingra After graduating from the top hospitality institute in Lucknow, Brar stepped into a successful culinary career, now spanning more than nearly three decades.

Janice Wong is a Singaporean artist, chocolatier, chef, and entrepreneur. In addition to restaurants, dessert bars, and retail ventures, she is known for her edible art installations. She has won multiple awards, including being named "Asia’s Best Pastry Chef" two years in a row by the World’s 50 Best Restaurants award sponsored by S.Pellegrino. Her single-origin, bean-to-bar chocolate brand, Janice Wong Pure Imagination, has retail outlets and production facilities in Singapore.

Pongtawat "Ian" Chalermkittichai, known in English as Ian Kittichai, is a chef, restaurateur, television personality and cookbook writer. He is credited with being instrumental in changing predominant perceptions of Thai cuisine and one of the earliest proponents of the modernisation of Thai cuisine. He and his restaurants have earned acclaim from the New York Times, Food & Wine, Travel + Leisure and other publications. One of his restaurants, Issaya Siamese Club, has been listed on Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants, a division of The World's 50 Best Restaurants, and ranked number 39 in 2018. Australian Traveller magazine listed Issaya Siamese Club as one of the world’s hottest restaurants in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gabriel Kreuther</span> Restaurant in New York, United States

Gabriel Kreuther is a two-Michelin-star restaurant in Manhattan named after its chef and owner, Gabriel Kreuther. It specializes in modern Alsatian food with other French, German, and American influences.

The James Beard Foundation Awards are annual awards presented by the James Beard Foundation to recognize culinary professionals in the United States. The awards recognize chefs, restaurateurs, authors and journalists each year, and are generally scheduled around James Beard's May birthday.

The James Beard Foundation Awards are annual awards presented by the James Beard Foundation to recognize culinary professionals in the United States. The awards recognize chefs, restaurateurs, authors and journalists each year, and are generally scheduled around James Beard's May birthday.

References