Rising Star – chef Manav Tuli: Elevated Indian street food at Chaat, Rosewood Hong Kong
- Chef Manav Tuli not only inherited his father’s love of food but also has a keen idea of what keeps people coming back for more
- Even during the pandemic, ‘getting reservations for all our guests has been our greatest challenge’, says the Indian chef
Hong Kong has gone through a tough two years, with civil unrest in 2019 followed by the global pandemic, and the city’s F&B industry is among the most hard-hit in the world. Despite all the turmoil, Chaat opened at the Rosewood Hong Kong to much acclaim.
Even with dining restrictions imposed by the government that allowed only two diners to a table, plus a 6pm shutdown and rigid distancing requirements, the restaurant was fully booked for months in advance.
At the helm is chef Manav Tuli, who won South China Morning Post’s 100 Top Tables Rising Star Chef accolade for 2021. However, when he arrived in Hong Kong in September 2019, he second-guessed his decision to relocate from the United Kingdom.
“In September of 2019, the protests were going on and then Covid-19 happened. I thought I had made a really bad decision to move from the UK and had doubts and worries.
“But I must say that with the support from the hotel, especially Sonia Cheng, CEO of Rosewood Hotel Group, we made the bold move to open our restaurant in between the storm in June 2020. The bold step of having an Indian restaurant in a five-star luxury hotel like Rosewood was news on its own.”
Chaat’s theme is unique: it aims to elevate Indian street food, which has always been close to Tuli’s heart. “I have been in love with street food in India since I could remember. I remember going to the market with my parents and eating various street foods like pav bhaji, dosa, kathi rolls, samosas, kulfi etc. It used to be – and still is – a celebration in itself.”