American Masala

Chef Suvir Saran weaves the flavors of the world in his cuisine

Chef Suvir Saran brought his celebrated Indian cuisine back to New York City with his first solo venture, Tapestry [opened May 2016], where he served as executive chef and muse to his highly accomplished compatriot, chef and talented protégé, Joel Corona. He closed Tapestry for reasons beyond the scope of the concept or success, less than a year later Leaving patron fans and regulars with a heavy heart and him working on his next.

Born in New Delhi, Saran was drawn to the kitchen at a very early age, liking nothing better as a child than collaborating with his family's Brahman chef; some of his favorite dishes on the menu at Tapestry he learned from his mother and grandmother. He began studying art in Bombay, and ventured to New York in 1993 to continue at the School of Visual Arts. Eventually, he transformed his favorite pastime of cooking and entertaining his friends into a catering business, the beginnings of his remarkable, multi-pronged culinary career.

Saran is the culinary vanguard credited with making the flavors of India accessible to American cooks. Having triumphed in the New York restaurant world with Devi [the first Indian restaurant awarded a Michelin star], he penned three acclaimed cookbooks and held a five-year adjunct professorship at NYU’s Department of Nutrition & Food Studies. He currently sits on the nutrition advisory board of Brigham and Women’s Hospital, presides as chairman of the Asian Studies Center - World Cuisine Council of the Culinary Institute of America, and practices organic/heritage breed farming in upstate New York. He is an in-demand guest speaker, educator and a frequent contributor to notable periodicals such as The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.

Saran has been a featured judge on the Food Network's Iron Chef and Next Iron Chef, and achieved break-out stardom on Bravo's Top Chef Masters by offering a healthful alternative to the requested bacon cheeseburger.

Renowned for his accessible approach to Indian flavors and techniques, his cookbooks—Indian Home Cooking: A Fresh Introduction to Indian Food, with More Than 150 Recipes[Clarkson Potter, 2004], American Masala: 125 New Classics from My Home Kitchen [Clarkson Potter, 2007] and Masala Farm: Stories and Recipes from an Uncommon Life in the Country[Chronicle Books, 2011]—have gone on to reap critical acclaim. Masala Farm was a James Beard Award finalist for Best American Cookbook and the book, along with his other two, have garnered features and Top 10 rankings in publications such as The New York Times, Bon Appétit, The Wall Street Journal, Food & Wine, Fine Cooking, Travel + Leisure, Condé Nast Traveler, InStyle, USA Today, and many others.

"American Masala" is the name of his farm, his second cookbook, and his culinary philosophy, which embraces the best in Indian and American cooking. At Tapestry, he expanded this concept to include the many cultures whose cuisines inspire and delight him. The next restaurant and books will bring the diner/student to the new step in his masala inspired American journey.