If you know chef Suvir Saran, you will know that he is not the one to mince words. In a candid tête-à-tête with Travel +Leisure India & South Asia’s contributor, the noted chef–who is also an author, a public speaker and an artist–talks about his current ventures, plans, and his role as the newly appointed Culinary Director at Bastian Hospitality Private Limited (BHPL).
Excerpts from the interview with Chef Suvir Saran:
T+L India: So, what’s been keeping you busy, chef?
Suvir Saran: For the past few months, I have been shuttling between Delhi, Mumbai and Pune overseeing 10 properties — four in Pune and six between Mumbai and Goa. The latter six are by the Bastian group. Three are already functional in Mumbai — Bastian, Binge and Bizza — and the rest are set to open between this year and the next.
T+L India: You’ve run some of the most celebrated restaurants. What drew you to Bastian?
Suvir Saran: I have been following BHPL’s trajectory since its inception. I’m delighted to be working in a hospitality company that is forward-thinking, and committed to quality and strategic growth. I am pleased to be associated with a brand that is not only focused on expansion but is serious about creating memorable experiences that result in a loyal customer base that keeps coming back for more.
T+L India: You are often associated with Indian cuisine but Bastian is primarily Western.
Suvir Saran: You know, that’s a myth! Before I returned to India in 2017 due to my illness, I was running Tapestry. [It] served diverse food from 17 nations and the menu changed every few weeks. I have travelled and eaten across the globe. [I] have learnt about food from all sorts of people — from kings and heads of state to the people on the street. I am a global citizen and so, it is easy for me to cook in Bastian [because] boundaries of cuisines or countries don’t exist in my mind and my work.
T+L India: Tell us a little bit about the restaurants you are now heading at BHPL.
Suvir Saran: The first one, Bastian Mumbai, is a hugely successful and celebrated restaurant that offers the finest food, service and ambience. It transports its guests to a surreal and fantastical space and is therefore loved by the who’s who of Mumbai. The food we offer at Bastian is inventive, refined, playful, light — and something that people can eat many days a week. For us, flavours are paramount as is value for money.
Second is Bizza in Bandra. If I have to rate the three most exciting restaurants on the planet right now, Bizza will be one of them. It’s our most celebrated Mediterranean restaurant where no two meals are similar and yet every meal is exceptional. At Binge, our third restaurant in Mumbai, we offer flavours of Latin America which are fresh, new, and delicious. We are opening Bastian in Bengaluru and one in Goa this year. Early next year, we will launch Bastian Raj in Mumbai.
T+L India: Tell us more about Bastian Raj.
Suvir Saran: Bastian Raj will be the next chapter of Indian cuisine and will be a nod to everything that was India and that will be India. It will offer flavour-forward cuisine that is sustainable, responsible, and inventive. We have used all the tricks of molecular gastronomy with local ingredients to create the drama and pizzas on the plate while retaining the true flavours. One example is rasmalai which comes in a hard shell but explodes into real flavours when the shell is broken. At Bastian Raj, we are bringing food that youngsters can relate to because it is India as they see it. It will also appeal to the older generation because it will offer real Indian flavours. We are working very hard and the menu already looks amazing.
T+L India: You spoke of Indian flavours and responsible and sustainable cuisine. Can you please elaborate on that?
Suvir Saran: Bastian was always practising sustainability–partly because Mumbai is sensitive about its seafood (when to eat and how much). We are a seafood-forward restaurant [and we] also believe in it. We have always used all the parts of the seafood, but now we have started some other practices too. We use vegetable scraps from the kitchen for making broths and concentrates for cocktails; our chefs are empowered to use the finest, even if expensive, ingredients that are 100 per cent natural; and we don’t use colour or preservatives in our food. We have always sourced locally, and now we are also taking hyper-local, regional recipes and reinventing them to suit the palate of Mumbai, while also acknowledging the sources and the masters of these recipes from every region.
T+L India: Any other thoughts on your new workplace?
Suvir Saran: Mumbai is like New York. It is the city of dreams, but it has a tough audience. You have to deliver quality [food]. So, we are constantly on our toes to keep evolving and bring the best to our guests. Having said that, people here are humble and it is great to be associated with them and with Bastian.
Related: TL Tastings: Bharat Excellensea – Mumbai’s Iconic Seafood Eatery That Reopened With A Bang!
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