“I used to spend a lot of time in the Gurudwara kitchen during the langars as a kid,” says chef Ranveer Brar, as he tries to remember the first time he cooked.  Today, he is a professional food stylist and TV personality with five successfully running shows on Zee Khana Khazana and is one of the judges for the ongoing season of MasterChef India along with Sanjeev Kapoor and Vikas Khanna. Apart from hosting shows, he is also the proud owner of a string of restaurants In India and the US.

Starting off with cooking his comfort food, rajma-chawal, at age 11, he has been exploring food and flavours ever since. This brand new daddy also has a secret agenda for his newborn – “I hope my child can cook an authentic biryani at the age of 5,” he ambitiously states. Apart from cooking, this young chef has a passion for travelling and painting. He has conducted various workshops where he merged his love for food and painting.

Born in Lucknow, Brar started his journey with the Taj Mahal Hotel in Delhi. He later moved to Goa to open Morisco (a seafood restaurant), II Camino (an Italian restaurant) and Fishtail (an open-air barbecue eatery).It was here that Brar discovered himself as a chef, allowing time and effort to develop a style distinctively his own. He then moved to Boston to open Banq, which has won numerous awards, including the best new restaurant by Wallpaper magazine. After five intensely challenging years in the US, he is back in India.

After going places and trying out possibly everything under the sun, these are Brar’s top choices for a good meal:

Polish Hot Dog in Chicago, USA

A vegetarian meal at Vishala, Ahmedabad, India

Biryani at Idrish Hotel, Lucknow, India

An Italian dinner at Carluccio in London, UK