Not sure when I earned my nickname “Chops” but with a lifetime spent in the heat of many a kitchen, it is quite appropriate! As a chef, restaurateur and hotelier, I have had the joy and satisfaction of cooking, serving and watching people enjoy my food for over 40 years! As a ‘Punjab da puttar’, the joy of hearty, home cooked food is in the genes, all I had to do was to live up to it!
A proud alumni of the ‘ 75 batch of Bombay Catering college, I thought I was done with college, but our Principle, Ms. Thangam Philip, the doyen of Hotel Management in India, had other ideas and I stayed on to teach Quantity Food cookery for 3 more years! The Quantity Food Kitchen served 100 breakfasts, 500 lunches and another 100 dinners everyday, so to say I had my hands full was probably very true!
While teaching at college, I had the honour of cooking for Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on several occasions when she stayed at Raj Bhavan in Bombay. I must have done something right because after one meal she patted me on the back and called me a “master of my trade”! No smartphones then, so no photos or videos but it was a fantastic experience!
My cooking resulted in me being spirited away by the Swiss group, AG.Heinr. Hatt-Haller, as Chef de Cuisine of their Indian kitchens on-site in Baghdad, but was soon sent packing to Zurich to do an advanced course in European cooking, ending up running both the Indian and European kitchens for the 4 years I spent in Iraq! No free lunches!
Fun though Baghdad was, I was looking for more challenge and back in Bombay, I joined hands with my colleague Chef Dayal Advani and together we designed, built and ran the 20 room boutique Hotel Sands. Stints in Management followed, managing the Bijlani Group’s Lonavala resort and the Golden Gate groups hotels and restaurants in Bombay but something was missing! Yes, I missed the heat, the creativity and the joy of cooking for people!
So in early 1990, I packed my bags and headed West! A short stint at San Francisco’s famous Indian restaurant, Gaylord, reinforced my dream and passion for cooking and in 1991, I opened Little India, my very own restaurant in Redwood City! And ran it for 28 years! Alongside my passion for food, I discovered American Football and the San Francisco 49ers, who I have supported for ever! And introduced many of the players to Indian food at Little India!
I continue my journey with food, cooking for my friends and families, especially my son’s family who live in San Francisco (I live in NY!!). We run the equivalent of a coast-to-coast “dabba” service with containers of frozen food – kheema mutter was the last consignment – delivered with every trip to see the grandson!
On being a TFN mentor
It’s great to be a part of The Foodie Network! Sharing my experience and knowledge is something I am hugely passionate about and to be part of this “community” gives me a chance to do that. I’m looking forward to swapping stories, recipes and notes on great places to eat (and drink – Punjab da puttar remember!) around the world and of course to hear about all the amazing stuff foodies are doing at home and my hometown of Bombay (I know it’s Mumbai but I still think of it as Bombay!).
Do write or message me with questions or ideas, I’d love to hear from you and be part of your foodie journey!
Chef Chops
Manoj Chopra or “Chops” as he is known to his friends and colleagues is a chef, restaurateur, and hotelier, and has had the joy and satisfaction of cooking, serving and watching people enjoy his food for over 40 years! As a ‘Punjab da puttar’, the joy of hearty, home cooked food is in the genes; all he had to do was to live up to it! Manoj Chopra’s journey has been fascinating, to say the least, and from cooking a meal for one of India’s most famous leaders to a stint in Baghdad, to setting up a hotel in Mumbai to starting an Indian restaurant in San Francisco, “Chops” has done it all and more.
Manoj lives in New York and is a Food Columnist with Travel and Food Network! Sharing his experience and knowledge is something he is hugely passionate about and to be part of the Travel and Food Network “community” gives him a chance to do just that.
