Happy 10 Years to Executive Chef, Sajeev Nair

Last month we celebrated 10 years of holding a Michelin Star at Trishna and this week we toast to another exciting decade, to Executive Chef, Sajeev Nair’s 10 year anniversary at Trishna.

We spoke to Sajeev to find out more about his time at Trishna over the past 10 years…

What’s been your journey to Executive Chef over the last 10 years?

The journey has been a really memorable one. I was 28 when I started in Trishna as Sous Chef in April 2012. Karam (JKS Restaurants Co-Founder) was leading the kitchen and I’d help him run the pass alongside handling different sections whenever the need arose.

I was promoted to Head Chef less than a year later, when Karam left Trishna to look after new projects, such as Gymkhana and Hoppers. I was then promoted again to Executive Chef in January 2017 and have never looked back since.

What’s your best ever memory from the last 10 years?

Personally for me, the best memories would have to be the birth of my two daughters. I found out the news of my first born in the midst of a very busy Trishna service, which was certainly the most memorable service I’ve ever had!

Apart from that, there are too many great memories at Trishna to mention. We make sure to celebrate each and every small occasion like birthdays, promotions and anniversaries within the team. For my 10 year anniversary my team have bought me a meal at The Fat Duck which I can’t wait to try.

What’s been your favourite dish that you’ve ever had on the menu?

Well, I would say our best dishes have stayed on the menu for a long time. It’s our classical Trishna dishes which form the core of our menu like the Haryali Bream, Lamb Chops, Seafood Biryani and Dorset Crab.

We do an extensive amount of testing in the kitchen before we introduce any new dishes to the menu and often cook them for staff lunches to get feedback from the team. The Aloo Chaat and Chicken Pepper Fry are among the few dishes which were so loved in the staff lunch that we decided to introduce it (in a refined form) to the guests at Trishna.

What are you looking forward to in the next 10 years?

I’m really looking forward to taking up a new project under the flagship of JKS whilst continuing to look after Trishna to ensure that we continue to excel.

I’ve always believed to live in the present and not plan too much ahead, life is so unpredictable and I’m happy to go wherever it takes me, which has done me pretty well so far.

10 years is an incredible amount of time to work in one place. What’s it about Trishna that has made you stay?

I’d say the sense of belongingness at Trishna is something which has made me stay here for so long. Trishna has been my second home for past 10 years, in fact I’ve probably spent more time here than my actual home.

The whole JKS team from Directors to Managers have been extremely supportive in what has been the prime of my career. I couldn’t have done it without my kitchen team, they have been the pillar of strength to my success, most of them having worked at Trishna for 5-9 years. They’ve been with me through all of the ups and downs and I’ve always tried to repay their kindness by supporting them in whatever way I can.