Anahita Dhondy is an Indian chef known for promoting traditional Parsi food culture. She is a former chef at the SodaBottleOpenerWala and Bombay Irish Café and Bar chains. In 2019, she was named to Forbes Asia’s 30 Under 30 list for her contribution to food sustainability and popularizing Parsi cuisine. In 2021, Anahita wrote her first book called Parsi Kitchen: A Memoir of Food and Family.
Wiki/Biography
Anahita Dhondy Bhandari was born in Delhi on Thursday, May 23, 1991 (age 31; as of 2022). Her zodiac sign is Gemini. She attended Springdales School in Derry. She holds a bachelor’s degree in culinary arts. From 2008 to 2012, she studied at the Institute of Hotel Management, Aurangabad and the University of Huddersfield, UK. In 2013, she graduated from Le Cordon Bleu with a Diploma in Culinary Arts. When Anahita was 10 years old, she decided she wanted to be a chef when she grew up.
Photo of Anahita Dhondy picking cherries in Cyprus in 1999
appearance
Height (approximately): 5′7″
Hair color: black
Eye color: black
family and caste
Anahita belongs to a Parsi family in Delhi.
Parents and siblings
Her parents got married on December 26, 1985. Her father Navroze Dhondy is an entrepreneur. Her mother Nilufer Dhondy is a home cook and baker. Anahita has a brother, Kurush Dhondy, who lives in London.
Anahita Dhondy and her father
Anahita Dhondy and her mother
Childhood photos of Anahita Dhondy and her brother eating mangoes
husband
On November 17, 2017, Anahita Dhondy married Arush Bhandari, a lawyer from a Punjabi family.
Anahita Dhondy and husband
Profession
After completing her Le Cordon Bleu diploma in London, Anahita Dhondy returned to India and partnered with restaurateur AD Singh to launch the first SodaBottleOpenerWala at Cyber Hub in Gurgaon in 2013. At 23, she started working there as a chef manager. She later led the opening of several restaurant outlets in cities such as Delhi, Hyderabad and Bangalore and worked for these restaurants for eight consecutive years. She manages seven branches of Iranian Cafe Mumbai in three cities. In 2009, she worked as a kitchen intern at Taj Mahal Hotels Resort and Palace. In 2010, she interned at Marriott International for three months. From May 2011 to May 2012, she worked as a kitchen management trainee at Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces. During India’s first lockdown, Anahita and her mother started a food service called Weekend Kitchen from their home on weekends, through which homemade food was delivered to several areas in Gurgaon. The food items were highly appreciated by customers, which prompted them to later expand their delivery services in Delhi NCR. In 2022, Anahita Dhondy and food and beverage entrepreneur Vishal Anand partnered with Moonshine Food Ventures LLP to set up a 150-seat restaurant called Glasshouse at Worldmark in Gurgaon. Anahita advanced her career when she was appointed head chef at Glasshouse.
Awards and Achievements
- 2013: Times Food Guide and Nightlife Outstanding Newcomer Award
- 2017: Served as Chef Manager of SodaBottleOpenerWala and won the title of “Indian of the Year” in the hospitality industry
Anahita Dhondy wins Hospitality Industry Indian of the Year Award 2017 as Chef Manager of SodaBottleOpenerWala
- 2018: Condé Nast Traveller Innovator of the Year
- 2019: Named to Forbes Asia’s 30 Under 30 list for his contribution to food sustainability and popularizing Parsi cuisine
Anahita Dhondy named to Forbes 30 Under 30 list 2019
Favorites
- Restaurants: Kaizu (Japanese restaurant), COYA (Latin American restaurant) (both restaurants are located in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates)
- Food Market: Borough Market, London, UK
Facts/Trivia
- When Anahita was in school, she often helped her mother in the kitchen, cooking and frosting cakes.
- In 2018, Anahita had the opportunity to speak at the United Nations in New York alongside the Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
- Anahita revealed in an interview that besides cooking in a professional kitchen, things that keep her busy include socializing, dancing, reading girly novels, listening to music, and cooking for her family.
- Anahita represented India and SodaBottleOpenerWala at the EAT Forum 2018.
- In 2017, she served as a judge on the all-female cooking TV show “Femme Foodies” on Living Foodz.
Anahita Dhondy serves as a guest judge on the TV series Femme Foodies (2017)
- In an interview, she revealed that she loves shrimp patios, especially those with squash, eggplant, or regular tomatoes. She also said that she and her Punjabi husband eat it twice a week.
- On June 25, 2021, Anahita wrote her first book titled Parsi Kitchen: A Memoir of Food and Family Book, which is based on Anahita’s collection of recipes including her grandmother’s Ravo, inspired by her travels to Gujarat Inspired by Bombay Duck, and the quirky stories behind her beloved dishes.
Anahita Dhondy’s book Parsi Kitchen A Memoir of Food and Family Book will be published in 2021
- In an interview, while talking about her book Patsy’s Kitchen: A Memoir of Food and Family, Anahita said,
I would say that the book “Patsy’s Kitchen” is not only full of recipes but also has cute and funny stories. These stories are equally important because they provide context for the recipes. This book is a collection of not only beautiful recipes but also food pictures, stories and contributions from all my family members. It took me five years to put it together and it was my first step into my own culinary journey. With this book, I really want to make Parsi cuisine so famous that it should be a dish that should be cooked in your home every week. “
- Anahita revealed in an interview that when she was studying in London, she used to miss the food of her hometown very much; when she learned new dishes, she started to miss Parsi cuisine even more, which is why she decided to learn more about Parsi cuisine . She further added that she did not learn Parsi cuisine from any school or institution.
- Anahita considers her mother, grandmother and aunts as her teachers, who taught her how to cook.
- In an interview, Anahita said:
Well, now I am on a mission to make Parsi cuisine popular not just in India but globally. I hope people make Parsi dishes at least once or twice at home. They can make Parsi dishes as part of the celebratory menu, including dishes like Mava Cake, Dhansaak and simple Kadhi Chawal. That’s why I have a whole book. Also, I make a lot of videos on social media about Parsi recipes so that the message gets spread as much as possible and the recipes don’t disappear. I am organizing small pop-ups and classes so that one day everyone will enjoy cooking Parsi food and one day it will become a favorite cuisine. “
- Anahita Dhondy has consumed alcoholic beverages on several occasions.
Anahita Dhondy enjoys wine with her husband on New Year’s Eve
- On November 13, 2016, she appeared as a guest judge on StarPlus along with chefs Vikas Khanna, Zorawar Kalra and Kunal Kapur on the Indian cooking reality show MasterChef India- Season 5.
(L to R); Zorawar Kalra, Vikas Khanna, Anahita Dhondy and Kunal Kapoor In a still from MasterChef India Season 5 (2016)
- In 2023, she appeared as a guest chef on MasterChef India Season 7 and challenged all participants to a “stress test”.
(L-R); Ranveer Brar, Anahita Dhondy, Garima Arora and Vikas Khanna on the set of MasterChef India Season 7
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education