Nitu Singh: A Food-Forward Outlook
As the owner of Antuns restaurant in Long Island, 2 Benares restaurant locations, and the Minar fast food chain in NYC, Nitu Singh has certainly accomplished an impressive amount. Growing up in New Delhi, he spent endless hours in the kitchen watching his mother prepare nightly family meals and learning from his father who was already in the restaurant business. Nitu worked in the family restaurant to learn everything he could and eventually used that knowledge to open Minar in midtown Manhattan.
Singh loves using all different Indian spices in his cooking, noting that every spice has its own identity and significance in making Indian cuisine unique. As an owner, he makes sure to partner with his staff and chefs to ensure each restaurant runs flawlessly and customer satisfaction remains high. The love he puts into cooking and managing every aspect of restaurant operations are two things he believes continue to drive the success of his establishments. Unlike many restaurants, Singh tries to stay true to his mission of making Indian cuisine accessible to the masses by focusing on quality and affordability over fancy décor and overpriced dishes.
When asked what his favorite thing is about being a restaurant owner, Singh answered, “It’s the immense pleasure I get from cooking and providing people with scrumptious food. I like using my work as a stress relief. Cooking has been my passion for as long as I can remember and I love that competition in the industry today continues to make the cuisine better.” Singh continues to draw inspiration from his parents as his father was one of the first to introduce Indian food to the New York and his mother was a constant daily influence. But over the years, he also continues to be motivated by all the positive feedback he’s received and requests he gets from customers to open new establishments in different locations.
Humbly, Singh notes that, “I have a lot left to discover. Indian cuisine is so diverse that the most essential thing is to keep learning from different chefs and applying new ingredients in different ways.” Over the past 10 years, he has seen Indian food in America involve into a truly fusion cuisine that is less about the traditional “spicy” connotation and more about creative, contemporary dishes with imaginative presentations. When looking to the future of Indian cuisine, he sees more of the fusion trend continuing as novel ingredients are incorporated to produce interesting new dishes. So how will Singh’s future plans be affected by the moving trend? Despite his undeniable current success, he dreams of opening even more restaurants throughout New York City. While several concepts may be under consideration, the basic premise will be high-end, high-quality, and highly regarded cuisine that continues pushing the Indian dining envelope.
As a mentor and motivator, Singh encourages young chefs to think about how they can contribute to the Indian dining scene. But while he supports following your dreams, he cautions that those interested in the restaurant industry should make sure they are well acquainted with all aspects of the business before jumping in. It’s a wise piece of advice from someone who is definitely in the know.