This popular chef took his menu from fine-dining to food court

At this food stall specializing in kathi rolls, biryanis and Bombay street foods, the most expensive item on the menu is $15

- KARON LIU

Chef Debu Saha won over the city's foodies with his fine dining through the decades. Now he's opened an affordable takeout spot at the College Park food court.

BHK Biryani House and Original Kathi Roll may technically be a food court stall at College Park, but as soon as you approach the counter it's clear it is far from the typical fast-food fare.

In the morning, in between serving commuters coming and going from College station cups of masala tea, the cooks are chopping onions and marinating hunks of chicken, beef and lamb in mint, garlic, black pepper and house-ground garam masala in preparation of lunch.

There's no microwave, heat lamp or steam trays. There is a dough mixer for making parathas during the lull between lunch and dinner. The centre table in the open kitchen is cleared and balls of dough are rolled and shaped by hand.

Heading the kitchen at the recently renovated lower level at College Park is chef Debu Saha, whom longtime foodies in the city have been following since the early 2000s.

He first made a splash on the local dining scene for creating tasting menus at the now-shuttered Biryani House overlooking Wellesley station and Debu's Nouvelle Indian Cuisine on Mount Pleasant that combined his French training with Indian heritage cooking. But back then it was a hard sell to most diners accustomed to Indian food being cheap above all.

BHK is a month old, having opened on April 14, and Saha says he's finally found his sweet spot.