Campton Place Restaurant is Taj Campton Place San Francisco's Michelin-starred restaurant that serves a unique Cal-Indian cuisine. Chef Srijith Gopinathan, executive chef, Campton Place Restaurant is changing the architecture of California cuisine as he blends California fresh ingredients and the use of its smoke, fire and brining techniques with India’s multi-faceted regional dishes, aromatics, and traditional spice blends. He has earned the Michelin star eight years in a row, including the coveted Two Star recognition in 2016 and 2017. In conversation with Akshay Nayak, Chef Gopinathan speaks about his journey in culinary space and how he presents Indian flavours to the Californian palate
What were your initial inspirations to pursue culinary arts as a professional career?
Good food was always very important in my life so was cooking for fun. But being a professional cook/chef was something which I developed while I was doing my bachelors in hotel management, in my late teens. I quickly realised cooking was something I found joy in and I was passionate about.
Later I evolved as a chef over time and I don’t think I can attribute credit to just one piece of training. I feel it is many years of training with different people that had taught me to cook. I picked up something from everyone around, starting from my grandmother’s kitchen to Michelin starred restaurants like Le manoir quat saison and of course one learns a lot from co-workers, and colleagues and friends, who happen to be major influences. I would also say that my tenure at Hyde Park Culinary Institute of America in New York City, where, I must admit I developed a fancier outlook towards a cuisine that has also had an overbearing influence on my culinary style.
What were the challenges and opportunities you witnessed during your journey in this career?
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