The chef of a much-loved restaurant, who learned the art of cooking from his grandmother when he was just eight years old, has been awarded Chef of the Year at the prestigious 12th Asian Curry Awards - a category that takes into consideration the whole of the UK, not just Wales. He joins a whole host of Welsh winners at the ceremony which celebrates the industry's best Asian and Oriental cuisines.
Neil Patel works as head chef at the family-run Vegetarian Food Studio - which has been celebrated by these awards before; in 2020 and 2021 they won Best Vegetarian and Vegan Restaurant of the Year - and owns the highly-rated restaurant with his father, Jim Patel.
He began his culinary journey cooking alongside his grandmother, Sharda, as a boy as she served dishes at the temple where the family workshipped. Now, over two decades on, the restaurant is a firm favourite amongst the Grangetown commmunity - and further afield - and it shows in the many awards the family-run business has been honoured with - they have also won national recognition in The Sunday Times, Guardian, and Daily Telegraph for their food.
