The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
the b-side
Thursday, April 6, 2017 — 3B

Srijith 
Gopinathan 

— 
executive 
chef 
to 
San 

Francisco’s Taj Campton Place 
Hotel — found his career path 
to be fraught with what he says 
were “big time complications.” 
Hailing from southern India, 
Gopinathan had as traditional 
of an upbringing as any of 
his regional contemporaries 
possibly could — a mother 
who (at least initially) wasn’t 
the happiest at his culinary 
aspirations, and a family of 
engineers, doctors and the like 
to supplement that.

“I certainly was a black 

sheep,” Gopinathan said. But 
his time off the beaten path 
seems to have paid dividends. 
As of 2016, the Campton Place 
boasts 
two 
Michelin 
stars 

under Gopinathan’s reign, a 
feat very few restaurants in 
the world have achieved. In 
addition to that, Gopinathan 
holds the prestige of being 
the only Indian chef to have 
reached two star status as well. 
His role as a purveyor of fine 
Indian dining in the Western 
world is something he calls “a 
big responsibility.”

“Indian food is one of the 

finest and flavorsome cuisines 
in the world. Unfortunately 
Indian cuisine in West has 
not 
been 
represented 
by 

professionals. 
We 
are 
just 

getting 
there,” 
Gopinathan 

said. And his team at Campton 
Place have been quietly and 
admirably leading the charge 
in that respect. “We are an 
example for Indian-influenced 
fine 
dining 
… 
[and] 
we 

communicate that well to our 

guests.”

And there’s stark truth in 

that statement. His rotating 
menu 
consistently 
offers 

the best ingredients Indian 
cuisine has to offer, while 
also channeling the kind of 
avant-garde 
experimentation 

that can be better associated 
with the likes of Ferran Adrià 
and Heston Blumenthal — but 
reaching that point took an 
extensive 
professional, 
and 

philosophical, education.

After pursuing a bachelor’s 

degree in Hotel Management, 
Gopinathan’s career path took 
him to a variety of destinations 

across the globe. Following 
his studies in India, he spent 
time at a variety of hotels in 
India before taking the helm 
at the Taj Exotica hotel in the 
Maldives. He later took to 
America to further his culinary 
education in Hyde Park, NY, 
at the Culinary Institute of 
America. Afterward, he found 
himself in the kitchen of famed 
two star restaurant Le Manoir 
aux Quat’Saisons, in Oxford, 
England, where he further 

honed his craft and better 
mastered 
the 
fundamentals 

of 
Michelin-tier 
European 

cuisine. It’s these experiences 
that Gopinathan said affirmed 
his choice of taking up the 
profession of being a chef.

“That’s when I figured I 

really wanted to cook and I 
enjoyed doing it,” he said.

Gopinathan has been the 

executive chef at the Campton 
Place since 2008. In that time, 
he has made a distinct name 
for himself thanks to his skill 
in finding a seamless cohesion 
between traditional southern 
Indian cuisine and classical, 
European 
fine 
dining. 

Touching on the fundamentals 
of 
his 
style, 
Gopinathan 

emphasizes that his adherence 
to quality ingredients is what 
helps bring his visions to 
fruition.

“It all starts with right 

ingredients. I always advocate 
for the best possible raw 
materials and try to maintain 
the integrity of the main 
ingredients … without masking 
[them] 
much,” 
Gopinathan 

said. 
“San 
Francisco 
also 

spoiled me much by providing 
me with [some] of the best 
ingredients in the world.”

Gopinathan’s 
ambitions 

aren’t settling anytime soon, 
either. After earning his second 
Michelin star in 2016, his eyes 
are still set on bringing fine 
Indian dining to the Western 
mainstream. Lately, he cites 
his 
Indian 
contemporaries’ 

culinary successes in London 
as a point of inspiration for his 
own visions.

“We should and will be part 

of mainstream scene here in 
less than five years. I’m sure of 
that.”

ARTIST
PROFILE

IN

TAJ CAMPTON PLACE

Chef Srijith Gopinathan

Michelin-decorated 
chef Gopinathan 
reflects on culinary 
style and philosophy

ANAY KATYAL

Managing Arts Editor

His rotating 

menu consistently 

offers the best 

ingredients 

Indian cuisine has 

to offer

GRAND CENTRAL PULISHING

The cover of Sarah Michelle Gellar’s new cookbook
The undead to uncooked: 
‘Fun with Food’ review
Sarah Michelle Gellar’s cookbook matches ease with taste

We all know Sarah Michelle 

Gellar 
for 
her 
empowering 

performance 
as 
Buffy 
the 

Vampire Slayer. Gellar even 
contributed to early 2000s teen 
flicks in “I Know What You Did 
Last Summer” and probably 
peaked in cinema as Kathryn 
Marteuil in “Cruel Intentions.” 
But what happens when you 
put this prolific badass in 
the kitchen, and she writes a 
cookbook? Pure magic.

From a young age, I have 

been 
obsessed 
with 
“Buffy 

the 
Vampire 
Slayer.” 
The 

title heroine was everything 
I could’ve asked for: fierce, 
independent 
and, 
most 

importantly, human. The show 
doesn’t hide the fact that Buffy 
is a teenager — a teenager with 
very real problems. Now our 
heroine has a family, and her 
issues have evolved from the 
undead to the uncooked. As 
a mother, Gellar continues to 
slay recipes as well as she did 
vampires.

A 
slayer 
turned 
mother, 

Gellar has found the importance 
of family in cooking and sharing 
meals, 
putting 
together 
a 

collection of over 115 recipes 
titled “Stirring Up Fun with 
Food.” Gellar wrote in the 
introduction, “Mealtimes have 
always been when I ‘unplug’ 
for a bit and engage in real, 
honest connections. Once I had 
kids, this experience became 
even 
more 
important.” 
She 

sets the book in the context of 
involving her kids in cooking, 
using creative methods to make 
the process fun and inviting 
for them. In describing her 
creativity in the kitchen Gellar 
asks, “Isn’t it more fun to eat 
food out of a jar?” The answer 
is a resounding yes, for kids and 
pseudo-adults 
(college-aged 

people) alike.

To test out how college-

budget 
and 
kitchen-friendly 

her recipes were, I attempted 
the Truffle Parmesan Risotto 
and 
Asparagus 
Fries 
with 

fellow 
Buffy 
fanatics 
and 

editors Madeleine Gaudin and 
Carly Snider. This was my first 
undertaking of any type of 
risotto or baked vegetable — 
and possibly Carly’s first time 
in a kitchen — and the outcome 
was 
more 
than 
affordable, 

manageable and satisfactory.

Total prep and cook time 

was approximately 45 minutes, 
which was perfectly reasonable 
for the busy college student. And 

the result was simply delicious. 
The 
asparagus 
fries 
were 

crunchy, tasty and guilt-free; 
the risotto turned out creamy 
and satisfactory and could’ve 
only been improved with the 
addition of some grilled chicken.

Better yet, the ingredients 

list wasn’t overly complicated. 
Having 
had 
most 
of 
the 

necessary ingredients, we only 
had to purchase the asparagus, 
rice, buttermilk and cheese. It 
also made a hefty portion of 
food, completely feeding four 
college students and leaving 
plenty as leftovers. The most 
important takeaway from our 
time in the kitchen is that kid-
friendly 
recipes 
also 
equal 

college-friendly 
recipes 
— 

apparently, our parents were 
right about us still being kids all 
along.

The book is cleverly sectioned 

into the months of the year, 
with recipes suited for seasonal 
tastes. The beginning of each 
section 
features 
a 
couple 

paragraphs about the month 
and Gellar’s personal culinary 
highlights that directly address 
the time of year. She writes 
that June is “time to loosen up, 
relax, kick off your shoes, and 
get a little sand between your 
toes. Eating outdoors is the 
rule rather than the exception, 
and every meal feels like a 
celebration 
of 
the 
season’s 

bounty.” She does a fantastic 
job contextualizing her recipes, 
adding a personal touch that 
goes a long way with motivating 
the reader to replicate her craft.

Even more exciting is her 

inclusion of “Star Wars Day” 
(May 4th) and Shark Week 
recipes 
in 
their 
respective 

months, 
making 
fun 
treats 

with 
creative 
presentations. 

Gellar notes that the recipes 
are personally connected to her 
family: “What other kids can say 
their mom and dad were voices 
in a ‘Star Wars’ series?” From 
Chewbacca-shaped cookies to 
“Shark Fin Parfaits,” Gellar’s 
creativity shines brightly in 
these subtle inclusions. She 
doesn’t stop there, including 
a section for school nights in 
her September chapter and 
the summer solstice in June, 
appealing to parents who might 
want fun culinary ideas for any 
holiday or time of the year.

By including a wide array of 

manageable recipes, Gellar has 
produced a cookbook not only 
appealing to actual kids, but also 
to college-aged kids on a budget. 
Equally as adept at slaying 
vampires as she is producing 
delicious meals in the kitchen, 
Gellar’s “Stirring Up Fun with 
Food” makes a fantastic addition 
to any home.

DOMINIC POLSINELLI

Daily Arts Writer

THE WB

But what happens 
when you put this 

prolific badass 
in the kitchen, 
and she writes a 

cookbook?

BOOK REVIEW

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