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Curry chef who doesn’t take defeat

Carl Marsden
16/ 5/2008

IF AT first you don’t succeed, try and try again – just ask Oldham’s new Curry Chef of the Year, Gulam Chowdury.

The head chef  at the Prithiraj Restaurant has been runner-up in the borough’s hottest competition for the previous two years and was determined to win in 2008.

For the past fortnight, Gulam and his business partners, Anwar Uddin and Salikur Rahman, have spent late nights in the kitchen with staff searching for a winning dish.

Indeed, it was only the night before Tuesday’s contest that they finally hit upon the combination for their main course – a sizzling fusion of king prawns with chickpeas, peppers, cheeses, cucumber, spinach and carefully selected spices.

That – added to a chilli chicken starter – finally scooped the crown the Featherstall Road restaurant has coveted for so long.

Gulam Chowdury, 33, said: "I’m really so proud. The starter is already on our menu but the main dish is such a new dish that it was only last night we agreed on it. he staff all got together and gave their opinions and selected the spices – they were a huge help."

Anwar Uddin, owner, vowed his restaurant would be back again next year to defend the title.

"This is a great boost to our head chef and the staff", he said. We want to retain this next year and will be back with even better spices and quality food. We like to keep our food interesting and never let our standards drop – consistency of the food is everything."

There must be something about Featherstall Road because Nasir Choudhury, head chef at the Indian Ocean restaurant – based next door to Prithiraj – was runner-up.

And there were also celebrations at Royton Tandoori, on Oldham Road, which again held on "overwhelmingly" to the ‘People’s Choice’ award, voted for by the public.

The competition, now in its fourth year, saw a record 12 entrants at Oldham College’s Barn Owl restaurant.

Each chef had one-and-a-half hours to prepare their delights before a panel of four judges made their decision and the Mayor of Oldham, Cllr Ann Wingate, presented the trophy.

Frank Rothwell, co-organiser, said: "I would say the competition has gone from strength to strength – you could say it has gone from a korma to a vindaloo."