Jagjit Singhʼs diverse culinary background spans India, Dubai and Switzerland. Now, his cooking skills are being
showcased at the InterContinental Cleveland Hotelʼs restaurant. Marc Bona, cleveland.com
CLEVELAND, Ohio - A chef born in India, with experience cooking in the United Arab Emirates and Switzerland, who ran a specialized eatery with Middle Eastern and European flavors and who once roomed with a Mexican chef has brought his global cuisine to Cleveland.
Jagjit Singh is in his third month with Table 45, one of the more intriguing hotel restaurants in Northeast Ohio. It's located in the InterContinental Cleveland Hotel.
The menu brims with flavors. Many dishes keep an Asian spin, some now with an infusion of carefully prepared Indian spices and ingredients. But it's not just Singh's global cuisine background that he brings to the table. It's his love of feeding people. And that started with his mother.
His mother and sister work in hospitality in his native land. His sister works front-ofhouse and comes home at 2 or 3 in the morning.
"My mom is still up, because she knows she has to feed her before she goes to sleep. It's part of her agenda for the day," he said. "And she loves to do it."
That simple act also is what gives Singh joy in his job.
"I love feeding people," he said. Growing up, other kids mulled careers as an engineer or doctor or were undecided, but Singh knew at age 8 or 9.
Chef Jagjit Singh is executive chef of Table 45. Marc Bona, cleveland.com
"I changed my passion into my profession," he said. "I always knew what I wanted to do - hotel management."
He loved the restaurant aspect, but the foundation of hospitality - learning about accounting and other principles - helped launch his career.
Singh - who comes from Punjab in the northern part of India - moved to Dubai for sevenplus years. He started with modern Indian cuisine restaurants and shifted to hotels. Then he had an opportunity to open a hotel restaurant in Zurich, where he lived for about three years.
He got used to different clientele - and weather.
"From the direct heat to the alps," he said.
He ran a concept known as Soul Street - a "street-food global concept" that encompassed Latin American, European, Middle Eastern and Asian food in one place.
"That gave me the confidence of trying different cuisines - not just from a customer's perspective, from an actual chef's perspective," Singh said. "Because all of those cuisines being done in that restaurant were from chefs from that region."
That authentic training formed the basis of cooking knowledge for Singh, who said it wasn't just "making a replica, this is how it's supposed to be."
Table 45's menu offers traditional favorites with many new flavors. Marc Bona, cleveland.com
He was learning, as he put it, "from the masters of their own culture."
At Soul Street in Zurich he roomed with a Mexican chef for several years, and he learned cooking and culture. He and another chef wanted to grow their own micro-herbs so they started a garden. They cleaned an abandoned area, and three to four months later, the yield started.
"Every day we would have something new coming out of there," he said.
On an off day he would satiate his love of travel by heading to Austria, France or Germany, all accessible within a few hours from Switzerland. He speaks fluent English and musters through a bit of "Swiss German" and Spanish.
He came to the United States last August; his wife is a doctor at Case Western Reserve University. It wasn't too much of a shock; Zurich and Cleveland have similar temperatures, he said.
"I don't want to stick to one place and not be able to grow. I do need to keep exploring new food and cultures, and I am exploring new cultures in the U.S.," said Singh, who has traveled to Chicago and Houston.
"The most interesting part of this restaurant is it's a global cuisine restaurant. I don't have restrictions, I don't have boundaries."
That attitude fits well at Table 45.
"The more I understand about cultures, the more it helps me understand my clientele. Especially right now. Where I'm working it's a brand everyone knows, where the clientele is not just going to be American or from Cleveland; it's going to be from around the world."
His creations reflect his willingness to see no restrictions while welcoming a variety of flavors and textures. Some of the dishes he has crafted at Table 45:
This tuna cracker gives a Latin American kick. Marc Bona, cleveland.com
Tuna cracker - A Latin American kick with tortilla cracker, truffle cream cheese, avocado, spicy tuna and yuzu. A light appetizer nosh.
These "yogurt bombs" burst with a variety of flavors and textures. Marc Bona, cleveland.com
Yogurt bombs - Similar to the Indian dahi puri, he has Americanized the name. Paperthin semolina shell spheres are filled with sweet yogurt, tamarind sauce, mint and cilantro sauce and topped with onion-flavored butternut mash and fresh pomegranate. "The trick is you have to eat it in one bite," he said. "In India we always use our hands for this. It's going to be a burst of sauce, a lot of flavors happening together." The typical street food back home, he said, is a common evening snack. The taste? An ever so slightly sour, spicy and sweet fusillade that is messy and good and has a balanced mix of textures.
This is vada pao, vegetarian sliders. Marc Bona, cleveland.com
Vada pao - These Vegetarian sliders, a southern / central Indian favorite, are a carb-heavy potato patty with a little masala chile, mint and tamarind sauce. They are coated with roasted garlic chutney, with coconut and peanut mixed in and are served speared with a mild shishito. The Indian population is 60% to 70% vegetarian, he said, and potatoes work well with a variety of flavors.
"I've been trying to introduce some Indian elements," said Singh, including a popular butter chicken dish. And he values plating.
"To me the visual aspect of food is very important. Presentation of the food is as important as the taste. If the food is not presented nicely, the first impression is gone. If it looks good, if it looks inviting, you will want to dig into it." (Several of his creations are served on a green bamboo leaf.)
Yes, you can get traditional dishes at Table 45 - chicken to pasta to steak and sushi, but Singh has hit the scene with a burst of flavors.
He said pastry chef Tom Francescangeli is creating "mouthwatering, global desserts." A berry blossom cheesecake, Japanese-style, very light with matcha ice cream, is new. Also, Table 45 is serving a trending dessert called Dubai chocolate - chocolate, phyllo pastry and pistachio flavors. It's a version of a chocolate tart. And an Italian fusion dessert is "Baba-misu," with mascarpone and marsala mousse, espresso brioche and mocha ice cream. It yields the sweet taste of alcohol from the baba meshed with tiramisu, he said.
Clearly, there's a fresh approach under way at Table 45 on Cleveland's east side. Natasha Pogrebinsky recently came aboard as executive chef for the hotel, which deals with weddings, corporate affairs and other large-scale dining. Singh will use seasonal menus. He's added a Japanese twist to some dishes. New cocktails are being introduced. And he's open to change.
Table 45 is in the InterContinental Cleveland Hotel. Marc Bona, cleveland.com
"It's very important the team works well, and the team is learning and engaged all the time," he said. "Because it is not just me doing the menu, it's the team doing the menu for the whole restaurant."
Singh said it's imperative for his team to "become a well-oiled machine," bringing a needed chemistry to the kitchen.
"You're spending more time in the kitchen with your colleagues than you're spending time with your family," he said. "Christmas, New Year's, Easter - you're working."
For the customer, it's about the food. For Singh, it's about preparing something they will love.
"Food talks. Regardless of your mood, you will eat. You're sad, you're going to eat. You're happy, you're going to eat."
But feeding, he said, remains "the fun part."