Atul Kochhar

Infobox Chef
name = Atul Kochhar

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caption =
birthdate = Birth date missing
birthplace = Jamshedpur, Eastern India
deathdate =
deathplace =
style =
education =
ratings = Michelin stars Rating|0|3
restaurants = Benares
prevrests = Tamarind Rating|1|3
Oberoi Hotel (New Delhi)
television =
awards =
website = http://www.benaresrestaurant.com/

Atul Kochhar is an Indian-born British chef.

Born in Jamshedpur in northern India, Kochhar was trained and worked at the Oberoi Hotel in New Delhi.

In 1994, he was appointed head chef at the Tamarind restaurant, in Mayfair, London. By the age of 31, he became the first Indian chef to be awarded the Michelin star.

In 2002 Atul joined Marks and Spencers as a consultant chef and advised on their Indian food range. In the summer of the same year he left Tamarind to start his own restaurant.

Atul Kochhar now owns an elite restaurant, Benares. Its menu reflects his passion for food from all areas of India and a setting to rival the most elegant of restaurants in London.

His recipes have appeared widely in magazines and newspapers, and he demonstrates regularly on food shows in the United Kingdom and abroad. He lives in west London with his wife and daughter. He also teaches Indian cookery at the nearby Thames Valley University.

Recently, he has represented South-East England in the BBC's "Great British Menu". Kochhar beat renowned chef Gary Rhodes in order to represent the South-East in the final round. In The 2007 Series, Atul again triumphed in the heat against Stuart Gillies. Atul got through on the second series National final with a Spicy John Dory with mushy peas and a chutney, and a Main Course of a Spicy Rack of Lamb but failed to reach Paris.

In January 2007, Atul's new restaurant, Benares, won a Michelin star as well.

Atul competed again in the BBC's "Great British Menu" in 2008, losing out in the London and South-east heat to "Jason Atherton".

This year Atul is opening two new restaurants - Vatika in Wickham Vineyard, Hampshire(vatikarestaurant.co.uk) and Ananda in Dublin.