Putting India on a plate

At Flour, chef Yogesh Upadhyay reinvents Indian cooking with modern European techniques.

IN a refurbished and modernised bungalow in Jalan Kamuning, just a few hundred metres away from TRX, chef-proprietor Yogesh Upadhyay of Flour is busy orchestrating and managing the next series of dishes that will be sent out to diners. As the finely prepared and impeccably plated dishes make their way out, the chef — known fondly as Yogi — peels his way out of the kitchen and explains the origins and the concept of each dish.

Part storyteller, part artist but unabashedly a master of culinary arts, Yogi describes each dish as it arrives, regaling in its origins, the concept behind the food and the ingredients utilised to bring life to his creation. At the time of meeting and chatting with Yogi, the restaurant was serving its Parivartan menu, which was inspired by food from India from 1500 AD onwards.

The 11-course menu featured servings such as Sol Kadhi (grouper cerviche served with coconut milk and kokum), Kunju Moilee (prawn cooked over charcoal topped with chilli butter and coconut) and Paro Manxho (cured and pan roasted pigeon breast served with pigeon sauce and berries jam).

With each course, Yogi illuminates both the palates and minds of diners revealing the story behind the dish, its preparation techniques and how it helped shape and contribute to the subcontinent’s culinary landscape. The culinary narration, combined with the delicious flavours, is all part of the Flour experience, which has not only helped elevate Indian cuisine but also give it a modernist take.

Journey as a chef

A trained chef, Yogi mastered the culinary arts when he started working in his father’s restaurant in the late 80s. “He put me in the kitchen to discipline me,” states Yogi with a smile. “I was sent to stewarding, and then I was chopping kilos upon kilos of garlic, onions, potatoes and things like that.”

Yogi, however, reveals that throughout that time working in the kitchen, his father would often come up to him and give him raw spices to taste.

“He would not say anything but hand me those spices. He did this for several years and I hated it. But what I didn’t know then was that it allowed me to know the flavour of spice by heart.”

From the confines of his father’s kitchen, Yogi ventured into hotel management, which he admits was where he got polished and groomed. “We were taught French culinary to the dot — French wines, Swiss and Italian cheese — all in all, European cooking to the core.”

However, upon graduating he discovered landing a job and keeping one was hard in the hospitality industry. “The jobs I did get hired for didn’t last and more and more it dawned upon me that this industry wasn’t for me.”

This revelation drove Yogi to Dubai, where he entered the corporate sector instead, closing the door on culinary arts for the foreseeable future.

In 2014, Yogi landed in Malaysia for a job where he met his wife Natasha. During the courtship Yogi began cooking for her and her friends.

He recalls his dosas and chapattis being some of their favourites. “One day, she turned to me and said — ‘Yogi, you need to cook’ — it was then I realised my true calling.”

Soon after, both of them decided to take the plunge and get into the restaurant business, which resulted in the birth of Flour. Even then Yogi admits that he was focused and unrelenting in the restaurant’s vision and concept and the food he would serve.

“I was going to make food that I wanted to make. I didn’t want to get dragged into making things like pizzas; it should be food that is an extension of me.”

Cooking his way

Flour, however, did not start out as a nouvelle-Indian fine dining restaurant as you see today. Prior to serving its degustation or tasting menus, Flour was originally situated in Damansara Heights, serving hearty Indian fare.

The menu at the time was centred on sharing portions, but it included dishes made with finesse and care in an elevated setting. For many diners and foodies in the Klang Valley craving delicious and authentic Indian cuisine, Flour was the ‘go-to’ place since it opened its doors in 2017.

“At its peak of popularity we had reservations fully-booked for a week on weekdays and up to two weeks for weekends,” recalls Yogi. For many chefs and proprietors, this success would have been enough to perhaps stay the course and expand or even explore franchise opportunities.

But for this creative chef, his desire and passion for culinary excellence fuelled his intent to take his cuisine to the next level. To start the next chapter, Yogi and Natasha called time on the restaurant’s premises in Bukit Damansara three years later, before relocating the restaurant to the heart of the city centre.

For regulars, the new Flour was a decisive step up in both concept and cuisine. However, Yogi explains that what diners see in the restaurant today has always been the true vision for the restaurant.

“When we first opened Flour, I wholeheartedly believe that Malaysia, and in some ways, even me, wasn’t ready for the concept,” he admits.

But when he orchestrated a tasting menu in 2019 across two days at Bukit Damansara, it was well received.

“I served a dozen courses, and it was sold out both days. That was the trigger and the seed was sowed that we had to now start realising this vision for the restaurant.”

Facing a challenge

After sourcing its new locale and following extensive renovations, Flour was ready for its grand re-introduction to the KL culinary scene. However, the restaurant faced a significant obstacle as it opened at the start of the pandemic.

“We opened in March 2020 and then the first lockdown happened and it all went away overnight,” says Yogi.

Admittedly, the challenges brought upon by Covid pushed the business to the brink. “I’ll be honest, we were pushed to the grave because it impacted our business and cash flow.”

Yogi admits seeking help through loans, investors and selling everything of value to keep Flour alive.

“I left no stone unturned,” he states matter-of-factly. “Some of my friends even advised me to shut down, and cut my loses.”

But Flour, Yogi says, is more than just a business to him personally. “It wasn’t started to make a profit, it was started because my wife told me — ‘if not now, never’ — it is my calling and it is beyond just business.”

That is undoubtedly reflected in the precision, care and technique Yogi and his team apply to the dishes. Ingredients such as green almonds are imported from Iran, green beans from Kenya and red carrots from India, all intended to help to bring life to Yogi’s vision of his food.

“I use produce and ingredients like artichoke, asparagus and caviar to expand this vision,” elaborates Yogi. “Food today is global and I’ll use what I can to execute that particular plate.”

In the world of culinary stars and recognition, Flour has somehow managed to elude a star or recognition, which is somewhat odd to say the least. However, for Yogi, he opines he doesn’t need or want one.

“I believe it’s more important for people to break the paradigm of their minds and understand that I am serving Indian food which in turn brings a possible change or revolution in the cuisine itself. I don’t make food for stars, I make food for myself.” Pulled quote:

“I was going to make food that I wanted to make. I didn’t want to get dragged into making things like pizzas; it should be food that is an extension of me.”

This article first appeared in Star Biz7 weekly edition.