Latest news with #EgyptianChefsAssociation
CairoScene
09-05-2025
- Business
- CairoScene
MENA House's ‘Moghul Room' Just Got a New Chef
Chef Manoj Nautiyal is taking that restaurant's legacy and dialling it up. May 09, 2025 Moghul Room at Marriott Mena House knows how to set a scene: parquet floors, gilded chairs, and a straight shot of the Pyramids from your paneer. It's a Cairo classic, long celebrated for its legacy of authentic Indian cuisine - the kind steeped in tandoor smoke, tempered spices, and time-tested gravies that don't pander to the faint of palate. And now, Chef Manoj Nautiyal is taking that legacy and dialling it up. He's worked in kitchens across Delhi, Dubai, Nairobi, and Cairo. He's led brigades. He's served dignitaries. But more importantly, he's got an internal spice compass that doesn't miss. What he brings is refinement, not reinvention - a deeper precision to flavours that have always been at Moghul Room's core. The tandoor turns out char with real consequence. The gravies land with purpose - sour, heat, funk, fat. A new Lucknow-style lamb is simmered until it collapses; fish steeped in tamarind and coconut arrives glossy and bright. Even the dal - silky, earthy, impossible to stop eating - feels like it's had its technique tightened, not tampered with. In 2021, Nautiyal was formally recognized by the Egyptian Chefs Association - a tidy line for the CV. But the more convincing proof might be in the growing number of locals booking a second dinner.
CairoScene
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CairoScene
Chef Manoj Nautiyal Is Flipping the Script at Mena House's Moghul Room
He's led brigades. He's served dignitaries. But more importantly, he's got an internal spice compass that doesn't miss. May 09, 2025 The Moghul Room at Marriott Mena House knows how to set a scene: parquet floors, gilded chairs, and a straight shot of the Pyramids from your paneer. It's a Cairo classic, beloved more for its legacy than its seasoning - until now. Because Chef Manoj Nautiyal has entered the chat. He's worked in kitchens across Delhi, Dubai, Nairobi, and Cairo. He's led brigades. He's served dignitaries. But more importantly, he's got an internal spice compass that doesn't miss. Just a deep respect for what happens when ingredients are pushed to their best behavior. His arrival is recalibration. The tandoor is now turning out char with real consequence. The gravies land with purpose - sour, heat, funk, fat. A new Lucknow-style lamb is simmered until it collapses; fish steeped in tamarind and coconut arrives glossy and bright. Even the dal - silky, earthy, impossible to stop eating - feels like it's had its ego stripped and its technique tightened. In 2021, Nautiyal was formally recognized by the Egyptian Chefs Association - a tidy line for the CV. But the more convincing proof might be in the growing number of locals booking a second dinner. The ones who long ago filed the Moghul Room under 'only if we have guests.' There's heat in the kitchen again, and not just from the charcoal.
