Chef revelations: Abdul Yaseen

The executive chef and managing director of Darbaar restaurant, London EC2, tells us his likes and dislikes

What was your best subject at school?

Geography

What was your first job?

Cable guy

What was your first job in catering?

Pizza Hut

What do you do to relax?

Watch a movie

Which is your favourite restaurant?

Balthazar

What's your favourite hotel?

Rajvilas, an Oberois hotel

What is your favourite drink?

Whisky on the rocks

What is your favourite food/cuisine?

Mughlai cuisine

Are there any foods/ingredients that you refuse to cook with? If so, why?

In my view, every ingredient has its merits and demerits, and a good chef should be creative and innovative enough to use it to its potential

What flavour combinations do you detest?

Cinnamon with tamarind

What do you always carry with you?

Passion and wittiness

How would you describe your desk?

Unattended

Which person in catering have you most admired?

Marco Pierre White

Which person gave you the greatest inspiration?

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan

Cast away on a desert island, what luxury would you take?

Flip-flops and chewing gum

What daily newspaper/website do you read?

Metro on the train

If not yourself, who would you rather have been?

Abul Kalam Azad (ex-president of India)

If you had not gone into catering, where would you be now?

I'd have been a musician, an artist

Who would be in your fantasy brigade?

Sameer Taneja, head chef of Talli Joe; and Antonio ‘Lello' Favuzzi, head chef of L'Anima

Tell us a secret…

I eat everything before it goes to the table

What's your favourite book?