Reviews
NBC 6 South Florida Interview:
Sidewalk Chef Shashank Agtey Still On Path To Superstardom
By Jacob Katel in Food Entrepreneur
Monday, Jul. 13 2009 @ 1:29PM
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| Jacob Katel |
| The Sidewalk Chef relaxes on Ocean Drive. |
Short Order introduced you to the Sidewalk Chef, Shashank Agtey, back in May. Since we last spoke, the restaurant he was working at, Crocco's in Ft. Lauderdale, went out of business. He's now a private chef for a wealthy family in Broward. He has a cookbook deal in the works, a recipe comic about to hit print syndication, and a class at MDC Wolfson he'll be teaching this fall.
Short Order recently caught up with Shashank. Here's the story of how a Miami food blog helped a Tampa based, English language, Indian newspaper decide to print a recipe comic.
Short Order recently caught up with Shashank. Here's the story of how a Miami food blog helped a Tampa based, English language, Indian newspaper decide to print a recipe comic.
"I was in the shower thinking about how to get the word out about Sidewalk Chef. We're not millionaires as of yet, so I was thinking about real grassroots kind of exposure. I've got a great comic collection and I've always loved cartoons and comics and so it just hit me to do a Sidewalk Chef cartoon.
This guy in Tampa who has a newspaper called Khaasbat, which means 'important talk' in Indian, found out about me on Short Order. He calls me up and says 'I wanna meet up and interview you.' So we're talking and I tell him about the cartoon idea and he said 'Shashank, nobody is doing this!' And so now we're gonna have the comic in this paper with 15,000 circulation.
We got this kid Hector The Director, that's what he calls himself, he designed the Sidewalk Chef logo and he's drawing the comic. I didn't even know he was a cartoonist till I told him about the idea, now he's our artist. These are just some rough drafts...
America still hasn't seen an Indian chef in the forefront. There's no one out there doing anything. Probably in August the first comic will run.
What we're trying to do here is not bullshit, we believe in it and we know it's gonna work. Right now I'm working as a private chef for the daughter of a retired NFL player's family of six. She wants to partner in a cookbook for simple, non intimidating recipes that can be made in 20 minutes or less, on a budget.
The book is gonna be like a prelude to the reality show, cause once it's published we're gonna hit the talkshow circuit and from there we're just gonna get so much publicity...we're gonna sell bookmarks, we're gonna have a bobble head doll, t-shirts, wall papers for your cell phone.
The way I got the private chef job is great. The last night that Crocco's was open I didn't know it at the time. So the next day my wife and I are out to breakfast at Mom's Kitchen, a small diner I been goin to for years in Ft. Lauderdale, and this guy Joe comes and sits down and says 'I got a guy who's Indian like you that loves the way you cook and wants to meet you.' Later that day I find out that Crocco's is closing, and a week later I'm working this new job. It's like the stars were just aligning perfectly.
It's a lifestyle change. I been working nights for 30 years. Now I'm working Monday through Friday and I'm home by 8 p.m. It's another perk of the job.
And if that wasn't enough, in November I'm teaching my Cooking Under Fire series at MDC.
You gotta have fun. I may be old, but I'm not too old to have fun, I'll walk that line with anybody. We like to say the sidewalk never ends. On my facebook I wrote 'the train has left the station, if you're not on board...' hahaha. This is gonna be one hell of a ride. I can't wait.
Want more info? Log on to http://sidewalkchef.com
This guy in Tampa who has a newspaper called Khaasbat, which means 'important talk' in Indian, found out about me on Short Order. He calls me up and says 'I wanna meet up and interview you.' So we're talking and I tell him about the cartoon idea and he said 'Shashank, nobody is doing this!' And so now we're gonna have the comic in this paper with 15,000 circulation.
We got this kid Hector The Director, that's what he calls himself, he designed the Sidewalk Chef logo and he's drawing the comic. I didn't even know he was a cartoonist till I told him about the idea, now he's our artist. These are just some rough drafts...
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What we're trying to do here is not bullshit, we believe in it and we know it's gonna work. Right now I'm working as a private chef for the daughter of a retired NFL player's family of six. She wants to partner in a cookbook for simple, non intimidating recipes that can be made in 20 minutes or less, on a budget.
The book is gonna be like a prelude to the reality show, cause once it's published we're gonna hit the talkshow circuit and from there we're just gonna get so much publicity...we're gonna sell bookmarks, we're gonna have a bobble head doll, t-shirts, wall papers for your cell phone.
The way I got the private chef job is great. The last night that Crocco's was open I didn't know it at the time. So the next day my wife and I are out to breakfast at Mom's Kitchen, a small diner I been goin to for years in Ft. Lauderdale, and this guy Joe comes and sits down and says 'I got a guy who's Indian like you that loves the way you cook and wants to meet you.' Later that day I find out that Crocco's is closing, and a week later I'm working this new job. It's like the stars were just aligning perfectly.
It's a lifestyle change. I been working nights for 30 years. Now I'm working Monday through Friday and I'm home by 8 p.m. It's another perk of the job.
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You gotta have fun. I may be old, but I'm not too old to have fun, I'll walk that line with anybody. We like to say the sidewalk never ends. On my facebook I wrote 'the train has left the station, if you're not on board...' hahaha. This is gonna be one hell of a ride. I can't wait.
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Miami New Times:
The Sidewalk Chef is Ready For Hollywood
By Jacob Katel in Coming Attractions
Friday, May. 15 2009 @ 12:42PM
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| Jacob Katel |
| The Sidewalk Chef in action at Crocco's |
Chef Shashank Agtey started his culinary career at The Forge as a dishwasher back when it was still owned by Meyer Lansky. He ended up in Miami from Bombay, India after his father dropped him off on our shores at the age of 17 with $125 in his pocket. Bad eyesight meant the military fighter pilot career for which he'd been groomed his whole life would not come to pass, so he was sent to America to seek his destiny. This is not made up.
Shashank comes from a privileged and politically connected family back in India that considers cooking a commoner's vocation.
As such, he's on a quest to prove to them that his life's passion and career choice is a worthy one and he's using reality television as a vehicle to do so.
It's still in the pilot stages, but the concept of the show is great. Basically, Shashank, The Sidewalk Chef, tours America in an Airstream trailer with a wacky cast of characters, stopping in cities along the way to shop for local ingredients and teach ordinary pedestrians how to make a gourmet dinner in under a half hour. He will also tell stories from his life. Each episode, participants and viewers will take valuable lessons they can use in their own kitchens and in their own lives. It's kind of like a culinary Kung Fu. Eventually Shashank takes his caravan to India where his family sees that he is a great man and that cooking is an honorable profession.
Currently Shashank works at Crocco's up in Lauderdale. I recently hung out with him up there and he is an awesome character with great stories,and he makes a mean pork chop. He used to work in the Omni Hotel on 15th and Biscayne and when the Overtown/Liberty City riots erupted the hotel put all the staff up for the night. They went up to the roof and watched the city burn. "It freaked me out" he says of the experience.
"I don't want to cook in the constraints of a kitchen, it's monotonous, everything is so structured, we just wanna have some fun." By we he means his wife, his buddy Mike who's been cooking with him for almost 20 years, the camera crew, his show producer (a 20 year music industry veteran) and whoever they pick up along the way. "I left India when I was 17, I wanna go back. I'm an American, I been here 33 years, and I love it, but a homeboy wanna go home."
Until the show gets picked up and goes into production Shashank is still an educator, by nature and soon professionally. He'll be teaching a course called "Cooking Under Fire" for the community education program at Miami Dade College."Right now we're laying the foundation. When we hit the road, we'll be wired for sound, video, everything."
Shashank even has his own legally trademarked phrase "What just flew off the pan!" He's ready for the bright lights, big cities, small towns, and adventure on the open road. Good luck dude, we're rooting for you.
Go to SidewalkChef.com for more info
It's still in the pilot stages, but the concept of the show is great. Basically, Shashank, The Sidewalk Chef, tours America in an Airstream trailer with a wacky cast of characters, stopping in cities along the way to shop for local ingredients and teach ordinary pedestrians how to make a gourmet dinner in under a half hour. He will also tell stories from his life. Each episode, participants and viewers will take valuable lessons they can use in their own kitchens and in their own lives. It's kind of like a culinary Kung Fu. Eventually Shashank takes his caravan to India where his family sees that he is a great man and that cooking is an honorable profession.
Currently Shashank works at Crocco's up in Lauderdale. I recently hung out with him up there and he is an awesome character with great stories,and he makes a mean pork chop. He used to work in the Omni Hotel on 15th and Biscayne and when the Overtown/Liberty City riots erupted the hotel put all the staff up for the night. They went up to the roof and watched the city burn. "It freaked me out" he says of the experience.
"I don't want to cook in the constraints of a kitchen, it's monotonous, everything is so structured, we just wanna have some fun." By we he means his wife, his buddy Mike who's been cooking with him for almost 20 years, the camera crew, his show producer (a 20 year music industry veteran) and whoever they pick up along the way. "I left India when I was 17, I wanna go back. I'm an American, I been here 33 years, and I love it, but a homeboy wanna go home."
Until the show gets picked up and goes into production Shashank is still an educator, by nature and soon professionally. He'll be teaching a course called "Cooking Under Fire" for the community education program at Miami Dade College."Right now we're laying the foundation. When we hit the road, we'll be wired for sound, video, everything."
Shashank even has his own legally trademarked phrase "What just flew off the pan!" He's ready for the bright lights, big cities, small towns, and adventure on the open road. Good luck dude, we're rooting for you.
Go to SidewalkChef.com for more info
MDC Community Education's Cooking Under Fire Class With Chef Shashank
By Jacob Katel in Cooking
Classes
Mon., Feb. 8 2010 @ 9:28AM
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| Jacob Katel |
| Sidewalk Chef in the Dean's office. |
In downtown Miami, there are eight classes taught in Wolfson's Kitchen. Recurring Short Order character Sidewalk Chef Shashank Agtey teaches Cooking Under Fire, a four-week course on cost-effective gourmet home cooking. Feeling the recession? Invest in an alternative to eating out, and save money. We personally vouch for the Sidewalk Chef's charismatic personality, commitment to his craft, and desire to share it with the world.
Other classes at Wolfson's Kitchen teach basic cooking, French cooking,
wine appreciation, cake baking and decorating, cooking for profit, a basic
vegetarian series, and even a food handler certification
class.
Visit communityeducationatwolfson.com
for more info. Registration is open now. Here are a few more
pictures.
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| Community Education chairperson Dr. Merril Irving Jr. |
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| Wolfson's Kitchen classroom. |
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| Sidewalk Chef in Wolfson's Kitchen. |
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| Shashank Agtey, ready to teach Cooking Under Fire. |
