From Delhi’s 13-person home to Dubai’s foodie haven: How Chef Kunal Kapoor fell in love with cooking

There’s dhokla. There’s chaat.

And you can turn it into art. That’s what Chef Kunal Kapoor did, as we watched him in the busy kitchen of Pincode, at Dubai Hills Mall. We were surrounded by noise and chaos, but Kapoor was not affected by it all: He showed us the steamed dhokla, soaked in buttermilk. Carefully, he squeezed different chutneys over the dish; a bystander might have confused it for a pastry, and still might have been just as satisfied. “Passionfruit, tamarind, and spicy mints,” he explained.

The dish was ready and he showed it with flourish. “And that’s dhokla chaat for you. It’s just super special,” added Kapoor.

A straightforward chef who sprinkles jest and cheer into every conversation, layering it like his dhokla chaat, Kapoor shared his story with us. We didn’t have much time, but like his cooking, his words flowed fast, flavourful, and full of personality.

 As he shared, he comes from Delhi. “I was born and brought up in a joint family. The rooms were small and there were around 12-13 mouths to food,” recalls Kapoor. The kitchen was the centre of all the action and he grew up around the smell of food. “I come from a typical Punjabi family where the men liked to cook. I would circle around them, watch my father and grandfather, and see them in action. It gave me the mindset men cook,” he said.

For Kapoor, cooking was never a gendered expectation but a family ritual. “When people came home, the men cooked. like uncles. It was normal. It was natural.” It spawned cooking Sundays, where all of them cooked.

Choosing the culinary path

Despite his early love for cooking, Kapoor’s parents initially had other plans. “They wanted me to become a CA. I did commerce, but I didn’t want to do it,” he admits. “So I got into hotel management. It was different. Once I joined, that’s where I fell in love with the kitchen,” he says.

One thing led to another, and Kapoor became a familiar face on Indian television, earning the title of celebrity chef.

The journey led him to Dubai, where he set up the restaurant, Pincode.

Why Dubai?

Kapoor’s connection to Dubai goes back many years. “My first trip was around 16 years ago and what fascinates me is that it’s an extension of India. You don’t have any issues travelling here. It’s constantly progressing, cosmopolitan, and flashy. It’s the land of opportunity and gives you support if you have an idea.  It made sense to set up Pincode here—it was a logical decision,” he says.

The story behind Pincode

There was a time that letters couldn’t reach a home, if they didn’t have pincodes. Technology has changed that now with maps, but Kapoor misses the old comfort.

It’s the reason why he chose the name of the restaurant. “With maps coming in, pincodes have become obsolete,” he explains. “But pincodes are old, stylish, and retro. You pick up pincodes from across India, and each represents a particular place in life. That localisation, that personal connection, is the essence we wanted to capture.”

A chef’s comfort food

So what comforts the chef himself?

He explains, “I don’t have a single favourite dish to cook. I like things that comfort me—a hearty pulao, a slow-stew curry. I also enjoy South Indian dishes like duck mappas or meen moily. Cooking is about soul, and that’s what I aim for.”  The kitchen is a place for laughter, calm and serenity, too as he says: You leave your stress outside.

You just cook. Maybe, that's all you need.