Chef Baldev Singh, one of Albuquerque’s most loved Indian Chef’s is back. He is the original chef to first bring Indian Cuisine to New Mexico and is now ready to serve NM again with something new!

Raised on a family farm in a little village in Punjab, India, Chef Baldev Singh grew up surrounded by the rhythms of the season, the wonders of produce fresh from the fields, and of course, their mother’s inspiring home cooking.
When Chef Baldev Singh was a teenager, he began learning the art of cooking Indian food by working at his father’s investment which was a dhaba (roadside restaurant). The chefs at the dhaba had various talents and tips to share. Chef Baldev learned how to prepare tandoori specialties first. It is not a simple task to master grilling meat in the tandoor. He prepared seasonal fish, tandoori chicken, kababs, lamb, and other local favorites marinated in spices and herbs. He continued to learn other aspects of cooking and how to make the curried dishes.
When Chef Baldev was in his late teens he served a customer who had heard of the little dhaba and wanted to try the food himself. He was an Indian businessman from Iran and owned the Maharaja restaurant. He dined on all the fine Indian delicacies the dhaba had to offer. He made Chef Baldev a once in a lifetime offer to join his staff in Iran. Chef Baldev did not hesitate to take this offer and he accepted the one-way ticket to Isfahan, Iran.
After spending a few years in Iran, he had the opportunity of come to the United States. He ventured to the best place in the U.S. to start his culinary venture and worked as a chef in New York City, NY at Kalpana restaurant in 1977. He was an apprentice under international Chef Kapoor. He continued to work in different restaurants in San Francisco, Ca and later Los Angeles, Ca.
In 1991, Chef Baldev decided to open his own restaurant. He discovered a gem in the the Southwest region of the country to start his own restaurant. Santa Fe, NM was where he decided to make his landmark start. He decided to call it India Palace, situated in the heart of downtown Santa Fe. In 1995 he also opened India Oven in San Antonio, Texas. This was all due to the remarkable support of the clientele in New Mexico. Later, he opened the award winning restaurant, India Palace. Many are familiar with the restaurant which was located in Ne Albuquerque. He continued expanding his restaurant business with India grill and Indian Food and Grocery. After taking a break, he could not stay away from the restaurant business and is now back and ready to serve New Mexico!