Top Chef, a reality competition, premieres tomorrow, March 20, on Bravo TV, and chef Rasika Venkatesa, one of the Bay Area chefs, is all set to win the hearts of judges and win the ‘Top Chef’ title with foods inspired by her Indian parents and cultures.
Hailing from Chennai, India, Rasika Venkatesa is a former chef of Moroccan fine-dining spot Mourad.
Prior to Top Chef, she won StarChefs’ Rising Star Award in the San Francisco/Oakland area in 2022.
Rasika Venkatesa is competing in Bravo’s Top Chef to win the title and take home a whopping $250,000 prize money with her reinvented Tamil foods that her parents taught her.
She shared the excitement and announced it on Instagram, writing, “If you would’ve told me that I’d be a competitor on one of my favorite chef competitions growing up, I would’ve admitted you for insanity. But here it is, something I’ve been wanting to share with all of you! Top Chef 21 Wisconsin It’s going to be a wild ride!”
Key Takeaways
- Rasika Venkatesa was born in Chennai, India, to her parents, Avr and Uma Venkatesa.
- The rising star chef says her grandmother is the one who inspired her and instilled her passion for cooking.
Rasika Venkatesa calls her grandma and parents, Avr and Uma, the main inspiration for cooking
The rising star chef Rasika Venkatesa was born to parents, father Avr and mother Uma Venkatesa, and grew up in Chennai, India.
Avr Venkatesa is the founder and CEO of Vroom, an online used car company, and former CEO of Amnet Systems Pvt. Ltd.
According to his Facebook profile, he studied Finance at Texas A&M University. However, he got his Chemical Engineering degree from the Manipal Institute of Technology.
He is the man who encouraged Rasika Venkatesa to follow her cooking passion and pursue a Bachelor’s degree in Hotel Management from Manipal University.
Meanwhile, little is known about her mother, Uma Venkatesa, other than the family pictures she posts on her Facebook.
While growing up, Rasika Venkatesa learned the power of food at a young age thanks to her grandmother, Mythily Ramachandran.
Moreover, Rasika Venkatesa recalls her grandma’s dishes bringing smiles and uniting the family with joy.
So, the rising star chef credits her grandmother as the biggest inspiration. Her grandma is the one who taught her what it meant to cook with love and intention.
Now, all of them are rooting for Rasika Venkatesa’s success at the Bravo’s Top Chef competition.
Also, to explore more of her original roots, Rasika Venkatesa recently went on a month-long research trip through Tamil Nadu.
So, now let us wait and watch her journey on Top Chef with her cuisines, which premieres tomorrow, March 20, only on Bravo TV.
FAQs
According to the chef’s Instagram profile, Rasika Venkatesa is currently dating her girlfriend, Ashwathi Naren, her 4th-grade classmate.
Nikhil Venkatesa is Rasika Venkatesa’s brother. He is a writer, photographer, and content marketer at OpenPhone.
