Also, be on the lookup for seasonal specials featuring other Baum Avenue Market concepts — such as a Paneer Tikka Masala Pie in collaboration with Valhalla Bakery.

Vale will also be taking over operations at Avocado Valley, another concept at Baum Avenue Market. “I’m looking forward to experimenting with the Mediterranean and Lebanese cuisine as well as Indian.”

The opening of The Twisted Indian’s brick and mortar space has been a lifelong dream for Vale. He was born and raised in Mumbai, India where he developed a fascination for cooking around the 7th grade. “One day in the kitchen, I saw my dad chop up a carrot really fast. And I thought that was really cool,” laughs Vale.

As his interest grew, he started to look up to famous chefs from America, like Wolfgang Puck, Vikas Khanna, and Eric Ripert of Le Bernardin in NYC. “There was a little pushback from the family to pursue this career,” admits Vale. “Many Indians are into IT, engineering, and medicine. That’s what they consider a noble profession. But my dad was very supportive.”

After high school, Vale moved to Goa, India where he earned a Bachelors Degree in Hospitality and Hotel Administration. His dream was to enroll in the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), but he knew he didn’t have the resume yet, having never worked in a commercial kitchen. Fortunately, Vale was hired by the Four Seasons in Mumbai, where he worked for three years before being accepted into the CIA in Hyde Park, New York.