New ventures in food and drink for Spalding chef Ram

A Spalding-based chef popular for his Indian and Nepalese dishes has reassured customers of his commitment to the area.

Ram Krishna Bashyal has fielded a flurry of questions from loyal customers he fed during a five-year stay at the Gurkha Oven in Sheep Market, Spalding, ended in March 2017,

After selling his stake in the restuarant, Ram took time out to decide on his next move, both in the UK and abroad, whilst also parenting his two children.

But after taking over The Chequers at Weston in February, Ram thought it was the right time to introduce his former customers to his other venture, Gurkha Lounge Indian and Nepalese restaurant in Hampton, Peterborough.

Ram said: "Having lived in Spalding for 15 years, run the Gurkha Oven for five years, written recipe books and did a lot of things for the community, people are interested in what I'm doing.

"Since I sold the Gurkha Oven in March 2017, at least 200 people have stopped me in the street to ask about me.

"They were saying 'you've done so much in the community and it's not fair that you're not telling is where you are when you've been part of our lives for so long.

"But I couldn't reach 5,000 or 6,000 of my regular customers, when I was at Gurkha Oven, by advertising.

"So I wanted to tell them that I found a place in Hampton to open a restaurant and it's going really well.

"But The Chequers at Weston is mine as well, with a management team in place there who are running it as a pub, rather than a place that serves high-end food.

"It's just a normal pub at the moment but, in the future, I have ideas to turn it into a destination restaurant."