Chef Johnee Savarimuthu is leading the
Indian fusion food movement. His restaurant 5th Elementt is a Canadian favourite, with the chic, downtown
Toronto establishment incorporating contemporary American, Italian and French cuisine with classic Indian
favourites.
What exactly does that
mean? With menu options such as the Grilled Bengali Salmon, 5th Elementt’s eclectic menu is far from
traditional.
“Even though it’s an
Indian fusion menu, I incorporate the best parts of all other cuisines,” says Savarimuthu. The chef notes
some of the restaurant’s favourite dishes from his famed menu, such as the Salmon-Wrapped Scallops with soy
glaze and Indian spices, and Bombay Calamari Fritters with Indian spices, served with tzatziki. “I’m trying
to satisfy most of the cuisines on people’s palate, I think that’s one of the reasons why people are
attracted [to the dishes] and they like to try it.”
Savarimuthu is no stranger
to culinary diversity. With his impressive resumé in the restaurant industry, the chef went from being a
self-taught cooking novice in his teenage years, to working as a sommelier, and joining the Food Craft
Institute (now known as the State Institute of Hotel Management) in India. He went on to work for the Taj
Group of Hotels, where he was recognized for his culinary skills. It was not long before Savarimuthu became a
highly sought after chef, with Sheraton, Taj
Hotels and Oberoi
Hotels all pursuing his great skill and detail-oriented qualities. Travelling from India
to North America, the chef would soon be calling the shots in a restaurant of his
own.
However, in order to
refine his culinary skills, he first decided to pursue formal education at the Culinary Institute of America
in New York. Savarimuthu went on to run Revival, a well-known French restaurant in New York. His cross-border
move to Canada inspired him to continue his entrepreneurship.
“When I moved to Canada
from New York, it was my goal, within a year, to open up my own restaurant,” he recalls. “I met with Vijay
[Karumanchi, the restaurant’s previous owner] and he told me, ‘You don’t have to invest any money, I will
invest money and you can work with me.’ I co-partnered with him and once he decided to close down, I thought
to take over [the restaurant].”
5th
Elementt, which formerly inhabited a location on Toronto’s trendy Bay Street, closed down in May
2010, leaving astray the strong following of people the restaurant had garnered over the years. However, when
Savarimuthu and his business partner, Kugan J., shifted the restaurant to the city’s Fashion District on
Queen Street West last October, 5th Elementt’s large client base was kept in mind.
“I did not want to
disappoint customers with such a small place. I wanted to make it nicer and still serve the same kind of
food,” he says. “This location has a lot of good traffic and you find different kinds of people. It’s in the
Fashion District so it has to be very fashionable and in style. We decided to go for a romantic theme.” The
new location features contemporary décor with a cool-colour design and romance-inspired artwork to create an
intimate ambiance for its guests.
The chef embraced the
change of moving from the posh Bay Street location to the quainter, urban city atmosphere of Queen Street
West. He even decided to modify a few key aspects of the establishment to implement his signature style into
the restaurant. The menu, which he refers to as “Indo-American,” is designed by Savarimuthu and his team, who
make monthly alterations to the seasonal, fresh assortment of foods offered at the restaurant. Its most
popular dishes, such as the Bengali Salmon, Lamb Shank and appetizers such as the Mango Salad, Seared
Scallops and Tandoori Shrimp, remain on the menu, much to clients’ delight. The restaurant also uses local,
Canadian ingredients, with Ontario wines comprising most of 5th Elementt’s wine
list.
In further pursuit of
change, the chef also toyed with several ideas for a new name for the establishment, considering the name
“Cuddle” to go along with the restaurant’s new romantic and intimate ambiance. However, that idea didn’t last
very long.
“For the customers to
remember that 5th
Elementt is still existing, we decided to keep the name,” he says, adding that the meaning
of the restaurant’s name has become a trademark for the company.
“With food representing
the fifth element… as you know, all four elements are common. As with food, it has been very recently that
people recognize food as another element because, without it, you cannot survive. We respect that term.” In
regards to the double-“t,” the chef says, “We just want to make it the fifth element of food and ‘tasteful’
[represents the ‘t’].”
Designing the fusion-style
menu for his restaurant is not as simple as it may sound. Despite the chef’s worldly experience, the style he
has decided to encompass in Canada was far different than he imagined.
“I worked in other cuisine
restaurants. Only in Canada, this is the first time I incorporated myself with Indian cuisine,” he says,
noting his restaurant experience in Pan-Asian, Italian and French cuisine. “Being Indian, it’s better for me
to market myself with Indian people. In a French or Italian restaurant, [there] are already enough chefs. The
population is very low here… If I incorporate myself with Indian fusion or Indian cuisine, it makes it easier
for me to market myself… to stand out from others.”
Always up for a challenge,
5th
Elementt has a Mystery Diners program, which allows guests who sign up on the restaurant’s
website to enjoy a free meal at the restaurant and in return, they provide the restaurant with feedback on
the service, food, atmosphere, et cetera. Although the kitchen staff is aware of the identity of the “mystery
diner,” the server is left uninformed.
“We want [guests] to
experience as a regular diner,” he says. “I can’t be here 24 hours… When people come, they give us their
feedback. It’s kind of a training program but customers are happy to be taking part of Mystery Diners and we
are happy they are giving us real feedback.”
Although
5th
Elementt is not the first restaurant in Canada to embrace the fusion trend, Savarimuthu
credits his restaurant experience in New York as the driving force behind his fusion-cooking
creativity.
“It’s a long practice. I
worked under famous chefs in New York. They are kind of fusion kings. It’s like comparing food with wine,
it’s the same thing — we’re comparing foods,” he says. “If I find something very interesting and tasty in
another cuisine, I try to think of where I can implement it in Indian cuisine. I try to match. We do a couple
of trials. Once we get the right recipes, we take servers’ opinion, friends’ opinion, then I go for the
majority’s opinion. It’s not just for me and what I like. What I like is totally different than what others
may like.”
And what does the chef
like?
“I like everything,” he
says, with a laugh. “Good quality and freshness. Tasteful food.”
With “tasteful” right in
its name, 5th
Elementt continues to deliver nothing short of delicious. •
Photo Courtesy:
Girish Bala
