“Food has always been my way of bringing people together.”
I was born and brought up in Birmingham in a Hindu Gujarati family where food was never just about eating. It was how we celebrated life’s milestones, welcomed people into our home and showed love without saying a word.
Many of the recipes I cook today came from my mum, Nirmala. Over the years I’ve adapted some of them to make them a little lighter and healthier, but I’ve never compromised on flavour. That’s what makes Gujarati food so special. Everything I cook is made from scratch, never rushed and never from a packet.
Sangeeta’s Table was born after I lost both of my parents and made the decision to leave my corporate career behind. Before that, I spent more than 30 years working as a communications leader having started my career as a newspaper and broadcast journalist. After my mum passed away, I realised something important. I didn’t want the recipes she’d lovingly cooked for our family to disappear with her. That idea became Sangeeta’s Table.
I’ve been cooking since I was nine years old. Over the years I’ve cooked for family, friends, neighbours and my wider community. During lockdown I ran a home takeaway service, and for my partner’s son’s wedding, I baked more than 200 brownies for the celebrations.
Cooking has always been part of who I am.
Today, every guest who joins Sangeeta’s Table is welcomed just as my parents would have welcomed them — with warmth, generosity and a genuine desire to make people feel at home.