Before tikka masala and butter chicken became campus favorites, it was one chef’s goal to share his hospitality with hungry students and a diverse community. Thirty-one years later, Indian dishes are available daily across Michigan State University’s campus as a taste of home.
Chef Rajeev Patgaonkar is known throughout MSU Culinary Services (CS) as an essential contributor and a warm, hardworking individual and chef. Born in Radhanagari, Kolhapur, +India, Patgaonkar left home at the age of 15 to begin his studies and work elsewhere. He traveled across the world and eventually landed in East Lansing and the MSU community.
Patgaonkar’s Journey
Patgaonkar worked numerous jobs in the culinary industry, including hotels, cruise lines, fine dining restaurants and Ambassador’s Sky Chef in Mumbai, Saudi Arabia, Oman and the U.S. As he puts it, he’s worked in the air, on the water and on land throughout his career.
In 1994, he arrived at the Kellogg Hotel & Conference Center, where he developed a niche for Indian cuisine. He catered weddings, baby showers and other special events becoming well-known within the local Indian community and greater Lansing and Michigan areas. Throughout his travels, Patgaonkar developed a diverse culinary background, which he brings to the MSU community.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Patgaonkar transitioned from the Kellogg Center to student residential dining for a better work-life balance.
Culinary and Local Service
Patgaonkar is involved in many local, national and international groups related to the culinary industry and the community. He served as vice president of the American Culinary Federation (ACF), the largest chefs and cooks organization in North America. He represents ACF North America on the World Chefs Without Borders Committee. Patgaonkar has also volunteered with Habitat for Humanity Lansing and Cystic Fibrosis fundraising events, while regularly judging local culinary competitions.
“To be around Chef Rajeev is like being around the definition of hospitality in person,” says Bryan Latz, senior executive chef for Residential Dining. “I don’t know if I have ever been around someone who is as talented and knowledgeable in the kitchen as Chef Rajeev who is also so humble and always ready to serve.”
MSU’s Indian Cuisine Scene
Patgaonkar brought Indian cuisine to MSU’s campus in a way it had not existed. He created a niche at the Kellogg Center, but outreach was limited due to dishes only being available to guests and at special events. When Patgaonkar transitioned to on-campus dining, he says, “the outreach was tenfold.”
Patgaonkar says he helped improve CS and meet the needs of a growing Indian student population over the past three to four years by introducing traditional, polished Indian dishes. “It’s been really successful. We want to give them the experience as if they are home away from home.”
The introduction of Indian cuisine on campus lead to Patgaonkar training many of his fellow chefs and cooks in Indian techniques and recipes. Now, he says, many of them have surpassed him in technique and execution.
“We have to look after [students’] well-being. If they are well and feel comfortable, they’re going to do themselves good,” Patgaonkar says. “They’re going to excel themselves. They’re going to feel good and then carry on that goodness further and pay it forward.”
Awards and Accomplishments
Recently, Patgaonkar received multiple awards. In September, he earned the ACF Hermann G. Rusch Chef’s Achievement Award, a national award honoring chefs who have demonstrated the highest level of commitment to both ACF and the culinary profession.
He also received ACF’s Presidential Medallion, the highest honor awarded by the president of ACF. The award recognizes outstanding representation of the ACF’s fundamental principles, including superior strength of character and contributions to ACF and the culinary industry as a whole.
“It is inspiring to see Chef Rajeev honored by his peers in the chef community,” Executive Director of Culinary Services Rebecca Selesky says. “The awards reflect his commitment to the American Culinary Federation, his professional growth and his unwavering dedication to his craft.”
Patgaonkar’s other accolades include membership in the Honorable Order Golden Toque (HOGT) as one of 100 living chefs, serving on the ACF National Board and as Central Region vice president, holding honorary faculty status at the MSU School of Hospitality Business, membership in the Canadian Chefs Honor Society and American Academy of Chefs and the ACF Honor Society.
On Oct. 20, he was part of the inaugural class of the Michigan Chef De Cuisine Association’s Michigan Chefs Hall of Fame.
“Just because I’m in the Hall of Fame, I’m not a different guy,” Patgaonkar says. “I’m still a humble cook. ‘Chef’ is just a polished name with different responsibilities. At the end of the day, I’m a cook. I’m not afraid to get my hands dirty. Every day, any day, wherever needed, I will jump in and help whoever needs anything.”
Patgaonkar explains it feels good to be on the right path and that people are noticing the hard work he puts into his food and his craft. He remains steadfast in his belief that awards shouldn’t be expected.
One of Patgaonkar’s favorite mottos is: every day is a new day. This is the mentality he brings to MSU CS daily.
“Every day is a different experience,” he says. “Just because you got that [award], does not mean you stand and be stagnant on that laurel. You’ve got to move on every day. Move on to the next day. Every day is a different day.”
Patganokar looks at every day as a blessing. He says he’s grateful to be surrounded by a great atmosphere at MSU CS, an atmosphere that gives him more energy to continue to be there for his people, in whatever small way he can.
Spartan Chef
Throughout his success, Patgaonkar remains a proud representative of MSU. He appreciates the support and flexibility that allow him to pursue extracurriculars, such as in October, when he toured walnut harvesting orchards in California with chefs from around the world.
“I proudly represent MSU everywhere I go because we are proud Spartans,” Patgaonkar says. “I feel I represent us wherever I go. Wherever I go, I’m not just Rajeev, I’m a Spartan chef.”
Learn more about Culinary Services, including dining hours and menus here.
Author: Zachary Phelps, student communication assistant