North Fork Chef Shares Taste Of Life-Altering Odyssey To India

SOUTHOLD, NY — "We travel, some of us forever, to seek other states, other lives, other souls.”

The quote, by Anaïs Nin, seems to resound with all the emotional and life-altering experiences brought back by chef Stephan Bogardus of The North Fork Table, who recently returned from a 15-day trip to India — those images and memories deeply entwined in his consciousness forever.

Not only did the renowned chef explore new tastes, ingredients and spices, he embraced yoga retreats and visited local children’s services organizations.

And now, Bogardus has brought home those spices for his menu, along with memories emblazoned on his heart forever.

Bogardus said the tastes of Indian dishes and spices have long intrigued. While, as head chef, he has to taste all dishes, he says much of his cuisine is "vegetarian forward"; in his personal life, he consumes only small amounts of animal protein.

Discussing how the idea for the trip came to fruition, Bogardus said his girlfriend Allegra Borghese, who is working toward a Ph.D at Fordham, wanted to explore the possibility of doing her dissertation abroad; one of her areas of interest is the interaction of food, culture, and women’s studies and how globalization affects developing nations, he said.

And, with the pair avid yoga practitioners, India was a natural choice, Bogardus added. "India is the birthplace of yoga," so with her educational pursuits and his desire to research vegetarian dishes and spices, "It was a match made in heaven," he said.

The trip began in New Delhi, and next, the pair headed to Bhubaneshwar, an ancient city in India's state of Odisha. The landscape is dotted with temples and steeped in religious significance. The couple traveled to Cuttack, the former capital of Odisha.

Bogardus' former lacrosse coach made arrangements so the couple could meet his former teacher, Prabian, who brought them on the next stage of their odyssey, to the poor rural village where he was born and raised.

Through friendships and ties spanning miles and continents, introductions were made and Bogardus was able to experience a true taste of life in India, staying in a private home with a chef, in the house where their new guide and friend was raised.

Bogardus, born and raised in Cutchogue, found himself in a world where cultural norms shifted from all that was familiar, a kaleidoscope of new images and emotions.

India, he said, is far more modest in terms of fashion; he added that there are layers of different languages that vary according to region. He and his love traveled on roads as easily frequented by rickshaws as cars with private drivers or motorcycles, where infants could often be seen riding perched between mothers and fathers and women often rode with their legs over one side. And yet, he said, few accidents were seen. Other "jarring" cultural divides are seen in the disposability of goods, with trash burned in small batches, Bogardus said.

Images of extreme levels of poverty are forever seared onto his mind, Bogardus said. "In the village we visited, two hours outside of the capital city by car, they just started using propane three years ago," he said. "Before that, they dried cow manure patties in the sun. There are still two houses with thatched roofs made of palm trees and mud."

It was in the eyes of the children that Bogardus saw new resolve born: The couple donated funds to an orphanage to help buy beds and mattresses so children no longer had to sleep on the floor. The orphanage, he said, is run by a woman named Amaghara who devotes a life of service to caring for 18 small children in a rural village.

"She does everything she can," Bogardus said. "But education, health care, food, beds, clothing, all cost money — and she's one woman in rural India trying to provide for 18 people."

Shown around the orphanage, Bogardus said it was impressive to see how one selfless woman could make literal worlds of difference in young lives.

And yet, the disparity between the East End's level of consumption and the dire circumstances he witnessed sparked a desire to make a difference.

"What we consider pocket change could literally change lives for these kids," he said. "It 100% makes me think twice about how many water bottles I buy, how long I run the shower, and if I actually need to use that bar of soap."

The experience in India highlighted "how drastically we consume, on so many levels," Bogardus said.

In a land where cow dung was formed into patties so that dinner could be prepared, realization dawned, with life stripped down to its most simplistic necessities and desires.

At the Konark Sun Temple, Bogardus met a gentleman carefully, painstakingly carving rocks into beautiful stone bowls, which he sold for the equivalent of 30 cents. The devotion to his craft is all too often lost in today's mass commercialism, Bogardus noted. "He was producing goods with his hands," out of the rich materials of the region, Bogardus said. "It was so enriching."

Bogardus and Borghese were able to experience a diversity of religions, and visit the birthplace of Buddha.

"I believe in the idea of what you believe in, is going to get you to where you want to be, as opposed to falling in line with beliefs told to you," Bogardus said. The free flowing concept "makes you open to receive what the universe has in store," he said.

A culinary odyssey

Traveling through India, Bogardus experienced citrus season, where lush oranges and bananas were abundant.

He breathed in a natural canvas, where small farmers "take what they need" and hopefully can sell some of their produce for the funds to purchase what they cannot grow.

Bogardus saw massive fields of wheat; wheat and rice, stored in massive 30-kilo sacks, are staples at every meal.

"That's what was growing close by, and that's what was going to sustain them and their family," Bogardus said. "That's all they had."

The lifestyle rooted in localism resonated deeply with Borgardus, whose own culinary pursuits are based on locally sourced produce.

But miles and cultures apart, there are ties that bind.

"If you say you want an omelette, the sounds of the kitchen and the bowl, the fork and eggs broken into it, the eggs into a pan — it's absolutely magical, such a unifying thing to be a chef and to hear that in so many cultures," Bogardus said.

The chef soaked up the scents and sights, an omelette seasoned with fresh spices and cilantro, of street food, fried samosas, curried cauliflower, masalas and rich spinach and cheese based palak paneer.

One night, Bogardus spent the night in a village cottage with a local family.

"We went to a farmers' market in the village and I was able to cook in their kitchen, a small, two burner stove and a limited amount of gas," he said. Rather than a knife, the woman preparing the meal had a utensil that looked somewhat like scissors. "She sat on the floor crosslegged, julienning and cutting vegetables. We cooked a meal for 12," he said. "A housewife taught me how to make masala in a rural Indian village."

While Bogardus said he'd learned to cook Indian food as a chef in Rochester; in India, the spices were ground on a stone and then toasted together in a pan, an authentic explosion of tastes.

With an eye toward wasting nothing, whatever was not eaten at dinner was saved for breakfast the next morning, he said.

Next, the pair flew south to the western coast, to Kovalam, a coastal beach town with tourist in abundance.

"We saw the real India to start, then the polished area, the 'this is what we want you to see' part," he said.

During the next chapter of their ephemeral trip, the couple practiced yoga, went swimming, read and took long walks, enjoying dinners and exploring the region.

Worlds away from the fast-paced lifestyle in New York, Bogardus said in India, "Every single dish is cooked from scratch, fresh. They dice onions to order for every single plate. For a chef from New York, that is unheard of. That is so not how we do it," he said.

Meals become an experience, not just a means of satisfying hunger, with long hours spent sampling flatbreads and four to five plates, all for about $8 to $10 per meal. "It was unbelievably inexpensive for stunning quality," he said.

Inspired to conjure his own culinary magic, Bogardus bartered and interviewed vendors, finally finding the cousin of a man he met, who owns a spice farm and sold him big sacks of the highest quality spices, including the 10.5 kilos Bogardus brought home of cinnamon, mustard seed, black cumin, green and black cardamom, and even coffee.

Looking ahead, Bogardus plans to bring the tastes of India to his clientele, with a special, Indian-themed dinner planned for May 6; details to follow.

He's also exploring the idea of a high end pop up dinner, a benefit with all proceeds to benefit the orphanage.

Speaking of dishes he prepares with Indian influences, Bogardus describes a red lentil soup with pickled cauliflower and labneh, a cultured, creamy yogurt; he paints vivid images of a masala dish with stewed chickpeas and fresh, biodynamic, bright green locally grown spinach, with "subtle Indian notes."

The goal at The North Fork Table and Inn is to invite guests to ask servers about the new tastes, about the region, such as Kerala, where the recipes were born, and about what methods are used to prepare the culinary delights.

And Bogardus' clientele clearly has a taste for Indian fare: The recipe incorporating stewed chickpeas, spinach sauce, scallops and fresh cilantro was prepared for the recent Long Island Restaurant Week. "It was the most popular dish on the menu," he said.

He has no doubt that his foray into Indian offerings will be a delectable experience for diners. The North Fork Table and Inn has "dabbled in Japanese, Moroccan, American, French, Italian," he said. "People trust us when we try something new, because we're dedicated to quality and doing something we're passionate about. This is definitely a passion project, as opposed to a fling."

Reflecting on his monumental journey, Bogardus said he has a bucket list, "and returning to India is on that list. I really believe that something special happened to me there."

India, he said, might not be for everyone, but for those who open their minds and hearts, it can be everything. "It’s not the most comfortable place. You can decide between Nassau, Bahamas and go to a Sandals — or you can decide to go to New Delhi. But if you’re looking to become a more rounded individual and think about humanity a little bit; if you're looking to find a place for self-reflection, contemplation, and education — go to India."

Photos, video courtesy Stephan Bogardus.