In this engaging episode of "Talking Hospitality," hosts Timothy R Andrews and Tracey Rashid welcome the esteemed chef and restaurateur, Cyrus Todiwala OBE. Recorded at the bustling Cafe Spice Namaste, the episode delves into Todiwala's inspiring journey in the hospitality industry.

Guest: Cyrus Todiwala OBE

Hosts: Timothy R Andrews & Tracey Rashid

Key Points:

1. Cyrus Todiwala's Early Culinary Interests: Todiwala shares his childhood experiences that sparked his interest in cooking, including his early encounters with food while dealing with asthma.
2. Career Beginnings: His journey in hospitality began with a diploma in India, leading to a significant role at the Taj Mahal Hotel in Bombay.
3. Transition to the UK: Todiwala discusses the challenges and hurdles he faced in establishing himself in the UK hospitality scene, including a 10-year battle with the Home Office.
4. Establishing Cafe Spice Namaste: Insights into the establishment of his renowned restaurant and the unique challenges he faced.
5. Personal Life and Support: Todiwala highlights the importance of his wife's support in his career and personal life.
6. Community Contribution: His involvement in setting up the world's first Asian and Oriental School of Catering in Hackney Community College.
7. Quick Fire Round: A light-hearted segment where Todiwala answers rapid-fire questions, revealing more about his personality and preferences.

Why Listen to This Episode?

If you're a hospitality professional seeking inspiration and practical insights, this episode is a must-listen. Cyrus Todiwala's journey from a diploma student in India to a celebrated chef and restaurateur in the UK is a testament to resilience, innovation, and the power of supportive relationships. His story is not just about culinary excellence but also about navigating bureaucratic challenges, contributing to the community, and building a legacy in the hospitality industry. This episode offers a blend of personal anecdotes, professional wisdom, and engaging storytelling that will resonate with anyone passionate about hospitality.

Conclusion:

This episode of "Talking Hospitality" is more than just a conversation; it's a journey through the life of a culinary visionary. Cyrus Todiwala's experiences, challenges, and triumphs offer invaluable lessons for anyone in the hospitality industry. His story is a powerful reminder of the impact one can have through dedication, creativity, and a deep love for the art of hospitality.

Chapters:

00:00

Immigrants in the UK hospitality landscape

01:10

Cyrus Todiwala's journey to the UK

02:04

The birth of Cafe Spice

03:18

Culinary interest and early experiences

05:07

Revamping Indian cuisine in the UK

06:25

Challenges in establishing Cafe Spice Namaste

08:16

Breaking barriers and changing perceptions

09:36

Advice for immigrants starting a business in hospitality

16:04

Resources and support systems for immigrants

21:22

Cyrus Todiwala's involvement in MasterChef

22:20

The importance of Cyrus Todiwala's wife in his journey

24:03

Quick fire round

Welcome to the fifth episode of the new

season of Talking Hospitality.

2

I'm TPR Andrews, joined by my fantastic

host, Grace Orshin.

3

Hi everyone.

4

We are thrilled to bring you another

episode for this fabulous season and we

5

have a very special guest, the renowned

chef and restaurateur, Cyrus Todewala.

6

And we were lucky enough to record this

episode at Cafe Spice Namaste.

7

So any sounds you hear, they are of a

working restaurant.

8

inspiration

9

Before we dive into it, did you know that

immigrants have significantly shaped the

10

UK's hospitality landscape?

11

Absolutely.

12

In fact, a study by the Migration

Observatory in Oxford, the University of

13

Oxford, reveals that immigrants own a

substantial proportion of hospitality

14

businesses in the UK.

15

That's very true, actually.

16

That is very true.

17

And in case you can hear him, that brings

us lovely to our esteemed guest, Cyrus

18

Todiwala.

19

Welcome to the show.

20

Thank you.

21

Welcome back.

22

Tell us your story, Cyrus.

23

I came here on the behest of one of my

friends who worked with me at the Taj

24

Mahal Hotel in Bombay, where our careers

began.

25

And he was here working with the Taj group

in London, but he also had the opportunity

26

to take over someone else's restaurant and

manage it.

27

So he said, if you join me, then we'll

take the restaurant over and we'll manage

28

it.

29

That was in 1991.

30

Told mom and dad I'll be back in seven

years.

31

It's not happened yet.

32

And one thing led to another, to another,

to another.

33

We ended up having to take over that

business because it was at the peak of the

34

90 recession.

35

From there on, we partnered with the

owners of Smolensky's restaurant.

36

Michael Gottlieb had this vision about

having a chain of Indian restaurants in

37

this country.

38

There never was one.

39

And so the Cafe Spice was born.

40

Because Namaste was a restaurant we

managed in early street, just further down

41

the road, became very synonymous with my

name.

42

And so we brought the name Namaste into

Cafe Spice, so as to keep it different.

43

And thankfully so, because as soon as Cafe

Spice became very famous, 90 other Cafe

44

Spice restaurants opened up straight away.

45

And you couldn't differentiate, because

the only thing differentiated was Namaste,

46

and that we could trademark.

47

We could not trademark Cafe Spice because

their generic terms.

48

So Cafe Spice was born in November 1995.

49

We've just completed 28 years last week of

our anniversary.

50

Yes, it's been a long journey.

51

It's been a tedious, long, tiring, at

times, but exhilarating, exciting.

52

Lots of trials and tribulations, and we've

come a long way.

53

But we are here today.

54

reasonably well established again.

55

Maybe a couple of years from now, you

shall see a little bit more success coming

56

our way.

57

So we will.

58

Exactly, we'd love to see that.

59

So we know that your journey, we're gonna

talk a bit more about the resilience that

60

you've gone through and some of the

difficulties.

61

What was it that sparked your culinary

interest when you were younger?

62

My culinary interest started many years

ago, even as a child.

63

I just loved dabbling in food.

64

So going back many years when I was

little, I was very highly asthmatic.

65

And as a result, you missed a lot of

school.

66

So I'd be wheezing and puffing and

coughing in the morning.

67

Mum would then say, sorry, you can't go to

school today because, you know, it's

68

really bad.

69

But when nine o'clock goes mentally in the

brain, you start feeling better because

70

now, you know, I'm not going to school.

71

It's nine o'clock.

72

And as soon as I start feeling better, I'm

trouble for mother.

73

And in Bombay, most women send their

husbands tiffins.

74

So the tiffin man came and collected the

tiffin at 11 o'clock or so and took it to

75

your father's office and delivered a box

there.

76

So mom would start cooking immediately

after my sister left for school and

77

everything happened.

78

And then my trouble would start and then

she'd say okay behave yourself and

79

dragging in the kitchen.

80

And the little bits and pieces would

start.

81

The family loved food so the interest grew

and I think after my A levels I had no

82

clue what I was going to do.

83

I wanted to get into agriculture.

84

which is one of my other loves, you know,

I love the environment, land, animals.

85

And so, hesitatingly thinking what can I

do?

86

And then a friend of my sister said, why

don't you come and have a look at my

87

college?

88

You may like it, you like cooking.

89

Come and have a look.

90

And that's it.

91

That changed my mind completely.

92

And so I went into hospitality.

93

In those days, there was no degree courses

in India.

94

There were only diplomas.

95

Finished that, got selected by the Taj

group to come and work for them.

96

And...

97

That's how the career began at the Taj

Mahal Hotel in Bombay and worked with them

98

for a good nearly 16 years.

99

Rose from being a very low down commie to

the youngest executive chef in India of a

100

five star deluxe property at one time.

101

And then eventually in charge of two

properties.

102

Then threw it all up and came and started

back again as a commie in the restaurant

103

here because the food...

104

was named Indian but it was an Indian.

105

I couldn't understand it.

106

Every name was descriptive of Indian food

but there's no representation of it.

107

It's true.

108

And I thought how can Britain be wrong?

109

And so I had to then have the guts and the

courage to change everything and that

110

brought the restaurant into a great dip

again because people walked in, didn't

111

recognize the menu, walked away and those

were challenging times as well.

112

Eventually the articles came out, the

reviews came out.

113

same people came back and then we had one

of the best followings ever of regular

114

customers through the previous Cafe Spice

Namaste and now the old regulars are

115

coming back, still few of them and we are

building many more new ones.

116

So people have come to realize that our

food is different.

117

Don't compare it.

118

It's a really great story.

119

Like 28 years is very impressive.

120

So firstly, congratulations.

121

Yes, thank you very much.

122

And secondly, could you talk to us on the

dips?

123

And we are obviously talking about some of

the highs as well.

124

But what would you say is the biggest

hurdle for you?

125

What was the biggest hurdle in

establishing Cafe Spice Namaste?

126

Well, I mean, establishing Cafe Spice

Namaste would be the easier option, but

127

establishing myself as a resident of UK

was the bigger hurdle.

128

I came on a work permit to this country.

129

That means I'm employed by somebody else.

130

Circumstances changed and we decided that

if my wife joined me, we will take over

131

the running of that business.

132

I had no idea what I would do, but we had

too much at stake, given up everything

133

back home.

134

And I said, if you join me, we'll take

over the running of that restaurant.

135

And she joined.

136

What happened was that changed my position

with the work permit from being an

137

employee to an employer.

138

And that...

139

ruffle the feathers of the Home Office.

140

Yes.

141

We had a 10-year battle on our hands to

just live in this country.

142

It's crazy.

143

So a lot of things happened during that

time.

144

I don't blame them.

145

It's just that in that bureaucratic circle

you get picked out because you've done

146

something which is not expected by the

system.

147

And the system then tick-marked you as a

man to be expelled from this country, but

148

we had so much at stake.

149

Day we were employing people, had I been

ticked out, they would have lost their

150

jobs.

151

Children were in school, they were small,

and we could not give up.

152

So that was the first big hurdle.

153

And even while Cafe Spice was successful,

that hung as a sword on my head for a few

154

more years until eventually things evened

out, then the people who helped on the

155

journey to make sure that you were

recognized as a person who was integral to

156

the fabric, and eventually got accepted.

157

We were very much the pioneers in that

sense, in the sense that I very bravely

158

changed the cuisine not knowing that the

British public was too set in their ways

159

on how they considered and thought of

Indian food.

160

Many still are.

161

We still cannot change everybody's

perceptions.

162

But that was a perception I did not

understand.

163

And I was glad I didn't understand that

because if I understood that I would have

164

probably veered towards that a little bit.

165

to pander to the expectations.

166

But I had to throw it all out and just

completely revamp the situation.

167

I paved the way, I think, in a sense, for

other great chefs to follow and make a

168

bigger success of it.

169

I'm very happy with the fact that I

allowed that to happen to myself.

170

As a result, the others were able to tread

on a little bit more former ground because

171

the foundation started getting laid.

172

People started to understand that there is

a lot more to the subcontinent of India.

173

than chicken tikka masala.

174

Britain at the moment, I think is the most

fantastic country in the world for

175

experimentation of any cuisine because the

British palate is so well developed now.

176

Yeah.

177

Where it was not, 28, 29, 30 years ago, it

is now developed to an extent whereby

178

which the British public are receptive to

anything and they will try it.

179

Some will love it, some will not love it,

but they will definitely go and try it.

180

You can see outside the trends have

changed.

181

Yes.

182

Because so many now South American

restaurants, Vietnamese restaurant,

183

Chinese restaurant, Thai restaurant, you

name it, there's a plethora of them out

184

there.

185

And everyone's vying for business.

186

By the same time, every peer inside, it's

not always their own people, immigrants,

187

it's always the British public that is the

most prolific amongst restaurants.

188

I think we all had a little part to play

in that.

189

Definitely.

190

And do you think it was your forward

thinking that kept you motivated through

191

those tougher times?

192

I often toy with that idea myself.

193

I will always think what's next for me to

do to be creative, to be different.

194

Educating people was, I think, primary in

a sense.

195

And then there's so much out there that I

still would love to try.

196

It is a motivation.

197

I mean, you go to the markets.

198

I am very involved with farming.

199

I'm very involved with the environment.

200

I'm very involved with the marine

conservations.

201

I'm involved in all these activities.

202

So for me,

203

It's always exciting to do different

things to highlight what goes on.

204

And that gives me an opportunity to remain

excited like a child.

205

I could have given up and easily gone back

home.

206

We didn't have our passports.

207

My parents were old.

208

I couldn't go visit them.

209

That was the most painful thing for us

that I can't go see my mom and dad.

210

It still hangs on my head, but I couldn't

leave the country.

211

And that's exactly what somebody would

have wanted.

212

Leave the country, ask for your passports

and you're not coming back.

213

So it's all these things working on your

mind.

214

How do I look after my kids and my wife?

215

What do I do?

216

And I went through all of that.

217

And we came out laughing.

218

I think those are great things to reflect

upon.

219

So one day, hopefully, if I get a chance,

maybe, you know, write a little story

220

about your life and about what you've been

through.

221

And I often toyed with the idea that was

it some form of racism?

222

And I don't believe in that.

223

Hopefully somebody somewhere listens and

understands what the real situation is.

224

And then like me, you benefit from it.

225

Your story is one of resilience and keep

going.

226

Do you think there's anything in your

background or your culture that's made you

227

like that or is that something you just

are as a person or circumstances made you

228

like that?

229

Ooh, there has to be something of both in

there.

230

So we never had a very easy life anyway

throughout.

231

It's been tough, I mean, as a child with

asthma and then there's one aspect.

232

Second aspect is we were okay.

233

We never felt ever deprived.

234

It's always that you must fight on to make

it better.

235

The other is community.

236

So we are foreigners to India.

237

We fled Persia from religious persecution.

238

One of the promises our community had made

was that we shall always mingle and

239

amalgamate within your people.

240

We will make it better.

241

We will always be productive.

242

We will always contribute.

243

So there are these historical things that

great Persians have played.

244

I think somewhere along the line.

245

It gets into your genes and you want to

succeed and you want to fight.

246

Of course, there are people born with a

golden spoon in their mouth.

247

You've got to create that golden spoon for

yourself.

248

And that's what we are all about.

249

We always had rich kids in our schools and

you know, very rich and they had

250

everything under the sun.

251

For example, I had a prince in my

dormitory.

252

In school, he was the only guy who got a

big glass of milk in the boarding school.

253

We never got milk and he used to keep

showing up.

254

One fine day I grabbed his milk and

chucked it into our teeth.

255

And he was very upset because he is so

used to having milk all the time.

256

So I think, you know, a lot of people are

born with that.

257

But most of us are not.

258

And we have to work hard to create our own

golden spoons.

259

And each golden spoon is different.

260

Everybody has their set of ambitions.

261

Everybody has their own mental makeup of

what they want to achieve.

262

Wealth has never been my motivation.

263

I remember in class five, the poem that

was, I had to say, on stage.

264

The last line was, lives of great men all

remind us how to make our lives sublime

265

and departing leave behind us footprints

on the sands of time.

266

And that's been my motivation always.

267

Will I leave a footprint behind?

268

Will I leave a legacy behind?

269

And what will be my legacy?

270

It's a great ending to that poem.

271

It has never left my mind and I was only

tiny.

272

Standard five is I was tiny.

273

I think it's a great ending to the book

that you're going to write as well.

274

Hopefully.

275

One final day.

276

Bring it back to you today.

277

What advice would you give to immigrants

who are aspiring to start their own

278

business in hospitality in the UK?

279

You know some of the big chef names within

the Indian diaspora here.

280

They used to all come and hang around in

my kitchen at one time.

281

Now they are superbly successful, more

successful rather.

282

They have more restaurants, they have

generated enough wealth for themselves

283

etc.

284

But I think they would come and hang

around and say what is it, what should we

285

do?

286

And I said, you should, one thing in your

mind is, you have to break certain

287

barriers.

288

Everyone says America is the greatest land

in the world, but don't forget, it is 75

289

times the landmass that we have gotten.

290

It's a vast nation compared to this

country.

291

Here, we have many, many opportunities.

292

We've got to just strive for it.

293

And I think within hospitality, the main

thing you want to learn as a migrant is

294

first and foremost, understand this

industry.

295

I started it on default.

296

If everything was okay, I would have still

been running someone's restaurant and

297

maybe gone on to move in a job somewhere

else.

298

I would have been happier in a sense

perhaps because my income would have been

299

stable.

300

So find the niche, find the thing, work

with people that will make you understand

301

certain things.

302

The fear is of course the language, one.

303

And I think everybody that comes to this

country must learn English.

304

It is absolutely essential that you become

conversant in English because that is the

305

first factor that drops you down.

306

And what immigrants try to do, which they

should never do, is work only within their

307

community.

308

It's wrong.

309

We always want to work within our people,

so we talk the same language, we have the

310

same culture, we work with the same

people, we eat the same food, we never

311

learn.

312

Learn to speak English first and mix in

within the people that are creating magic

313

these days.

314

Find a job, work as a porter if you want,

it doesn't matter.

315

But will yourself never ever lose sight of

your vision or your dream.

316

And that's what cripples most people.

317

They lose sight of that vision.

318

And if you think I'm going to make it, you

will make it.

319

You will make it.

320

And this country for everybody's sake, I

think is welcoming to that.

321

You're very inspirational.

322

So thank you.

323

Talking about help and stuff like that,

are there any specific resources or

324

support systems that you yourself have

found helpful that perhaps our listeners

325

might think, oh, I should go and

investigate that?

326

Most immigrants, sadly, sometimes.

327

find a way of how to live within the

system, rather than how to live outside

328

that system.

329

So my belief is that if we come in as a

migrant, if you make yourself comfortable

330

in accepting what is handed out to you,

you are always going to remain low.

331

So you need to come out of that level

first and come out of that comfort zone

332

and fight it.

333

That's the most important thing, which

most immigrants forget.

334

I had no idea that help was available when

I came in.

335

And when I first came to Britain, I

thought, wow, finally, I'm going to a land

336

where everybody will speak English.

337

So I do not have to train the staff.

338

I do not have to educate them.

339

And I'm going to have trained staff.

340

So in India, I'm battling all the time,

getting people from villages to train

341

them, educate them.

342

And when I came here, the shock just

slapped me in the face.

343

All the staff that inherited me, and three

344

and they are the core of the team here.

345

And they spoke like 15, 20 words of proper

English and they were brusque.

346

They were almost caught with the

customers.

347

The customers joked, they never understood

what the jokes were.

348

And so I started to ask friends who can

come and teach them English.

349

So we had a teacher from City of London

School whose wife was teaching our

350

children how to play the piano and she

said, Douglas will help you.

351

So Douglas would come and...

352

talk to them in English and make them as a

customer, how to react, all that.

353

And then the local council came to know,

the learning and East London tech came to

354

know.

355

Somebody approached, said you do training?

356

I said, yeah, but we can help you, he

said.

357

I said, how can you help me?

358

I've got no money, I said.

359

He said, no, we will fund you.

360

And that's how it started.

361

I got more involved with them.

362

And that led to a new partnership that was

formed here, they're called the East

363

London hospitality business partnership.

364

They managed to get hotel, personal

managers on board.

365

We got a couple of colleges that deliver

training.

366

That then went on further.

367

We started to get help in teaching the

staff a few things.

368

And that led to then me being convinced

that we should open our own school.

369

I got involved with education within

government.

370

And it went on from one to another to

another.

371

I got very actively involved.

372

Eventually we tied up with two other

restaurant, one Thai, one Chinese.

373

The Thai restaurant, Atik Chaudhary runs

Yum Thai restaurants and Holland Kwok, who

374

has a chain of restaurants called Good

Earth, went to the government office for

375

London and said we need some money to put

up a school.

376

Nobody understood, nobody wanted to.

377

But we persevered.

378

I went and gave a little presentation.

379

One person said yes and we got a bit of

money, but it had to be tied down to a

380

local body.

381

So within Hackney Community College, we

opened the world's first Asian and

382

Oriental School of Catering.

383

We put 960 young kids into full-time jobs

within five years.

384

And then the government took away the

funding because they didn't understand

385

hospitality.

386

Even though we had great results, but they

took away that funding and they put it

387

into something else.

388

It took us seven years to pay back the

overdraft, which we had personally

389

guaranteed.

390

My wife wasn't very happy.

391

She wasn't very happy.

392

She still thinks I'm an idiot.

393

So that's fine.

394

That hasn't changed in our mind yet.

395

So it's fine.

396

I wasn't prepared to give up.

397

Then I said, why am I doing this to tackle

these kids who are thrown out of school

398

and nobody wants them in East London.

399

This is way before Mr.

400

Jamie Oliver opened 15.

401

We were doing it so that we could bring

those kids from getting onto the streets

402

and causing mayhem into doing something

constructive.

403

Then we started this competition called

Zest West Asia.

404

So the idea was now to look at young

students of British origin.

405

Age is not a barrier, they can be 50 years

old, so long as they're in study, in

406

full-time education they can enter.

407

And the idea is to veer them into their

thinking, so which is what we are talking

408

about.

409

Out of your box, thinking British and

French only to thinking the world.

410

And Asia is 80 countries from Turkey to

Japan.

411

And so this competition is now in its 12th

year, become extremely successful, is the

412

most sought after inter-college

competitions.

413

When students and teachers write to me, it

brings, it wells you up.

414

how much you have done to actually

encourage them to do something different.

415

The prize is going taking them to Asia for

10 days where they learn.

416

So as migrants, I think we need to

appreciate what has been given to you

417

rather than constantly keep mourning about

this not being right or that not being

418

right, fight to become better.

419

So everybody has a vision and they should

keep that vision going.

420

I don't know what my vision is yet.

421

I know because I'm involved in 50

different activities.

422

But the important thing is that we did

make a difference.

423

We made a mark.

424

We have influenced many, many young chefs

who are now aspiring to do different

425

things in their lives.

426

I think you have a clear vision from what

you're saying.

427

It's like, for me, from what you're

saying, it's like serving people through

428

food and culture.

429

It's serving people through education and

knowledge.

430

You give, basically.

431

And I think that's why you're involved in

so many different things.

432

It's all about giving.

433

Life has to be about giving.

434

I mean, if you don't give, what else is

there in life?

435

You can't take anything back.

436

Okay, so our listeners know that I'm a

complete fan girl when it comes to

437

MasterChef.

438

Your involvement in MasterChef has been

really significant.

439

Number one, it's exciting.

440

Number two, it motivates people.

441

The MasterChef platform is not just

exciting for people interested in cooking.

442

The whole idea of food has motivated

Britain no extent.

443

Everybody is into food in some shape or

form.

444

It is very important that there is a

program there

445

triggering people's imaginations.

446

And Master Chef is doing that.

447

He's doing that because there are people

watching closely.

448

And I think Master Chefs and other cookery

programs encourage people to look outside

449

their spaghetti bolognese and do something

else with it.

450

So my last question.

451

Yeah.

452

And there's a person that you keep

bringing up in the conversation.

453

Yeah.

454

And I was wondering, perhaps you might

wanna say a few words, and that's about

455

your wife.

456

She's also been an important part of your

journey.

457

I do bring her up all the time.

458

But, Pervin, is that she was a student in

the catering institute in Bombay.

459

I had just come back from training in

Switzerland.

460

We had to all do industrial training in

India compulsorily to gain your

461

qualification.

462

And she was one of them.

463

I kept nosing around my kitchen.

464

And funnily enough, I had this thing in my

mind.

465

Yeah, I would marry that girl.

466

Yeah.

467

Wow.

468

And I took a bet with one of my colleagues

once.

469

And she's never let me forget that.

470

You bet.

471

You bet.

472

I said, actually, I did a bet.

473

You know, I did nothing good turn in my

favour.

474

And she came one day and said, we were

extra ticket for a movie.

475

Would you like to come and join us?

476

And from there it started.

477

And we've been married 39 years and two

weeks time.

478

If I'm in trouble, I have to go somewhere.

479

I know she can handle my kitchen because

she is very clever.

480

You need somebody strong behind you.

481

And she's been a pillar of strength all

throughout.

482

So.

483

She deserves every bit of recognition.

484

She's an integral part of not just the

business, but me and everything.

485

I found the best, most stable partner in

the world.

486

That's better than that.

487

Big shout out to her.

488

Yeah, that's amazing.

489

that sound Cyrus it's the sound of a quick

fire round.

490

Yeah, super.

491

Wow, what does that mean?

492

If we can quick fire answer.

493

Yes, that's correct.

494

So we find that chefs, particularly chefs

that have been on TV, don't often give one

495

word answers so we've decided to run a

competition.

496

All right.

497

You're gonna get marked on your speed,

your timings and the closeness to using

498

one word.

499

answers to the questions that we're gonna

give.

500

Now it's a good thing you're sitting down,

Cyrus.

501

Do you want to know why?

502

Because there's a prize.

503

Do you want to know what the prize is?

504

I know I'm not gonna win it because I

can't give one answer.

505

He's already proclaimed that you're the

darling.

506

So it's very difficult for me.

507

One word answer.

508

Let the prize be as a suspense.

509

The winner will get the amazing prize of

510

£10 Amazon Pages.

511

Alright.

512

You ready?

513

Ready.

514

Spend the night however you wish.

515

Dream job as a child?

516

Farmer.

517

Last good book you read?

518

National Geographic.

519

Favourite movie genre?

520

I like western movies.

521

Good, the bad and the ugly.

522

Your go-to comfort food?

523

Dal and rice.

524

Early bird or night owl?

525

Both.

526

What's your spirit animal?

527

Dog.

528

Hidden talent?

529

I'm good at DIY.

530

What's the favourite city you've ever

visited?

531

Geneva if you want.

532

What's your guilty pleasure song?

533

Is by Beth Midler?

534

Eagle.

535

And it always reminds me of Pervin.

536

What's your best concert you've ever

attended?

537

Ouswan Lake.

538

Your favourite historical era?

539

The reign of Cyrus the Great.

540

Who's your dream dinner guest?

541

David Attenborough.

542

What's your ideal weekend activity?

543

Gardening.

544

What's your most used app?

545

WhatsApp.

546

It's the very doubt.

547

All the time.

548

Coffee or tea?

549

Tea.

550

Last hobby you picked up?

551

Influencing young kids.

552

What's the first thing you'd buy if you

won the lottery?

553

Pay off all my expenses.

554

Favourite ice cream flavour?

555

Peanut butter with chocolate.

556

Oh.

557

What was the last thing you googled?

558

On a particular appointment, what it does

and how good it is.

559

And your go-to karaoke song?

560

An old Engelbert number.

561

If colours had sounds, what would blue

sound like?

562

This.

563

and tranquility.

564

What do you call a fake noodle?

565

A bad pasta.

566

And what's a ghost's favourite dessert?

567

So that is now over, you can breathe

again.

568

The answer is of course, an impasta.

569

And the other one is a blueberry pie.

570

Blueberry pie.

571

Tracy, we've just had this competition,

now we need to add up and work out the

572

score, don't we?

573

We do.

574

We're going to calculate.

575

The score will be passed, don't worry

about it.

576

Just do that.

577

Remember, he actually failed to answer any

questions with one word.

578

Yep.

579

Yes, a million.

580

I only have two with one word.

581

Thank you, yep thanks for reminding me of

that.

582

Divided by seven, I think.

583

So we are 54.

584

So what does that mean, Cyrus?

585

Well, you're gonna have to follow the

season to find out.

586

It's bad news.

587

Well, wait till the end and find out.

588

It's a pleasure.

589

Thank you for making the time to see it.

590

Thank you for showing your insights.

591

Sadly, that's all of this episode of

Talking Hospitality with me, Tracy Vachid

592

and Timothy R.

593

Andrews.

594

But tune in next week, where we'll have

another fabulous guest who will be talking

595

hospitality.

596

So a big thank you to all our listeners

who have made this podcast possible.

597

Don't forget to like and subscribe

wherever you get your podcasts.

598

Thank you for listening and stay safe and

well.

599

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