Akhtar Nawab

Coming Up

Training at St. Francis School, Bradley University, and California Culinary Academy gave Akhtar Nawab the groundwork before the line did the rest: first as a cook at a family restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky, then at Gramercy Tavern in New York from 1998 under Tom Colicchio. That early stretch put him inside high-discipline kitchens where pace, timing, and consistency were the work. Opening restaurants became a second skill set. Nawab joined the opening staff at Craft in New York, then helped open craftbar before moving into the role of executive chef at Craftbar in New York from 2002. The sequence matters: launch work demands a different register than service, and it placed him in rooms where precision had to be built from zero. Ownership and advisory work widened the scope. After working at European Union (E.U.), he became owner at Elettaria in New York from 2008–2009, then moved through consultant roles at Zengo and at Washington, D.C.-based restaurant owned by a friend in Washington, D.C, along with culinary director at La Esquina and work to expand at Choza Taqueria. He later served as chef at La Cenita until 2014, carrying a style that could move across formats without losing its identity. Leadership then shifted from individual kitchens to a larger hospitality frame. Nawab became executive chef at Table in Washington, D.C. From 2015–2017 and later executive chef at Prather's on the Alley in Washington, D.C. From 2018–2019.

Where They Are Now

Mexican cuisine remains a throughline in Akhtar Nawab’s current work, even as the footprint has expanded to New Orleans and beyond. As chef and owner of Otra Vez in New Orleans and Wayward, he is working in formats that keep the operation active and the point of view clear. His own shorthand stays direct: “About 2 years ago I opened Alta Calidad.” That same plainspoken register showed up in a recent conversation about the work itself: “Last week, I sat down with @toquelandandrew of Andrew Talks to Chefs podcast (@chefpodcast) at @altacalidadbk to talk about my personal and professional journey that has lead me to where I am today.”

Signature

The named signatures point to a kitchen built around flavor with enough structure to hold it: Good For You: Bold Flavors with Benefits and caramelized mushroom quesadilla. Nawab’s work here reads less as a single style than as a disciplined balance between comfort, force, and control.

In Their Words “Last week, I sat down with @toquelandandrew of Andrew Talks to Chefs podcast (@chefpodcast) at @altacalidadbk to talk about my personal and professional journey that has lead me to where I am today.” “About 2 years ago I opened Alta Calidad.”