Bindu Patel, the award-winning chef-owner of Sanctua vegan restaurant in Leicester, has died suddenly in Friday 24thJanuary, She was 37.
Since opening her planet-based restaurant in April last year, she won four prestigious awards. The launch was delayed due to her ill health and closed frequently due to her illness.
She had recently been named a ‘Vegan Pioneer’ by Olive Magazine, because of her “low-waste, sustainable” approach to vegan cuisine with her fortnightly changing set menus. Head Judge Laura Rowe said; “We really couldn’t believe Bindu’s dishes didn’t contain ghee and meaty stocks.
In November Sanctua won two accolades: being named Asian Restaurant of the Year in the Great Food Club Awards in Leicester and Best Vegan and Vegetarian Restaurant at the Asian Curry Awards in London.
In June last summer, Sanctua won Vegan Restaurant of the Year at the Asian Restaurant Awards in Manchester.
Bindu fulfilled her long held dream by opening Sanctua, in the Oadby district of Leicester, which offered a completely plant-based eclectic menu, employing mostly fresh, local and seasonal ingredients, including the use of ‘wonky’ vegetables.
Prior to opening Sanctua, Bindu Patel, who spent spells in the kitchens of Michelin-starred and Gymkhana and Trishna restaurants and staged at Le Gavroche in London. She had also worked as a lawyer and farmer.
Bindu leaves behind a husband Neil, and three children aged 8, 7 and 5.
