Tony Alal Karim Khan

Nationality: Bangladeshi
Profession: Chef, Hotelier, Culinary Instructor

Early Life & Education

• Born in Khulna, Bangladesh.
• Studied at Khulna Zilla School until 1975.
• Attended Shaheed Suhrawardy College, Dhaka from 1975 to 1977.
• Moved to Singapore in 1978 to train as an Apprentice Chef and completed his college education at Woodlands Marsiling Secondary School, majoring in Economics.
• In 1992, he pursued Human Nutrition at the University of Sydney, Australia.
• In 1998, he attended RMIT University, Melbourne, specializing in Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP).

Career & Professional Philosophy

• 1982: Started as a Sous Chef at Sheraton Ayers Rock Hotel (now Voyages Ayers Rock Resort).
• 1994-1999: Worked as Executive Chef and Food & Beverage Developer on Carnival Cruise Line, Miami, USA.
• Post-1999: Moved to Saudi Arabia and joined Hyatt Regency.
• 2003-2006: Served as Executive Chef at ten five-star hotels, including a corporate role at Intercontinental Hotels.
• 2006: Returned to Bangladesh and joined Radisson Blu Water Garden Hotel, Dhaka as Executive Chef & Food & Beverages Manager.
• 2009-2012: Worked as Executive Chef & Food and Beverage Manager at The Westin Dhaka.
• 2013-Present:
  • Became General Manager, Director of Food & Beverages, and Executive Chef at Grand Sultan Tea Resort and Golf, Sreemangal, Bangladesh.
  • In April 2015, he established Tony Karim’s Culinary Institute to train amateur chefs for international hotel careers.

Affiliations & Recognitions

• Played a role in placing intellectually disabled persons in full-time restaurant jobs in Nunawading, Australia (1989).
• Member of the Australasian Guild Of Professional Cooks (since 1986).
• Founder & President of the Bangladesh Chef’s Association.
• Honorary Vice President of the Chef’s Association of Pakistan.
• Member of the Industry Skills Council, supported by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and National Skills Development Council (NSDC), Bangladesh PM’s Office.
• Speaker at South Asian Association for Gastronomy (SAAG).
• Contributed recipes to books such as:
  • Cancer Society
  • Eat and Enjoy
  • Restaurant Secrets

Awards & Judging Roles

• Named one of the “10 Best Chefs in the World” by The Daily Star.
• Awarded “Chef of The Year” (1991) by South Pacific Tourism Board, Papua New Guinea.
• Judging roles:
  • The Malaysian Palm Oil Shera Chef 2011
  • Curry Chef Awards 2015
  • Youth Tourism Skills Competition 2015
  • Nando’s Master Grillers’ Challenge 2015
• 2020: Received a Special Recognition Award at the House of Commons, London from the Asian Catering Federation at the launch of the Asian Restaurant & Curry Awards.