Simon Majumdar (born April 7, 1964) is a British-born food and travel author, and food television personality. He has appeared on many Food Network shows and is based in Los Angeles and London. He also judges on shows such as Iron Chef.[1][2]

Early and personal life

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Majumdar was brought up in Rotherham near Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England[3] by his Welsh mother and Indian father, a middle child out of four children.[4] His father Pratip "Pat" Majumdar was born in Calcutta and was an Orthopedic consultant for Rotherham United F.C.[1][3][4] His mother, Gwen John, was from Southern Wales and worked as a nurse; his parents met while working at the Royal Gwent Hospital in the 1950s.[3]

Majumdar previously worked as a book publisher[5][6] and started working with food after the age of 40.[7][8] After his mother fell ill and eventually died, he was depressed and not enjoying his prior career in publishing so he decided in 2007 to "go everywhere, eat everything" which changed his life path.[4][6][9]

He met his wife Sybil Villanueva while traveling in Brazil in 2010;[6] Sybil is a Filipino American.[10] He became a citizen of the United States on September 17, 2014.[11]

Writing

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He co-authored with his older brother Robin, a UK food blog "Dos Hermanos" from 2006 until 2012, which had thousands of readers a day.[2][9][12][13] Majumdar is an author and contributor to; The Guardian,[12] The Independent,[14] AskMen.com,[15] The Daily Beast,[16] and more. He has written books titled Fed, White, and Blue; Eat My Globe; and Eating For Britain.[17]

Television

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He has appeared as a judge on the Food Network shows Cutthroat Kitchen (2013–2016), Iron Chef America (2010–2012), All Star Academy (2015), Beat Bobby Flay (2014–2017) and The Next Iron Chef (2010–2012).[18][19] Majumdar is severely allergic to coffee and oysters, and will not taste any dish prepared by a competitor that includes either of these ingredients.[20][21] He is known for a love of Indian cuisine.

He was a guest on the show The Best Thing I Ever Ate (2010–2011) with foods found in California, Louisiana and Kansas.[22] Majumdar was a guest critic on the UK show Market Kitchen.[citation needed]

Majumdar is occasionally a judge on Guy's Grocery Games.[23][citation needed] He has also worked with Guy Fieri on Food Network’s Tournament of Champions as a floor reporter for the blind taste test.[24]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Simon Majumdar". Rotherham United, Millers Abroad. June 7, 2016. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  2. ^ a b "Simon Majumdar". Simon & Schuster. Retrieved November 14, 2017. He and his computer-whiz brother write the award-winning blog www.doshermanos.co.uk, which has earned him thousands of readers a day
  3. ^ a b c Majumdar, Simon (2009). Eat My Globe: One Year to Go Everywhere and Eat Everything. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster. pp. 5–7. ISBN 978-1416576266.
  4. ^ a b c Apple, Charity (May 6, 2015). "Have food, will travel: Food expert, TV star Simon Majumdar brings book tour to Saxapahaw". The Times. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  5. ^ "Interview with Simon Majumdar". October 6, 2009.
  6. ^ a b c "Celebrity chef Simon Majumdar to cook special dinner at Larkin's on the River". The Greenville News. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  7. ^ "Simon Majumdar, Food Network Judge and Author". KTLA-5 News. August 16, 2017. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  8. ^ Shapiro, Amy (January 9, 2016). "Chewing his way through the country". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  9. ^ a b "Simon Majumdar". Cooking Channel. Retrieved November 14, 2017. co-author of Dos Hermanos, one of the most popular food websites in the U.K. and internationally.
  10. ^ Majumdar, Simon (April 7, 2015). Fed, White, and Blue: Finding America with My Fork. Penguin Publishing Group. pp. 13–14. ISBN 978-0-698-18645-3.
    Majumdar, Simon (July 30, 2018). "A Taste of the Philippines With Simon Majumdar". Saute. Orange County, California. Retrieved July 5, 2019.
  11. ^ Majumdar, Simon. "What I learned about America by eating my way around the country". Washington Post. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
  12. ^ a b "Simon Majumdar". The Guardian. Retrieved November 14, 2017. Simon Majumdar is the co-writer of Dos Hermanos, one of the UK's most widely read food blogs.
  13. ^ "Blog god: Simon Majumdar". delicious. magazine. 2009. Retrieved November 14, 2017. I started the blog in 2006 and my older brother Robin began posting actively about four months later.
  14. ^ "By Simon Majumdar". The Independent. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  15. ^ "Simon Majumdar". AskMen. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  16. ^ "Author Simon Majumdar". The Daily Beast. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  17. ^ "Books". Retrieved February 22, 2015.
  18. ^ "Simon Majumdar Bio". Retrieved February 22, 2015.
  19. ^ Panichkul, Victor. "Food Network star Simon Majumdar making Salem visit". Statesman Journal. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
  20. ^ Simon Majumdar (16 February 2009). "Which dishes do we excel at in Britain and why do we get so many things wrong?". The Guardian.
  21. ^ "What's Coffee Cake Without Coffee? —Alton's After-Show - FN Dish – Food Network Blog". FN Dish – Food Network Blog.
  22. ^ "Chef Simon Majumdar". The Best Thing I Ever Ate. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  23. ^ "Simon Majumdar - TV Shows".
  24. ^ "Simon Majumdar: TV Shows". Simon Majumdar. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
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