The Indian chef who brought curry to America - then vanished

What the report says

One hundred and twenty-five years after the event described by the BBC, the story of Ranji Smile has re-emerged as an early chapter in the history of Indian food in the United States. According to the report, Smile opened what was likely America’s first Indian restaurant in New York in 1901, after arriving in the city in 1899 to work at Sherry’s Restaurant, a prominent Fifth Avenue dining room. The piece says he had earlier worked as a curry cook in London and then built a reputation in New York for theatrical cooking demonstrations and flamboyant self-presentation.

The BBC account says Smile later launched his own restaurant, Omar Khayyam, at 325 Fifth Avenue with backing from financier Roland R. Conklin. The venture featured Indian decor, turbaned waiters and musicians, but closed within about a year after failing to attract enough customers. The article also says Smile’s public persona shifted into deception, including claims that he was a prince from Baluchistan, and that later legal trouble included allegations tied to bringing staff into the United States.

Beyond the restaurant’s short life, the piece places Smile in a wider historical context: even though his business failed, it helped open the door for Indian cuisine in America. The BBC notes that other Indian and South Asian immigrants soon followed with recipes, demonstrations and restaurants, gradually introducing unfamiliar dishes to American diners.