The culinary force is a team player through and through
The man behind one of the most sought-after openings of 2025, Chef Jitin Joshi brings 27 years of expertise in MICHELIN-starred kitchens under his belt, pouring it all in into his latest venture – Revolver Dubai, an outpost of the revered Revolver Singapore, soon to be a year old.
Not long after opening, Chef Jitin launched the Revolver collaboration series – one-night-only menus, designed in collaboration with some of the biggest and brightest stars in the Dubai culinary universe. This was a unique platform – a tango of two, a symphony of a unique amalgamation of flavours you’ll never come across again.
From Chef Patricia Roig of Boca, Chef Rita Soueidan of Maisan15 to Chef Nick Alvis, Chef Hadrien Villedieu, Chef Reif Othman, Chef Ali Yazdi, Chef Keren Ye and more – many of critical acclaim have graced the Revolver kitchen, creating experiences that have delighted many a tastebud.
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Collaboration is an art, a science and a story, to be told with care, especially with players of such legend involved. Each chef, with an individual identity, ethos and flavour so fiercely unique, one wonders, how does a joint effort of this scale come about? To answer that question, we sat down with the man himself to talk about all things collaboration, community and how competition has no place on a fantastic menu.
How did the idea for a collaboration series like this come about? Especially at a time when the restaurant was new and establishing ground, most chefs would opt to retain the spotlight.
The idea is something that the industry has been doing to create new experiences and collaborate on various fronts. In a new restaurant like Revolver Dubai the intention was to be seen a part of the restaurant community by partnering with local chefs and home grown brands. I am not here for the spotlight but to make a mark as a strong concept which has a proven record in Singapore.
How do you approach picking the chefs for your collaborations? Is there a criteria for this selection?
I have previously lived and worked in Dubai from 2011 to 2018, hence a lot of chefs here are known to me, first was that connection. Secondly, it was engaging with others who were like minded and bought into the idea of a pop up and worked seamlessly together. There is no criteria other than a home grown brand of a local chef, and their enthusiasm to participate with us.
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How do you contend with sharing the kitchen with a culinary heavyweight, being one yourself? How do you approach teamwork?
The pop-up is a collaborative effort and not a competitive one, we are not here to prove who is better than the other; with this mind set everything is a learning curve and we appreciate what the other chef brings in as their view towards ingredients, techniques and flavour profile. At the end we want a successful event and of course delicious food.
Take us behind the scenes – what does the process of bringing a collaboration to life look like? How do you create the menu, set the ambiance, and welcome guests to the floor?
Creating the menu starts off with each of us trying one another’s food and connecting the dots and trying to marry the flavours and developing a flow of dishes. It could happen in 20minutes or a few back and forth ideas. The chef brings in the prep on the day (sometimes we also prep at Revolver) and then we support the guest chef in cooking the way he/she wants and run the service.
What were some of your favourite moments and dishes from all your collaborations so far?
So far we have done a dozen pop-ups since we opened and it is very hard to pick one highlight, with each chef there were great moments and ideas that we curated together and the success of each is a statement in itself.
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Revolver will soon be a year old, and the city has received it with utmost love and admiration, with rave reviews all around – how has your experience cooking for Dubai been like? What’s your favourite thing about Dubai’s culinary scene? What are some of your personal wins?
We have been very solid and consistent in our delivery of Revolver as a concept and I am very proud the way it is going, and the team has been amazing. Dubai’s culinary scene has changed and evolved a lot in the last decade from expat chefs bringing their overseas successful brand and trying to create a niche here, but now Dubai’s own concepts and thriving and making their mark. Personally, its my best work yet!
@chefjitinjoshi, @revolver_dubai
Image credit: Supplied
Deeply passionate about food, culture and community, Manaal loves telling extraordinary stories of ordinary people. Besides sniffing out a tale to tell, her favourite things to do include binging true crime documentaries, chasing cats on the streets and curating a good outfit.
