RISHI KUMAR

MIRRA, Mariela

Chef Rishi Kumar is a Singapore-born, globally trained chef whose cuisine bridges cultures with precision, storytelling, and a modern lens on regional technique. After training at the Singapore branch of the Culinary Institute of America, he worked in Southern France and Singapore with Michelin-starred chefs including Jason Atherton and Ivan Brehm before moving to Chicago, where he joined Frontera Grill. 

At Frontera and Topolobampo, Rishi rose from intern to line cook, sous chef, and later Private Events Chef, working closely with Chef Rick Bayless and contributing to the team that earned a James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurant. He went on to help conceptualize and open Bar Sotano before serving as R&D Culinary Director for 50 Eggs Hospitality Group and Chica Restaurants. 

Rishi is now co-founder and Culinary Director of MIRRA, which has earned a Bib Gourmand designation, been named one of Esquire’s Best New Restaurants in America (2025), and was featured in The New York Times for one of the “23 Best Dishes in America.” He is also a 2026 James Beard Award semifinalist for Best Chef: Great Lakes. 

Rishi, alongside Chef Zubair Mohajir and Beverage Director David Mor, also opened Mariela in Chicago’s Loop on May 6, further expanding the group’s footprint with a new coastal dining experience highlights recipes from the shores of Southeast Asia to the coasts of the Americas and Europe.