After living in New Delhi, Mumbai, Colombo and Cairo, Mrs Urvashi Sood, 49, owner of Chutney Mary in East Coast Road, now calls Singapore home.

The mother of Neha, 24, and Rishi, 22, moved here in 1986 because her husband, Mr Bhushan Sood, now 56, was posted to Singapore to manage a hotel.

He was subsequently sent to Cairo in 1989, and Colombo at the end of 1990.

"Living in Singapore took some adjustment initially, but every time we left the country, we missed it - that's when we knew this was home," Mrs Sood says.

So the family moved back here in 1993.

The graduate in psychology admits she did not have any background in the food and beverage industry.

But she adds: "I love food and I picked up interior decorating while I was at university."

She says restaurants are a marriage of those two loves - she gets to decorate restaurant interiors and offer authentic dining experiences at the same time.

She opened her first restaurant, Sukothai - a high-end Thai restaurant in Boat Quay - in 1994. She also owns high-end Northern Indian restaurant Samarkand in Boat Quay, Lebanese restaurant Al Hamra in Holland Village, Indian vegetarian eateries Kaveri in Terminals 2 and 3 at the airport, and catering company The Cosmopolitan.

Chutney Mary Indian Fast Food opened in 2004 and has a clientele of both expatriates and locals.

Your other restaurants are more upmarket. Why did you open the cheap and cheerful Chutney Mary?

We wanted a restaurant that would evoke memories most Indians have of home. Chutney Mary serves vegetarian and non-vegetarian food from the east, west, north and south of India. We felt there wasn't a place that served interstate cuisines and there was a lack of uncommon items such as chaat and various street foods.

What do you use as a price guide for Chutney Mary?

We have kept prices similar to those of international fast-food chains. You can expect to spend about $10 to $15 a meal, but it works out cheaper for a group.

Do you have any money-saving tips for cooks?

Little things such as growing your own herbs can help. It is healthy and economical. I have herbs such as thyme and basil growing on my window sill at home.

What is your favourite smell in the kitchen?

Freshly ground or freshly roasted herbs such as cumin, rosemary, fenugreek, nutmeg, thyme and basil. You can roast these in a pan and keep them in a jar for a few days.

What foods do you indulge in?

Fresh Indian desserts. I love desserts made with cottage cheese such as sandesh from Kolkata. It is like a piece of marzipan that melts in your mouth. I also like rasmalai, which is flattened cottage cheese served with thickened milk, and rasgula - poached or steamed cottage cheese balls in sugar syrup.

What dish of your mother's can you never get enough of?

My mother was a fabulous cook and she would make the most divine makhi roti (corn bread) and sarson ka saag (sauteed mustard greens) with homemade pickles, ginger strips and onion rings. I could eat those at every meal.

Where do you like to dine?

Singapore is such a foodies' city. I love a good Chinese meal and we usually go to Crystal Jade Palace at Ngee Ann City for Sunday lunch. For a light and delicious Continental meal with a few friends in the afternoon, I would head to Broth in Duxton Hill, and when I'm in the mood for something healthier and more exotic, I go to Al Hamra, my Lebanese restaurant in Holland Village.

What is Chutney Mary's signature dish?

The kathi kebab (right), which is the Indian equivalent to a popiah (spring roll). It is a dish of the North (of India) and can be made with a filling of mushrooms, chicken tikka or sheekh kebab.

This article was first published in The Sunday Times on Aug 10, 2008.