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Joe Thottungal is a Canadian chef and the owner of the restaurants Coconut Lagoon and Thali in Ottawa. Joe was born in Kerala, trained in Mumbai, and worked in the Middle East before moving to Canada, where he earned his Certified Chef de Cuisine (CCC) designation. In 2008, Joe was named Ottawa Chef of the Year by the Canadian Culinary Federation. In 2016, he won the top prize at Ottawa's Gold Medal Plates competition, followed by a silver medal at the 2017 Canadian Culinary Championships. His first cookbook, Coconut Lagoon, celebrated regional south Indian cuisine and won the gold at Taste Canada Awards in 2020. Joe lives in Ottawa with his wife and three children. Anne DesBrisay is the award-winning food writer and author of Ottawa Cooks. As a journalist, she was the restaurant critic for the Ottawa Citizen and Ottawa Magazine for twenty-five years, an editor for Taste & Travel magazine, and a judge for the Canadian Culinary Championships and Canada's Great Kitchen Party (formerly Gold Medal Plates). She lives in Ottawa.
""Joe Thottungal is one of my greatest philanthropic culinary heroes."" —Margaret Dickenson, award-winning cookbook author ""Chef Joe remains a symbol of compassion and generosity in our community."" —Jim Watson, Mayor of Ottawa ""[Joe] has always been making dynamite South Indian food: it just took some of us awhile to catch up."" —Paul Wells, Maclean's Magazine ""Joe Thottungal’s My Thali transports the reader through an adventure for the senses. This book is a journey. The stunning photographs and collected recipes immerse readers in the fragrances and the tastes that these recipes represent."" —Apt 613 ""The book is a meaningful marker of Thottungal’s 25 years in Canada, and an homage to his Kerala heritage in more ways than the recipes."" —Laura Brehaut, National Post ""Author, restaurateur, and Malayali chef Joe Thottungal is putting Indian thalis on the world food map"" —South First ""Thottungal infuses each recipe with a heartfelt narrative that instantly transports readers to his family kitchen and the bustling streets of India."" —Canadian Cookbooks
