2018 Top Chefs of Southwest Florida

21 Spices, Naples

Asif Syed has been on the Food Network more than any other local chef, and in September he actually “Beat Bobby Flay” in the eponymous cooking show. He did it with chicken tandoori.

“I was fully prepared,” says the exuberant chef, “This was not an ordinary competition; he is an iron chef.”

Classically trained, Chef Asif was born near Hyderabad, India, famous for Mughlai cuisine. That is what you’ll find at his Naples restaurant, 21 Spices. 

“The menu is unique,” he says. “No other Indian restaurant has these dishes, from this part of India.”