When chef Belal Hossain was a child, his parents owned a rice farm in the Noakhali district of southeastern Bangladesh. Because the region's agriculture was threatened by floodwaters, a long canal was dug in 1660 (Noakhali stands for "new canal" in the Bengali language) and the area became an important producer of rice, flour and jute. It's thriving population passed 2.5 million by the end of the twentieth century. 

But Hossain had little interest in farming, so at the age of 20, he departed Noakhali for America. The two years he had worked part-time while attending high school was enough training for him to obtain entry-level employment at The Red Hook Curry House, a North Indian cuisine restaurant, in Dutchess County near Rhinebeck. This job lasted only six months but that was long enough for him to begin building his career as a cook. 

He relocated to Catonsville in Baltimore County, Maryland, the home of a major University of Maryland campus. Here he went to work for the Indian Delight Restaurant, a small eatery owned by an immigrant from Bangladesh, boasting an extensive menu of Indian and Pakistani dishes. But after he was only a few months into his new job, a fire destroyed the restaurant. Out of work and with only two short-term positions to list on his resume, Hossain decided to return home.

He might have remained in his native country but one day exciting news arrived -- The Indian Delight had been rebuilt and the owners wanted him back. He returned and stayed for five years.

Next he worked at Masala Grill in Princeton, NJ for 18 months and then joined Spice India, a restaurant located in the Allentown/Whitehall, PA area. Eight months later, he learned from a friend that a new Indian restaurant opening in Tarrytown sought an executive chef. He was hired by owner Humayun Khan as Swagat Halal Indian Restaurant prepared to open in October, 2010.

Khan  grew up in Dhaka, the capital and largest city of Bangladesh.  

In 1990, after working eight years as a chief medical officer (a government post) and as a physician in Dhaka, he moved to America. Uncertified to practice in the U.S.A., he took  a daytime job as a manager at a combination Dunkin' Donuts/Pizza Hut and at night pursued a masters degree in nutrition at Brooklyn College.

Following graduation, he was hired by Coney Island Hospital in Brooklyn as a nutritionist and food service manager. He stayed for eight years managing about sixty employees including chefs, cooks and administrators.  

Next, he enrolled in the nuclear medicine studies program of the Saint Vincent's Medical Center in Manhattan. Upon graduation he worked at a hospital in Smithtown, Long Island for about a year and then joined the staff of a private cardiac center in Brooklyn -- a position he continues to hold.

The restaurant director is Mohammed A. Matin, who previously worked in Indian restaurants in Maryland, and Mohammed Hoque, a resident of Sleepy Hollow, is manager and host.

Dinner service begins every night at 5 p.m. No alcoholic beverages are served however you can bring your own bottle and corkscrew. Ice buckets can be provided on request. 

An all You Can Eat" buffet luncheon offers nearly 30 different items daily. The cost is $9.95 per person; the buffet is available seven days a week from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Swagat Halal Indian Restaurant, 19 N. Broadway, Tarrytown, NY 10591. 914-332-5544. www.swagatrestaurant.com