Head Chef Gurps Bagga of Sauma restaurant in Northbridge has rubbed shoulders with many acclaimed cooks and celebrities in his time, but no memories burn as brightly as his encounter with late Perth-born actor Heath Ledger in 2007.

The Indian spice master recalled one busy Saturday night at his family’s former Fremantle restaurant Maya, which he believes was likely Ledger’s final dining experience in Australia before his death in New York in January 2008.

“He rang me. There was a phone call one Saturday, we were really busy, we had no table, and someone just said I was there. And they said, ‘Hey, this guy wants to book a table, and he’s saying he’s Heath Ledger,’” Chef Gurps recalled.

Aware the Dark Knight star was in town due to media buzz, and with Ledger’s father Kim having dined at

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