Mumbai is known as the “City of Dreams.” The city is known for being bustling and home to Bollywood stars, but it is also a foodie’s dream. Foodies flock to Mumbai to indulge themselves in what the city has to offer. One minute you’re downing a couple of spicy pani puris and the next you’re cutting into a juicy steak. Restaurants pop up every day allowing the city’s residents and guests to try out new and different cultures and flavors. We’ve rounded up some of our favorite restaurants in the city, from the best places for brunches or drunches to the most exquisite fine-dining restaurants.
KMC*, Fort
Photo Courtesy: KMC
KMC* is an interpreted space by the creators of EKAA, the city’s first interpreted cuisine restaurant Nestled in the heritage building of Kitaab Mahal, KMC* envisions a culture that is free of boundaries, a place that stimulates conversation about the mundane and esoteric, a place that feels young and old at the same time, a place that feels familiar and unconventional at the same time. A space for people to voice, artists to curate, thinkers to ideate, friends to meet, and colleagues to work. Every element of KMC* is carefully chosen to bring together a warm embrace of comfort, from food to space.
The Burrow, BKC
Photo Courtesy: The Burrow
The doors open to reveal a charming restaurant that reflects the name with stone walls and wood features. A burrow that separates you from the city noise and provides isolation for a pleasant time over beverages and food. The Burrow’s display kitchen allows customers to see the plating and the finishing touches before the dish arrives at their table. The PDR is also intended to introduce the notion of a working lunch. A practical area may serve as a board room as well as an informal business gathering for 12-15 people, as well as a Set Menu with Wine or Beer pairings. The furnishings capture the atmosphere of a European cafe as well as a burrow with comforting sensations that feels like a warm hug. With an array of modern European dishes, the menu includes, but is not limited to old classics of artisanal pasta, gourmet-styled tacos, and sliders among others. Each dish is carefully crafted to make the accompanying sauce/dip the star ingredient. The bar at The Burrow encapsulates the vibe through classic and contemporary offerings. The menu boasts unique handcrafted drinks that elevates the experience through aesthetics and eclectic mixes. The drinks take a theatrical route for an experience that engages all senses.
Cou Cou, BKC
Photo Courtesy: Cou Cou
Cou Cou by Oberoi is The Oberoi Group’s first independent food and beverage shop, and its offerings achieve the right combination of authenticity, tradition, and modernity, with everything created to the finest level. Braised Lamb Shanks, Thai Steamed Fish, and Creamed Spinach Filled Slow Cooked Chicken are just a few of the chef’s distinctive dishes on the menu. They offer soups, salads, and petit plates like Tempura Prawns and Paneer Papadum. They also offer a unique handcrafted bakery section where you can sample rich sweets like Baklava Croissant, Kouign Amann, and Cinnamon Brioche.
Millo, Lower Parel
Photo Courtesy: Millo
Millo is an immensely creative, vegetarian space, making it an integral part of the modern lifestyle with its exclusive, luxurious, and elegant decor. The restaurant has a distinct personality and ambiance that showcases luxury, with shades of blue and white offset by an exquisitely quirky floor with white and grey patterns. The space is designed to transition seamlessly between day and night and reminds you of a bright, serene summer day out in nature’s arms.
Dobaraa, Lower Parel
Photo Courtesy: Dobaraa
When you’re in the city, resto-bars are the place to be! Mumbai’s new quintessential resto-bar in Lower Parel’s Palladium mall Dobaraa brings together the best of comfort food from around the world. The place’s speciality is its crafty mood cocktails, for when you’re feeling calm or frivolous. Elegant in some corners, and grunge in others, the space is enlivened by mood lighting and well-appointed speakers for the perfect Friday night groove. And, if you’re here just for the food, you won’t be sorry. Incorporating traditional cuisine with sophisticated techniques, the menu is designed to complement your drink, with comfort food including small bites and indulgences.
Praia, Worli
Photo Courtesy: Praia
Parai draws inspiration from Mykonos, Greece, where life is one huge party, yet is aware of and reflective of the city’s ever-changing eating scene. The menu is flavor-forward rather than cuisine-specific, maintaining traditional techniques while flirting with the avant-garde. Praia’s bar program is sophisticated and subtle, with zero proof, low alcohol, and buzz-worthy drinks! The wine list is an eclectic mix of great classics, boutique wine labels, and even independent labels that break convention while releasing some extremely fascinating types.
PCO, Lower Parel
Photo Courtesy: PCO
PCO is known for its ability to curate drinks that combine innovation, originality, and quality. They are well-known for utilizing only the freshest ingredients and blending them with distinctive flavors to create some of the greatest drinks. Here, you may enjoy beautiful but entertaining cocktails while snacking on PCO popcorn and snacks from Pings or Saz. The secret speakeasy garden and open-air setting, along with feel-good, toe-tapping sounds, create a friendly atmosphere that allows you to enjoy in an entirely different way.
Silly, Khar West
Photo Courtesy: Silly
Nestled in a comfortable Khar lane is a big, off-white door, with a sign that says Silly. It is the perfect resto-bar with a heart-warming and aesthetically pleasing setting. A white and grey gravel pathway leads you through their outdoor garden with a mix of rustic spots. Silly is an all-day resto-bar with a humble setting, perfect for every mood, right from your morning meeting, to your Friday night vibe with no inhibitions or restrictions. The food and cocktail menu has been created to give the Silly customers a homely experience.
Nava, Bandra
Photo Courtesy: Nava
The restaurant, pronounced Naa-vaa/ and translating to “New, recently created, invented, innovative,” pays homage to its meaning by taking a bold culinary approach to ingredients sourced primarily from various regions within the country, but also appearing as integral elements in the Modern European cuisine landscape. The ingredient-focused restaurant, located in the posh Bandra neighborhood, draws inspiration from both Founder Anushka Pathak’s travels and Chef Akash Deshpande’s skills in the ingredient-driven culinary business. Nava’s interiors are designed to look like an ordinary Parisian flat, with a clean, monochrome palette and classic European accents. These are then given to life by a variety of eccentric artworks and art pieces, including a candle wax David head. The irregular shape and form of the bar, the open kitchen, the comfortable seating, and the eccentric lighting all contribute to Nava’s aesthetic vision, which extends onto the plate.
Tresind, BKC
Trèsind, the multi-award-winning & critically acclaimed flagship of Passion F&B, has been serving guests their progressive take on Indian fine dining since 2014. The menu showcases authentic flavors from the Indian sub-continent presented with a modernistic approach. Embracing the various regional culinary influences that have woven their way into the cuisine, Trèsind’s menu is sophisticated, imaginative, & highly visual.
Akina, Bandra
Photo Courtesy: Akina
The historic warayaki cooking process is the shining star of this Japanese fine dining restaurant, transported from the intoxicating bylanes of Kochi prefecture – on Shikoku’s southern coast – to the busy streets of Bandra. With its daring approach to modern Japanese cuisine, the restaurant hopes to instill a sense of excitement and surprise via an original eating experience. A contemporary Japanese restaurant and bar, it is a sensory oasis that blurs the borders between traditional and modern cooking techniques with inventive mixology and a flair for the dramatic. The 5000-square-foot restaurant takes its aesthetic cues from the namesake spring Japanese flower.
