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The Hindu
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Wagamama is here. What other new Mumbai restaurants should you try this weekend
Mumbai's dining scene never sits still. Just when you think you have found your favourite pasta joint or sushi bar, along comes a fresh opening, promising slow-fermented breads, house-cured meats, or cocktails made with foraged botanicals. From sleek chef-driven menus to playful pop-ups turned permanent, here is a guide to Mumbai's buzziest new restaurants. Wagamama The arrival of Wagamama in Mumbai's Churchgate is, at the very least, a confident flex. Housed inside the restored Cambata Building — neighbours with Eros Cinema and Churchgate station — the global ramen chain has made its India debut with a splash of polished minimalism and fast-casual fun. The interiors play to type: neutral tones, soft industrial textures, communal benches, and open kitchens designed for flow. It is slick, unfussy, and designed to look great on your feed without being overtly curated. You can see the London blueprint in every inch and that is both its strength and limitation. The menu is a calibrated 'greatest hits' — katsu curry, bang bang cauliflower, kare burosu, gyozas and donburi bowls all present and accounted for. The ramen is warm and filling, though the broths do not quite achieve the layered complexity of other pan-Asian spots in the city. The chicken tantanmen hits the right spice notes, but the noodles can feel just a touch overcooked if you wait too long. That said, it is comforting in the way airport ramen rarely is. The star, surprisingly, might be the banana katsu — a golden-fried dessert that balances sweetness and crunch with more finesse than expected. Drinks include refreshing cold-pressed juices and zingy mocktails, although cocktails lean a bit too saccharine for their own good. Over 50% of the menu is vegetarian or vegan, which is admirable, but expect a very pan-global interpretation of Asia, not necessarily regionally accurate, nor pretending to be. A meal for two will cost ₹2000 plus taxes; 1st floor, Cambata Building, 42, Maharshi Karve Rd, opposite Oval Maidan, Churchgate, Mumbai - 400020 Gourmet Village at Phoenix Palladium, Lower Parel Set across two levels in the West Zone of Phoenix Palladium, the newly launched Gourmet Village is less a food court and more a curated lifestyle destination for the city's discerning diners. Reimagining the traditional mall dining experience, this upscale zone brings together over 50 restaurants and cafés under one roof. Designed to feel like an eclectic village, the space is laced with greenery, warm lighting, and airy al fresco sections that invite you to linger a little longer than you had planned. There is much to explore: Burma Burma brings its vegetarian Asian fare. Their new dessert menu, called The Sweet Life, fuse timeless classics with Burmese flavours and modern textures. Created in collaboration with award-winning pastry chef Vinesh Johny, the seven-part menu is a punctuation mark to the meal, whether it's jaggery-and-coconut-laced reinterpretations or delicate international patisserie with a twist. Kuuraku offers an authentic izakaya experience (skewers, sake and all), and Delhi's cult favourite Andrea's makes its Mumbai debut with a menu of polished global comfort food. The presence of local staples like Kitchen Garden by Suzette, Foo, Le Pain Quotidien, and Cream Centre adds familiarity, while spots like Fountain Sizzlers and The Silver Train dial up the nostalgia. Sweet finishes come courtesy Harley's Fine Baking and Gold by Ice Cream Works, while the plush Game Palacio lounge throws in some leisure. Gourmet Village, 3rd & 4th Floor, West Zone, Phoenix Palladium. 8/462, Palladium, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel, Mumbai - 400013 Fireback Fireback is what happens when high-concept Thai cuisine meets good execution. With Chef David Thompson, the revered interpreter of Thai culinary history, at the helm as culinary director, the Fireback outpost in Mumbai gets a number of things right. The space inside Nilaya Anthology is predictably striking, but never sterile. Earthy tones, a glowing Josper grill at centre-stage, and atmospheric lighting all give it a refined warmth. It feels upscale, but not intimidating. Food-wise, it is not all pad thai and green curry Expect jungle curries that bite, salads that crunch with toasted rice and lime, and flame-grilled proteins rubbed with pastes made from scratch. Highlights include the smoky lamb chop gorlae with crispy shallots, a well balanced scallop salad brightened with coconut and lemongrass, and the soft-shell crab red curry, which manages to be indulgent without overwhelming. The crab fried rice is unfussy but elevated. The vegetarian options are more than just filler, especially the grilled pumpkin and sweet potato in gorlae sauce, but meat and seafood still lead the narrative. The cocktail menu, created by Varun Sharma, who also leads Comorin downstairs, is layered playful. The Tom Yum Highball has its flaws but it does have bite, while the Galangal — with whisky and pickled galangal brine — is all depth and intrigue. Not every drink hits the mark (some teeter toward over-invention), but the overall bar experience feels well-matched to the food. Prices lean high, and it is not for the unadventurous. But if you are looking for one of the city's most assured openings this year, Fireback is your place. A meal for two, including drinks, will cost ₹4000; Entrance through Comorin at Nilaya Anthology, Peninsula Corporate Park, Ganpatrao Kadam Marg, Lower Parel (West), Mumbai - 400013 Sahib Room & Kipling Bar at The St. Regis Mumbai Not new, but newly reimagined, Sahib Room & Kipling Bar at The St. Regis Mumbai returns after a renovation, and it will charm those with a taste for the slow and subtly theatrical. The relaunch brings a revitalised elegance to this jungle-retreat-meets-regal-dining-room, without abandoning its old-world soul. Think tented ceilings, dark wood flooring, antique mirrors, and carved wooden accents. The updated space pays homage to Rudyard Kipling and the princely shikar camps of yore, with richer textures, sleeker lighting, and a new Spectacle Kitchen that lets guests witness the finesse behind the flames. The kitchen continues to serve its unapologetically traditional Indian menu, dialled up with refinement. The murgh rezala is well balanced, while the panch phoron ki sabzi and dahi ke gullar highlight how vegetarian dishes can be treated with as much reverence. The Rampur ki gosht dum biryani and sahib ki yakhni remain rich and comforting. The new drinks programme is an ambitious trail through Kipling's India. From The Bay (Mumbai) to A Sip from the Mahal (Bundi), each cocktail carries layers of local memory, finished with aromatic flourishes and sleek storytelling. The beverage list, featuring Indian spirits, heritage liqueurs, and reinvented classics, is quietly sophisticated and contextual. A meal for two, including drinks, will cost ₹4000 plus taxes; 462, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel, Mumbai - 400013 Harajuku Tokyo Café & Bakehouse What began as a cheeky, sugar-dusted pop-culture café in Delhi has now evolved into a full-blown Japanese restaurant in Mumbai. At its newest address in Jio World Drive, Harajuku Tokyo Café & Bakehouse opens its most ambitious outpost yet with a multi-sensory restaurant-bar and a bright, pastel-soaked bakehouse. Split across two zones, the 72-seater restaurant comes with a sushi conveyor belt by day and sake bombs and karaoke by night. Expect sushi boats, robot DJs, manga murals, and retro signage, all orchestrated around a menu co-curated with Japanese chefs Asami Indo and Higuchi Nariaki. The food is comfort-led but layered: from the spicy, buttery seafood shio ramen and coal-fired miso salmon off the robata to zany street-style plates like corn dogs, bubbling UFO chicken platters and the umami bomb Naruto's Rush cocktail (yes, vodka, gochujang, and ramen broth in a drink). The sushi section is no afterthought either — the rainbow roll and spicy avocado cream cheese roll are fast favourites. The cocktail menu, curated by Fay Antoine Barretto, comes with Japan-meets-nightlife references, where every drink tells a manga-worthy story. Think Call Me Kimchi, spiked with tequila and house-fermented heat, or the delicate Whisper of the Peach, a Kyoto-inspired blend of Japanese whisky and chamomile. Next door, the 12-seater Harajuku Bakehouse is all soft pinks and Japanese patisserie glow. With soufflé pancakes, cottony cheesecakes, and a new pet-friendly dessert menu. A meal for two will cost ₹2,500 for the cafe and ₹1,200 for the bakehouse; second floor, Jio World Drive, Unit No. S-03, CTS No. 629, Bandra Kurla Complex, Bandra East, Mumbai - 400051 Nando's After years of whispers, Nando's has finally fired up its grills in Mumbai with a flagship casa now open in Kamala Mills, Lower Parel. Known for its cult-favourite flame-grilled peri peri chicken, the brand's arrival is less of a soft launch and more of a full-blown entry for fans of their spicy, saucy poultry. The space itself is bright and expansive, blending Nando's signature Afro-Portuguese design cues with India-specific warmth. Think rustic textures, woven pendant lights, and enough red to match the sauce. The chicken is dependably good. The skin is crisp, the insides juicy, and the basting options range from the gentle lemon and herb to the masochistically fiery extra hot. It is the kind of food that does not pretend to be complex; it is about craveability, not craft. That said, if you're expecting gourmet, slow-cooked nuance, this is not your spot. It is loud, quick, and a bit brash but that is also its charm. Sides like peri-peri fries and spicy rice still hit the spot, but the vegetarian options feel like an afterthought compared to the protein-rich offerings. Service is fast but not fussy, and there is enough room to host a group without elbowing for space. A meal for two will cost ₹1000 inclusive of taxes; Unit 2, Ground Floor, Trade Garden Building, Kamala Mill's Compound, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel
Time Out
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
This monumental cinema in Mumbai is Asia's greatest Art Deco building
If you've ever stopped to admire a building for its clean lines, geometric forms, bold colours, and opulent materials, you're likely gawping at a piece of art deco architecture. A style that became popular in the 1920s and 1930s, art deco works still number among some of the most prominent buildings in the world: think the Empire State Building in America and the Hoover Building in the UK. To mark the centenary of a landmark Paris exhibition: Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels (International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts) in 1925, our expert in architecture and design has done the tough job of whittling down the 10 finest examples of art deco architecture in the world. Picks range from the Art Deco Historic District in Miami to the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, with just one building from all of Asia making the list. That honour goes to the Eros Cinema, located at Churchgate, Mumbai, India. Commissioned in 1935 by the Parsi businessman Shiavax Cawasji Cambata in 1935, it was designed by architect Shorabji Bhedwar and officially opened in February 1938. This is one building you can't miss. The cinema is immense, with an imposing stepped facade of ivory cream and red Agra sandstone protruding onto Marine Drive. The theatre is just as magnificent on the inside: black and white marble covers the foyer, marble staircases with chromium handrails lead up to the upper floor, and elaborate murals, cloud patterns, and relief sculptures adorn the walls of the floors and auditoriums. The Eros Cinema is a significant building in Mumbai's architectural landscape. It's part of the Victorian Gothic and Art Deco Ensembles of Mumbai, which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2018. Though it was closed in 2017, you'll be glad to know that you can visit it now to catch a movie. It was reopened in 2024 after restoration and renovation works by conservation architects, boasting a brand spanking new 1,300-seat theatre and IMAX screen. Check out all 10 of the world's greatest art deco buildings here.
Time Out
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
It's official: the greatest art deco building in the world is in London
Did you know that 2025 marks a special anniversary for art deco? While the style dates back to the 1910s, art deco got its name as an abbreviation for the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels (International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts), which took place in Paris in 1925. An entire century later, art deco's glamourous craftmanship, bold geometric shapes and opulent colours are as admired as ever. To mark the style's big one-oh-oh, last week Time Out published a list of the world's greatest art deco buildings, enlisting the expertise of art deco aficionado Dominic Lutyens. The list totalled nine buildings around the world, with Lutyens highlighting structures like New York's Chrysler Building, Miami's Art Deco Historic District and Mumbai's Eros Cinema. Also making the cut, however, were buildings from London. A total of three London art deco structures featured in Lutyens' top nine – including top spot. Proclaimed the greatest art deco building in the world was, drum roll please… The Daily Express Building on Fleet Street. The Grade II*-listed site, which was designed by Ellis & Clarke in 1932, features a tiered façade made mostly of vitrolite (a kind of opaque plastic glass). Lutyens writes that the outside is 'adorned only by gleaming, slimline chrome bands forming a subtle grid', but the inside is far more glam. 'Its lobby is sumptuously decorated', he says, picking out highlights such as steel furniture designed by Betty Joel and gold and silver murals by sculptor Eric Aumonier. 🏛️ The most beautiful buildings in the world. London was the only city in the ranking to boast more than one entry. The next highest placing structure was Eltham Palace, with the southeast London house placing sixth. Eltham Palace features both the remains of a Tudor palace and art deco additions from the 1930s, and you can find Time Out's guide to visiting the place here. Last from London to make the list was the Hoover Building in ninth. The Grade II* listed west London building was designed by Wallis, Gilbert and Partners and opened in 1933 as the UK headquarters of The Hoover Company. It's since been converted into apartments.
India Today
28-06-2025
- Entertainment
- India Today
Private collector, public legacy
As an architect, Sohrabji K. Bhedwar left his signature on India's most prominent urbanscape by designing art deco marvels across Mumbai. From the iconic Eros Cinema facing Churchgate railway station, and landmark residential buildings like Queen's Court and Green Fields to the Indo-Saracenic marvel of the Syndicate Bank building in Fort, Bhedwar was a master of the arches and turrets that have come to define one of the most influential design movements of the century.
Hindustan Times
27-06-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Line of beauty: Wknd and MAP Academy celebrate 100 years of Art Deco
There is a spot in Mumbai where a generational leap remains frozen in concrete. (Clockwise from top left) The Worker and Kolkhoz Woman sculpture in Moscow; the Visalam Chettinad mansion-turned-hotel in Tamil Nadu; Hoechst Dyeworks in Frankfurt, Germany; and Central Market in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. (Images: Adobe Stock, Art Deco by Norbert Wolf) On one side of the street stands the distinctly Gothic Revival high court building, with its Victorian trappings of dark stone and iron detailing. Across the road, concrete sweeps upward in exuberant lines, banded stripes and streamlined curves reminiscent of ocean liners and now-vintage luxury. Topping it all, the Art Deco Eros Cinema looms like a ship rising out of the ground (see images below; all these structures, of course, are now part of the Unesco world heritage site known as the Victorian and Art Deco Ensemble of Mumbai.) The Gothic Revival high court building, and Eros Cinema, in Mumbai. (HT Archives) The Art Deco style, around the world, was a celebration of new materials (particularly malleable concrete cement). Alongside so much else that burst forth in the 1920s — jazz, 'talkies', suffragettes and swing — in a world still recovering from the Great War and an influenza pandemic, it was a celebration of a new identity, a break from classical forms. It was a reaction to something else too: the soulless grind of the industrial age. Its dynamic streamlined forms and bold motifs influenced fashion, furniture, jewellery, automobiles and everyday household items. The striking geometry, dramatic forms and vibrant colours insisted that even the 'purely utilitarian' could be beautiful. And that anything — a perfume bottle, a staircase, a chair, a car — could make room for luxurious workmanship; and in doing so, become a status symbol. *** (From left) The Sabzi Mandi clock tower in Delhi; Rockefeller Center in New York City; a frieze at the New India Assurance Building in Mumbai. (Images: HT Archives, Shutterstock, Adobe Stock) An interesting aspect of Art Deco is the way in which it threw open the closed world of design. As the Art Deco Society of New York puts it, this was 'not a movement' in the strictest sense. 'It had no founder, no manifesto, and no philosophy. It simply happened because designers and decorators in Paris during the period after the First World War were stimulated by the demands of a restructured society.' Unlike the Bauhaus movement that originated in Germany just before this (1919 on) and the Dutch De Stijl style movement (1917 on), there was no structured effort to promote a rigorous new style; 'just a broad new one' as the New York society puts it, 'which rapidly became popular elsewhere'. The event at which it emerged, the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts (Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes), held in Paris in 1925, was open to all. The style itself was open to interpretation, and soon that interpretation began to be seen around the world. In Russia and Poland, Art Deco was used to celebrate labour movements, with stylised imagery of workers holding up monuments, memorials and government buildings. In New York, it became the hallmark of an exuberant, soaring skyline (the Empire State Building, Rockefeller Center, Chrysler Building). The style's opulence extended to the tiled floors, metalwork, glass and furniture in new civic, religious and public buildings, in theatres and malls, in fast-growing cities ranging from Shanghai and Manila to Casablanca. *** (Clockwise from top left) At the Umaid Bhawan Palace in Jodhpur; an abandoned bank in Tombua, Angola; the Bacardi Building in Havana, Cuba; the Palace of Culture and Science in Warsaw, Poland. (Images: Adobe Stock, Getty Images) Across India, the movement was closely linked with growing cosmopolitanism, and therefore became popular with Indian royalty. The Umaid Bhawan Palace, commissioned by Jodhpur's Maharaja Umaid Singh in the 1920s, for instance, merges Hindu-Buddhist temple features with the streamlined forms and ornamentation. This palace, among a range of other luxurious structures, would later be classified as Indo Deco. Elsewhere, an Indian community took the style into their hands. The well-travelled Chettiars of Tamil Nadu worked with local artisans and builders to design homes that celebrated their cultural identity and seamlessly incorporated this new European influence. Chettinad Deco grew out of the combination of great wealth and exposure. Significantly, it showed that one didn't need a formal degree to blend Art Deco with vernacular design. Mansions such as Visalam Chettinad, built in 1939 and now a luxury hotel, reveal an elegant mix of traditional courtyards and carved doorways paired with Art Deco railings, windows and facades. Most of India's Art Deco structures, of course, stand in the colonial-era cities: Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi. Here too, the flexibility birthed a fusion of elements, motifs and sensibilities. Architects such as GB Mhatre and WM Namjoshi embraced and hybridised Art Deco, in the cinema halls, bungalows and residential buildings they designed. In a key example, Mhatre adopted Indian features such as the weather shade or chhajja, and built stylised sweeping versions, to protect windows from sun and rain. This remains one of the defining features of the style in India. What are the other ways to spot an Art Deco structure? (Clockwise) Nine tribal figures at Mutual Heights Building, Cape Town, South Africa; the spiral staircase at Nebotičnik building in Ljubljana, Slovenia; the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Images: Wikimedia Commons, Adobe Stock) The first clue is straight lines in the façade that draw the eye upwards. These could be dramatic flourishes or subtle touches along edges and columns. Next, look for streamlined curves: in balconies and parapets, gates and grilles, even in the fonts used on signage. Other signs include the stepped, ziggurat and frozen fountain motifs, cascading profiles that contrast with horizontal bands, chevrons and stripes. Look for straight lines often appearing in threes. And, of course, the simple yet sweeping geometric symmetry. *** Around the world, this exuberant style would slowly fall out of favour, by the beginning of World War 2. Austerity and pragmatism weren't just preferable by this time, they were necessary. Art Deco saw something of a resurgence in the 1960s and '70s. It was a revival born of nostalgia and a longing for the glamour and elation of this brief Golden Age. Walk around an old urban neighbourhood in India and you'll likely see signs of it still. (Sneha Sridhar is a learning manager with MAP Academy, an online platform encouraging greater engagement with South Asia's art and cultural histories)
