The tasting table at 8ish is laid out with Nilgiri leaves, clayware and a glass bottle filled with wild honey. The candle’s light, spotlighting its deep amber shade. We use a wooden spoon to taste its deep sweetness, with a hint of caramel. A bowl is filled with deep purple karvand berries (Bengal Currant).
Last month, creative director Jishnu AJ and head chef Touseef Shamsudeen set off on a road trip with four team members to a tribal village, 50 kilometres off Kolhapur. Jishnu says, “My friend is from Radhanagari, and he always narrated stories about wild honey foraging and local food traditions. We decided to explore it, and translate it into a limited menu. We had no idea what was in store for us.”
For a week, the team lived with local residents, setting off on expeditions to harvest wild honey from tree sap, cooking with the locals and exploring markets for karvand berries, indigenous rice varieties and Nilgiri leaves.
For Touseef, the trip was an immersion into Maharashtrian cuisine. “A revelation was Chat Ni Cha Masala, a 28-spice blend that a single family has guarded for generations. Think of it as Radhanagari’s answer to China’s Lao Gan Ma Chilli Crisp: a condiment sprinkled over everything. Residents used it in Chicken Sukka, with rice bhakris cooked over wood fire,” he adds.
Our top 4 picks
Pandhra Rassa Ceviche
Who would have thought spicy Kolhapuri coconut broth can be reimagined as Leche de Tigre? Cured pink perch ceviche comes seasoned with mirin and vinegar. Topped with crispy toasted black rice and pickled shallot, this one hit differently. The vegetarians get lychee, which is just as good.
Cost: Rs 490 (vegetarian); Rs 580 (non-vegetarian)
Jackfruit Rassa
Chatni Cha Masala is steam-distilled into a hydrosol for a vodka cocktail, softened with the floral notes of elderflower and finished with Supasawa, a Japanese acidifier, finished with tonic water.
Cost: Rs 1100
Khichdi and Achar
An Italian bowl with desi comfort, mutton pickle, black rice risotto, topped with peanut thecha and fried garlic, makes this mushroom sauce-laden dish perfect for every season. It was one of the first recipes that the head chef put together.
Cost: Rs 720
Nilgiri
The cooling effect of Nilgiri or eucalyptus meets the boldness of whisky, balanced by a bitter triphala tincture and vermouth.
Cost: Rs 890
At: 8ish, Nariman Point.
Till: July 31; 12 noon to 1.30 am
Call: 9457118888
Also in the city
Gurugram’s Japonico in Mumbai tonight
Humble Beginnings
Ranked 23rd on the 30 Best Bars India 2025 list, Japanese bar and restaurant Japonico is curating a limited-edition Izakaya experience with cocktail experience this weekend.
The team, led by beverage director Marcel Roland and culinary director Roberto Blondi, has taken over Mayouchi, a contemporary Asian dining and cocktail destination at a Powai five-star.
The Wanderer
Look out for cocktails including Humble Beginnings, a vodka, fermented sake and guava cocktail, or the Wanderer with hibiscus teqilla, grapefruit and sancho pepper salt. Dig into Smashed Avocado Taco, Ebi Prawns Sushi Roll and Korean Lamb Yakitori.
On: July 18; 8 pm onwards
At: Mayouchi, The Westin Mumbai Powai Lake.
Call: 7001492713
Cost: Rs 4000 (approximately)
