Anurag Arora’s design-led plates are ready to move out of his living room

Two carnivores and a vegetarian walk into an East Village wine bar. They’re greeted by the dim glow of a cosy space, the animated chatter of guests, and a buzzing open kitchen. The 20-minute wait to be seated feels like a small price to pay for the sense of community that fills the air—an unusual experience for a place that doesn’t take reservations, especially in a city where waiting weeks for a table is the norm.

Just last month, product-designer-turned-chef Anurag Arora, acclaimed for his intimate and artful culinary experiences at his home in Bengaluru, took over the kitchen at NYC’s Sauced for a night. Expecting just a handful of friends, he was surprised to find himself at the centre of a packed gathering. “Most of my pop-ups in India have been controlled à la carte, so this was my first time opening the doors to anyone who wanted to walk in,” shares the brains behind the cuisine-agnostic Apartment dinner party series.

This is not the first time Arora has taken his pop-up series, which he started hosting in 2019, outside the comfort of his Indiranagar home. So far, he has travelled with it to Mexico and Italy, to restaurants in London and San Francisco, besides other Indian metros. About the NYC edition, he says, “It was daunting, but I felt at ease thinking it would be a quiet evening since I only knew about 15 people in the city. Nothing—and I mean nothing—could have prepared us for the 200+ people who showed up that day.”

A week before the event, I’d received the determinedly kitschy event poster from three different friends back in India—and that was before the Instagram algorithm did its thing. Needless to say, what could have been a low-key event turned into something that felt more like a buzzy gallery opening.

Even if you haven’t eaten Arora’s food, chances are you’ve seen his artfully designed plates on Instagram (a new pop-up will be announced here soon)—online and IRL, his design influence is apparent in his meticulous, gorgeous detailing of plates. His background in product design has long influenced his pop-up experiences, whether in the presentation of the dishes or the choice of the venue. New York too, was no different.

As a longtime fan of Sauced, Arora knew it would be the perfect space for this pop-up: hipster and eclectic, with graffitied walls, ’90s wine fridges with neon signs, dim red lighting, long communal tables and cosy curtained-off segments. It was the perfect spot for art, design, and culinary creativity to come together, and indeed, the ambience echoed the spirit of an art gallery, with guests leaning across community tables to appreciate the arrangements on their plates, discuss the flavours, and swap recommendations. Our table was a perfect microcosm of the night: within 10 minutes of being seated, we found ourselves chatting with the other women at our table, who had recently moved to the city. Over the span of 75 minutes, we ended up discussing everything from job horror stories to reality TV drama and relationship advice. The setting felt more like a gathering of old friends than strangers, and a lot of (metaphorical) tea was spilled.

Usually, when I hear ‘Indian pop-up’, I know I’m in for a heavy meal—but Arora flipped the script here with his small plates of coastal offerings, which left just enough room for dessert (and maybe even a post-dinner drink). The seven dishes, inspired by his childhood and travels as well as his previous pop-ups, felt like a curated exhibit, each dish telling its own story. And they looked like a dream. Our party of three ordered everything on the menu—a wise decision, considering how quickly items were selling out. The prawn toast and apartment ceviche were clear crowd-pleasers, the latter a direct nod to his pop-up apartment series. The bone marrow with shiso seeds was another standout, with the tender, rich meat getting elevated by the added crunch.

Despite the busy night, Arora moved through the space effortlessly, introducing himself to diners, gathering feedback, and adding to the feeling of community. “I know the city appreciates bold, unapologetic flavours, and that’s exactly what I aimed for. While I had to adjust to the local produce and availability, I didn’t hold back on the intensity—and it paid off,” he says, pleased with how his dishes resonated with New Yorkers.

In a fast-paced city like NYC, the Bengaluru chef managed to create a rare moment where strangers could sit together and talk, share a meal, and feel like they were part of something bigger. That night, Sauced felt more like an extension of his Apartment dinners, blending the warmth and personal touch of his Bengaluru series with the energy of NYC. “There’s something about being in a foreign land, with a new audience, that pushes you beyond your comfort zone. I thrive on that discomfort and seek it out to grow as a cook and an executor,” he says, hinting at more international pop-ups in the future.