Where to eat this September…in Delhi-NCR

Delhi has officially earned some serious bragging rights. India’s most talked-about new restaurant has landed in the capital. Raga, Gaggan Anand’s first restaurant in the country, a collaboration with chef Rydo Anton and restaurateur Zorawar Kalra, is housed in the space that was once Masala Library in Janpath. It’s already booked out for weeks, so good luck getting a table.

There’s plenty happening elsewhere too. Aerocity has a new Mexican restaurant, GK-1 has another bar, and Lodhi Colony continues to add new spots, from coffee-and-wine bars to south Indian restaurants. A few familiar names, like Dumbo and Amninder Sandhu’s Kikli, are also turning up in new neighbourhoods. Add to that a bunch of new menus and collaborations, and there’s already quite a bit to look forward to this month.

Openings and launches

Dumbo Deli, New Friends Colony

Dumbo has opened its third outlet in under a year, bringing its neighbourhood-first approach to New Friends Colony. The takeaway-led space with five seats is made for everyday stops, whether that’s a coffee before gym, a sandwich between errands or a matcha on an evening walk.

The menu features Dumbo’s signature Florentine-style sandwiches alongside new additions, including Halloumi & Chilli Crisp Lola, Burrata & ’Nduja Viola, Luca, and Caesar. There’s also a coffee and matcha programme, with Bili Hu Coffee and Glow Glossary as partners, plus seasonal specials such as a watermelon and feta sandwich. A new loyalty card gives regulars another reason to return: on every visit, the diner gets a stamp. Once you have eight, the next drink is on the house.

L3 Kitchen, Courtyard by Marriott, Ghaziabad

If Ghaziabad hasn’t been on your dining radar yet, this might change that. The newly launched Courtyard by Marriott Ghaziabad has an all-day diner, L3 Kitchen, with live cooking and a menu that moves between Indian, Italian, and Oriental. Think Hindon bowl, Noor-e-kebab, and signature dal, alongside an assortment of pizzas, pastas, risottos, dim sum, wok-fried rice, noodles, and Thai curries.

The offerings extend to Yard & Brew, the hotel’s cafe and bar, where five new cocktails bring a little more fun to the drinks menu. The lineup includes beetroot G&T, Gingermelon Lemon Drop and Mist of Garden, with beetroot, watermelon, ginger, roasted coconut, basil, and cucumber making appearances. 

Raga by Gaggan, Janpath

Gaggan Anand has finally brought his food to Delhi. Raga, though, is not simply Gaggan Bangkok transplanted to Janpath. Created with long-time collaborator and equal partner Rydo Anton, the 22-course experience is gentler in spirit but still full of the chef’s signature surprises. There’s Pink Blossom, a guava-chilli take on his famous Yoghurt Explosion; an Aloo Bonda Sandwich served on onion-water meringue; Cold Curry with prawns and pomelo; and a gilded Golden Egg pani puri. The meal moves through tabak maaz, nihari, bheja, and morel curry without ever feeling like a marathon. The setting is intimate, the open kitchen is a big part of the action, and the playlist moves from classic rock to old Bollywood. At ₹11,111, it’s definitely a meal for a special occasion. Pro tip: book well in advance. Check out our detailed review here.

Selva, Worldmark 4, Aerocity

Delhi already has Bomba and Miss Margarita on its Mexican dining roster, but Selva is bringing a rather different flavour to the table. Blending regional Mexican cooking with Japanese-Peruvian Nikkei influences, the new restaurant is the result of more than a year of culinary research by founder Sarthak Sidana (of Underdoggs and Sere fame) across Mexico, Peru, Japan and beyond. The menu goes well beyond the usual taco territory, with Oaxaca’s tlayuda, crisp nori tacos, ceviches, tiraditos, house-made tortillas, and robata-fired seafood and meats. Traditional techniques, such as tatemado, add some fire to the mix.

After dark, Selva Maya, the bar at Selva, shifts the mood, with Mesoamerican mythology shaping its setting and cocktails. The drinks come from the team behind Goa’s Hideaway cocktail bar, with Viper’s Venom bringing together five house-made preparations and more than 30 ingredients, including raw mango gin, clarified tomato water, Tiger’s milk, and a watermelon rind pickle. Jaguar of Selva takes a more Manhattan-like route, built around tonka-bean-infused whisky, cocoa butter, and salted Earl Grey agave. Cacao, peppers, Amazonian botanicals, and native fruits also make appearances across the menu.

Loco’s Den, GK-1

If you fancy a cocktail at 9 am, Loco’s Den might be your kind of place. Café Loco’s new sibling is an all-day neighbourhood bar serving cocktails, comfort food, and plenty of reasons to stick around. Its 18 cocktails are divided into three moods: Breakfast Buzz, Lunch Flow, and Dinner Glow. The morning drinks, like the vodka-based Soul’s First Sip with cold brew, honey, and tonic, and The 9 AM Club (gin, chamomile tea, orange marmalade, lemon and soda) are the kind to wake you up. The afternoon pours, including Community Table (gin, cucumber, basil, and green apple) are fresh and refreshing, while drinks like Midnight Loco with mezcal, tequila, chilli, mango, and lime are made for a late night. There are classics too, including the espresso martini, Aperol spritz, Old Fashioned, and negroni.

Beer on tap, bar food, Formula 1 and football screenings, karaoke, quizzes, DJs and even a PS5 keep the place going all day. Start early, stay as long as you like.

Kikli, Gurugram

Kikli is back with a second outpost after Connaught Place, bringing chef Amninder Sandhu’s exploration of Punjab’s lesser-known food traditions to Gurugram. The menu looks beyond the usual butter chicken and dal makhani, drawing from village, home, and royal kitchens across the region. Expect Satpura chaat, gobhi bharmi, katlama, chapli kebabs, nalli kachori, and atte di chiddi, alongside lesser-known breads, including naturally fermented mushki roti and toonhi roti. Sandhu’s research also comes through in details such as kunda danda chutney and malka dal, slow-cooked over a traditional hara (clay oven) using cowdung cakes. The drinks follow suit, turning aam panna, lassi, thandai, and Punjabi spices into cocktails. It’s a look at Punjab’s food without the nostalgia overload.

Lizzu, Lodhi Colony

Lodhi Colony has a new all-day player: Lizzu, a cafe and wine bar that opens at 9 am and doesn’t call it a night until 1 am. The kitchen takes a Mediterranean detour through Sicily and the Levant, starting with specialty coffee and Çılbır in the morning before moving on to house-baked manakish, hummus with warm saj, fresh pasta, and open-fire chicken shawarma. Bread comes out of the oven throughout the day, making it especially hard to resist. The drinks deserve attention too: Lizzu has nine lemonades built around Japanese yuzu, with the fruit cut, cured, and squeezed to order rather than poured from a bottle. Alongside these are wines by the glass and cocktails, making this an address that can take you from the first coffee of the day to a late-night drink without changing tables.

Kai Oota, Lodhi Colony

Kai Oota brings the flavours of Karnataka to Delhi, paired with minimalist interiors, jazz-inspired music, and a relaxed cafe feel. The 25-seater is part of the growing buzz around Lodhi Colony, which has been adding plenty of new food and drink spots lately. The menu has benne dosa, ghee roast garlic dosa, thatte idli, sabudana idli and Mangalore buns, while the rice of the day switches between donne biryani, bisibele bhat, coconut rice, vaangi bhat and tamarind rice. Mangaluru bhajji, chow chow bhat, and a tender coconut soufflé with ice cream make the cut too. For drinks, there’s filter coffee, masala majje and kulhad soda. The name translates to “food eaten by hand” in Kannada, so dig in.

Manam Chocolate Beverage Bar, Vasant Kunj

Manam has opened its first standalone beverage bar in Delhi at DLF Promenade, serving 24-plus hot and cold drinks made with its single-origin Indian craft chocolate. The menu spans hot chocolates, shakes, and plant-based and protein-forward options, plus a Craft Your Own Beverage experience. Start with the hazelnut praline latte, dark chocolate orange or malted chocolate chai. There’s also housemade gelato, pastries, viennoiserie, cakes, and savouries, alongside Manam’s chocolates. The 16-seater island bar makes for an easy post-shopping chocolate hit—or a good enough excuse to go to the mall in the first place. 

Specials, events, new menus

Chef Ekaterina Alehina x Indian Accent

Russian flavours are landing at Indian Accent this September, and the menu sounds like quite the crossover. Michelin-starred chef Ekaterina Alehina of Biologie is joining chef Shantanu Mehrotra for a one-day, four-hands lunch on September 16. Alehina’s cooking draws from Russian traditions, with fermentation, foraging, and zero-waste cooking shaping her approach. Her dishes include borscht with beet marmalade, lacto-fermented beetroot and a borscht sphere; halibut with Dutch porridge, seaweed and enoki; and gingerbread with pear compote, raisins, chakchak, and spicy ice cream. Mehrotra will add his own dishes to the mix, so the menu moves between Russian and contemporary Indian flavours. Chef Ekaterina Pugacheva, chair of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants Academy for Russia, Central Asia and Eastern Europe, will also join Alehina in Delhi.

Reservations: email reservations.del@indianaccent.com or call +91 11 66175151

Poured, Not Plated at Mr Button, GK-3

Mr Button turns one with a limited-edition cocktail menu taking serious inspiration from popular dishes from across the world. Tom Yum brings coconut-washed gin, galangal, lemongrass, and kaffir lime to the glass, while Sushi-Tini channels a Shibuya sushi counter with sushi rice vodka, sake, nori, and wasabi. Napoli takes its cue from a Neapolitan margherita, with tequila, tomato, basil, brioche, and cheese, while PB & J goes straight for nostalgia with peanut butter vodka, raspberry, and a Jell-O shot on the side. The month-long menu runs until October 5, so there’s still time to work your way through the list.

Sidecar ke Kalakar at Sidecar, GK-2

Sidecar is putting its bartenders in the spotlight with Sidecar Ke Kalakar, its sixth signature cocktail menu, celebrating the many ways art can take shape. The 12 cocktails draw from photography, animation, sand art, classical dance and more, with each bartender stepping into the role of a kalakar, turning their own creative ideas into drinks. 

Mixed Media combines tequila, bell pepper, and amla pickle in a fizzy highball. Stop Motion pairs smoky vetiver-infused whisky with black raisins and bay leaf. And Negative Space turns tomato and balsamic into a colourless cocktail finished with a mint sphere. Double Exposure brings together stout, cold brew, and cacao vodka, while Kintsugi pairs moringa flowers, mulberries, and honey. Alongside the new creations, there are also Sidecar favourites, like Kaapi Time, Potter’s Touch, and Yang’s Old Fashioned.

There’s even a special collaboration with fashion label Huemn, a limited-edition apron featuring a group shot of Sidecar’s bartenders. A limited number of pieces will be available at the GK bar.

Le Cirque, The Leela Palace New Delhi

Le Cirque at The Leela Palace New Delhi has a new menu, and it’s a little brighter and lighter than what you might remember. The Franco-Italian kitchen is still doing its thing with French technique and Italian flavours, but the focus is firmly on the ingredients. Hokkaido scallop crudo, sweet pea and parsley risotto with king crab, paprika-glazed lamb chop, and Parmesan-crusted rock lobster are some of the dishes to look out for. If you’ve got a birthday, anniversary or simply an evening when you feel like dressing up for dinner, this is a good excuse to revisit one of Delhi’s old-school fine-dining addresses.

New cocktail menu at Red, Vasant Vihar

Red is exactly what it sounds like. This cocktail bar in Delhi’s Vasant Vihar is built around one colour, from the interiors and menu to what’s in your glass. Its new cocktail menu takes the idea one step further: every drink plays with a single red ingredient, so tomato, pomegranate, amaranth leaf, watermelon, salmon, plum, and chilli each get their own starring role.

The fun is in seeing how wildly different the drinks turn out. Rouge Orchard mixes Johnnie Walker Blonde with apple, celery, and mint for a fizzy, citrusy pour with a peppery finish. Amaranth Blush goes full savoury with Bombay Sapphire, pink salmon, elderflower, and a tobiko olive. Wine Soaked Pom combines gin, wine, pomegranate, mandarin and ponzu for something tart, sweet, and pleasantly tannic, with plenty more combinations to work your way through.

The Live Alchemy and Omo for Later at Omo, Gurugram

At Omo, fermentation has always been part of the conversation. Now, the produce-forward restaurant at DLF Galleria is taking it further with The Live Alchemy, a fermentation lab that doubles as the kitchen’s R&D playground, and Omo for Later, its first retail line. In the lab, kitchen scraps get a second life: banana peels become Mexican-inspired tepache, while oyster mushroom stems go into the restaurant’s hot sauce for extra umami. The experiments also show up on the menu, from bael kanji, jamun wine, and tongba to black rice kimchi fried rice, watermelon aguachile, and tender coconut ceviche.

Omo for Later takes the same idea home with kombuchas, chutneys, flavoured butters, fermented crackers, turmeric sourdough, mango shorshe, and its Naga chilli hot sauce, all up for sale.