What to eat…this February

February marks the last of our late-winter menus with their host of leafy greens and beans, plenty of comforting carbs, and some char and smoke. Then, we get back to the rhythm of regular restaurant programming across India: many more new places, a bunch of takeovers, and plenty of excitement around Asian food. Across our dining landscape this month, flavours run from Spanish jamon to Sichuan peppers, and plans span unlimited cocktails on the clock and more endless hours at even more ‘third spaces’. There is Mexican, Malaysian, and Mala in Bengaluru; vegetarian Peruvian, Korean, and Levantine in Ahmedabad; specials of truffles and toban chillies in Mumbai; and Cup Noodles and crab fry in Gurgaon.

In up and coming new restaurants and bars, we have new octagonal bar in Bengaluru, a new French bakery in Mumbai’s Fort area and a banging new bar inside one of Goa’s most popular bars. Consider this your shortlist for eating (and drinking) through the month. 

Winter menus, festivals, and collabs

Delhi

Mumbai

Bengaluru

Omo’s winter brunch menu, Gurgaon

Much of the food at Omo’s winter brunch is smoky and charred, in a good (non-AQI) way.  Winter vegetables are being slow-cooked over fire after being massaged with handmade marinades. There are rose-harissa roasted carrots and charred oyster mushrooms with tamarind-jaggery glaze, muhammara and feta spread, pistachio dukkah, herb and chilli thecha, and cucumber raita. Balsamic charred cabbage comes with red onion jam, tempura shimeji mushrooms, potato purée, and mushroom jus. The rest of the (non-charred) food includes a grazing table with cheese, fruit, and small plates like black channa hummus, a station of curries and appams featuring eggplant moju and cabbage poriyal, and French toast and hot chocolate. 

Banng’s new menu, Gurgaon

At One Horizon Centre, Banng has a new Ping Cart, drawing from the late-night alleyway grills of Bangkok that feed teetering revellers fatty, spicy, crunchy, carby food post-party. There is pork belly with toasted-rice powder and tomato relish, and okra with Mala seasoning and peanuts. Among other street-stall food is khao mun gai wings, where the rice is stuffed inside crisp chicken and glazed with soy. For proper hostel-room vibes, they serve their creamy Banng Cup Noodles in signature instant-noodle mugs. Wok-led mains include pad ki mao (flat-rice noodles) and the lobster stir-fry with Thai chilli paste, green beans, and kaffir lime. For dessert, no need to choose between grilled sweet rice (kanom thuay), Thai-tea mousse, and mango sticky rice. They come as a set. Read our full review on Banng here.

New menu at Hosa, Gurgaon and Goa 

Chef Harish Rao’s new à la carte menu at Hosa in Goa and Gurgaon draws from memories, street corners, home kitchens, and coastal recipes he has grown up with. Among these is girmit (a puffed-rice snack from Dharwad-Hubli, typically made with onion-tamarind gojju and podi), served with a stuffed chilli bajji. There is also green liver fry, a plant-based mock-meat dish of thandu keerai (red amaranth leaves) served with finger millet dosas, and the Hosa masala bun, layered with onion masala and thakkali butter. There is naranga chicken in orange-chilli glaze; Chettinad lamb chops with coriander sambal and pineapple salad; and potato gassi, a chilli-coconut masala with baby potatoes. More fresh additions include mushroom pongal with black pepper, parmesan, and a hint of truffle oil. Crab fry is finished either with Andhra masala or curry leaf butter and served with neer dosa. New sweets include coconut snow with jasmine granita, and corn off the cob with lemon curd. 

Kari Apla’s winter menu, Mumbai

Chefs Ebaani Tewari and Mathew Varghese’s restaurant is an ode to their multicultural backgrounds and diverse roots in Maharashtra, Kerala, Goa, West Bengal, and Andhra Pradesh layered with their experience cooking in European kitchens in India. This winter, they match full flavour with solid technique in punchy, warming rasams (tomato and coconut, or peppery chicken broth with soft dumplings); Ooty apple salad with tamarind vinaigrette, lotus stem chips and a hint of heat; bheja pav with green chilli and winter-garlic thecha; Madras prawn thermidor; and strawberry and gondhoraj delight. 

Truffle fest at La Loca Maria, Mumbai

In his third year of serving a highly priced, fragrant fungus to guests at La Loca Maria, chef Manuel Olveira has not only sourced la trufa negra, or black winter truffles, from Spain and Italy, he’s also brought in green, creamy verdinas and the finest-grade jamon de bellota ibérico for this year’s menu. We’ll vouch for the white asparagus verdinas, where the special Spanish beans shine alongside white asparagus stew, truffle-infused cauliflower purée, and shavings of black winter truffle. There is also truffled mushroom lasagna a minimalist spin on the dish with hand-rolled lasagna sheets, black trumpet and king oyster mushrooms, ricotta, comté cheese, and black winter truffle. The steak tartare is another beauty with macadamia and taleggio cheese cream, crispy potato, and black winter truffle. Have these with a Boujee Truffle, which has roasted almond and truffle-infused Bushmills, bianco vermouth, Monte Negro amaro, porcini reduction, almond and truffle espuma foam, and fresh truffle. The nutty, umami drink is served in a mushroom-shaped cocktail glass. 

The Nook’s Bottomless Brunch, Mumbai 

Bandra’s cosy ‘third space’ cafe and bar has a new brunch menu featuring comfort classics with some play: flaky croissant sandwiches, ricotta pancakes, avocado tartine, as well as desserts such as a strawberry yuzu entremet and the (increasingly ubiquitous) Biscoff cheesecake. And bottomless means exactly that: two uninterrupted hours of brunch-friendly cocktails—Aperol spritz, Campari spritz, limoncello spritz, mimosas, and sangria. 

Tayēr+Elementary Takeover at Late Checkout, Mumbai

Late Checkout, which has been on a roll with bar takeovers lately, will bring No 5 on the World’s 50 Best Bars 2025 under its pitched roof this month. East London’s progressive Tayēr + Elementary will show up at the Lower Parel bar on February 11 and 12. The two-part experience has the casual on-tap cocktail energy of Elementary alongside the hyper-seasonal, produce-driven drinks at Tayēr. Read our full review of Late Checkout here.

Chinese New Year at Yauatcha, Mumbai

We’re on the brink of the Year of the Fire Horse, which occurs every 60 years in the Chinese zodiac cycle. The next one begins on February 17, 2026, and runs until February 5, 2027. To mark this, Yauatcha has introduced a new menu spanning dim sum, small plates, mains, and desserts. There are steamed leek and corn rolls in sweet black pepper sauce, shrimp and carrot dumplings, and crispy golden chicken rolls. Stir-fried dishes include lotus root with broccoli and black pepper seed, as well as aubergine and tofu in toban chilli, along with beetroot fried rice served with mock meat. For mains, you can pick from steamed Chilean sea bass in black bean sauce, twice-cooked pork belly with tofu, kumquat butterfly prawns, and fragrant fried chicken with almond flakes in Sha Cha sauce. One of the desserts, called Lucky Horse, has layers of orange sponge, ginger, mandarin, and caramelised mousse. This celebration also gets Yauatcha’s spicy mandarin macarons. Festive cocktails include Fire & Ice (Ballantine’s, yakitori liqueur, lemon, cinnamon foam), Daredevil (truffle-washed Ballantine’s, Campari, Carpano Rosso and c3 liqueur), The Catalyst (Beefeater gin, umeshu, yuzu, soy), and The Red Stallion (Absolut, lavender liqueur, raspberry, cranberry lime). Beyond the table, Yauatcha will host afternoon workshops through February, including lantern painting (February 12), cake decoration (February 19), and koi-inspired candle making (February 26). Ticket links available here soon. 

Lamp Bar takeover at Akina, Mumbai and Hyderabad

One of the world’s most celebrated international cocktail destinations, Lamp Bar, Nara, Japan, is arriving at Akina in Mumbai (February 20) and Hyderabad (February 21) for a one-night-only guest shift facilitated by All Things Nice. Ranked No 46 on Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2025 and led by legendary bartender Michito Kaneko, Lamp Bar is known for its menu-free cocktail philosophy. The Akina Mumbai takeover offers guests a rare opportunity to try four exclusive Lamp Bar cocktails along with its bar bites and à la carte menu.

Masak Masak Malaysian pop-up at Kopitiam Lah, Bengaluru

Masak Masak comes from the Malay phrase “to cook” and, repeated, it can mean “play cooking”, conveying the sort of everyday instinctive cooking that is rooted in memory and community. At Kopitiam Lah, this series focuses on cultural exchange through Malaysian food traditions. The restaurant invites chefs into its kitchen to cook personal interpretations of Malaysian cuisine. Following its inaugural Masak Masak collaboration with chef Seefah, the restaurant will host its second Masak Masak this weekend (February 7 and 8) with Malaysian chef Sarah of Honey in the Rock, which also marks her debut in the city. Chef Sarah’s menu will include her signature oxtail laksa, longevity noodles, keluak pork, kerabu grilled prawns, char siu lamb rib in gua bao, and a lamb marrow crème brûlée.

Bang Bang! Noodle brings mala to Soka, Bengaluru

North Mumbai’s cult noodle bar Bang Bang! Noodle will be in Bengaluru for one day at Soka, on February 22 as part of the Bengaluru restaurant’s Sunday Rituals series. Chef Rahul Punjabi of BBN will bring the eatery’s Sichuan-inflected, heat-forward cooking to the Deccan city. Much of the food is anchored by the house chilli oil. For fans of BBN, this menu will be familiar: Bang Bang! thread paneer, prawn toast with ginger and scallion, and mala chilli oil wontons. True to the eatery’s name, noodles form the heart of the meal: classic mala Bang Bang! noodles, Shaxian peanut sauce noodles, and hot oil splash noodles, finished tableside with hot oil poured over aromatics. In keeping with the theme, dessert has chilli oil soft serve and honey sesame noodle soft serve. Soka brings a short bespoke cocktail list designed to work with all this heat. 

OPENINGS

Bengaluru

Hyderabad

Mumbai

Ahmedabad

Goa

Delhi

Mezcalita, Bengaluru

Mumbai’s Mezcalita has just had its third opening in Bengaluru, three years after its launch in Churchgate and a few months after its Bandra location took off. Named after the refreshing, smoky variation of the classic margarita, Mezcalita brings regional Mexican flavours to Indiranagar with plates like elote de carrito (street cart corn), and cheesy papas rellenas, fideo seco (Mexican angel hair pasta), flautas ahogadas (drenched crispy taco rolls), and the 24-hour BBQ pork ribs with loaded potatoes, creamy corn dip, cheese sauce, and a cabbage salad. Take it from us: the birria tacos are unmissable. Tacos come hand-pressed and freshly rolled in masa, flour, or hard shell; each order is a single piece to make room for variety. A Mexi-Conscious section has fresh bowls and bright flavours for the mindful diner, and there are plenty of choices for vegetarians. The 11-cocktail menu here is structured around the process of tequila-making—each drink draws on Mexican agave culture and process, from field to glass. It opens with Black Rice de Horchata (mezcal black rice, pistachio orgeat, passionfruit), progresses to Aguamiel (tequila, charred bell pepper, cactus, honey water, jalapeño), and culminates in Vamos Bananas (peanut-butter-washed mezcal). The sober selection includes agua frescas and horchata. Mezcalita’s interiors in Bengaluru are as striking as its Mumbai siblings’ with their arched windows, Kannada script, hand-painted rotulo lettering, terracotta staircase with Talavera-style tile risers, and textile inlays under sealed glass. 

Naked & Famous, Bengaluru

An octagonal bar with four stations, each distinguished by a cocktail-making technique (Built, Stirred, Shaken, and Neat), Naked & Famous in Bengaluru has been co-founded by bartender Karthik Kumar and Priyesh Busetty (Brooks & Bond, Yuki). Like a teppanyaki bar, tipplers sit alongside bartenders and get to watch the process. Built focuses on highballs, Stirred on spirit-forward libations, Shaken on aeration and texture, and Neat on straight drinks for people who want to taste the spirit for itself. The vast cocktail menu is scaffolded by a two-page food menu with fun bar bites and post-drink carbs, like lychee wanton cups, smoked chicken tacos, massaman curry, and a mandarin-chocolate cake.

Kadamba, Hyderabad

Kadamba opened last weekend as Hyderabad’s new neighbourhood bar and cultural compound—an easy-going third space built for the city’s in-between hours. Inspired by the shade of the kadamba tree (there are three here with in-situ benches around them), the stunning rooftop space overlooking Durgam Cheruvu lake in Hitech City is meant for locals to pause, gather, and linger. This is helped along greatly by Kadamba’s chatpata, shareable plates that draw from tipple-friendly plates around the country. There is the why-haven’t-I-tried-this-before podi edamame; a Compound-wala ceviche with a creamy pani-puri dressing (!) and puri crisps; chicken bharta with lachcha pyaaz and khamiri roti; and delicate mushroom (meatball-like) gola on a chunky thecha-style sauce. To soak up Kadamba’s deceptively light and unfailingly fun cocktails, like Aam-Chur (tequila, amchur, olives), Har Bar (gin, green apple, cucumber, pandan, almond milk), and Kya Toh Bhi (vodka, tomato, dill, raspberry, black garlic), they have bigger plates such as the hearty and heartily spiced mutton pulao, and chena paturi with baigan bhaja, mango chutney, and gobindobhog rice. Here, we revisited old-school Death by Chocolate after years, and we have no regrets. 

Siciliana, Mumbai

Gourmet Village’s two sprawling, loud, sensory floors peppered with restaurants seem to get a new tenant every week. The latest is Siciliana, evoking the Italian piazza on the Mediterranean with terracotta hues and tilework. Owned by Anjan Chatterjee and led by chef Sabyasachi Gorai, the eatery’s menu offers traditional fritti such as arancini, supplì, and aubergine caponata, alongside Sicily’s thick-crust sfincione pizza. The coast comes through in seafood dishes like frutti di mare and grilled fish, featuring heirloom tomatoes, capers, zucca and extra-virgin olive oil. For dessert, go for pistachio cannoli. The drinks programme draws from southern Italy’s flavours, featuring sgroppino, a tiramisu martini, Sicilian mimosa, and a wine list. 

The Nutcracker, Mumbai

The Nutcracker has opened its sixth and largest outpost in Powai. It is interesting because, for the first time, the all-day, comfort-food spot has launched a bar with a beverage programme and bar snacks. Here’s a peek: Golden Kernel is a butter-popcorn-washed whisky cocktail; Short Stack is a clarified whisky drink inspired by the brand’s buttermilk pancakes; and Afterparty Gola has pineapple tequila granita topped with red wine. Dessert cocktails include Bailed Out, a Baileys-laced Vietnamese coffee, and Buzzed Cocoa, a boozy orange hot chocolate. Bar snacks range from gochugaru popcorn and kaffir chilli nuts to pulled jackfruit tacos, BBQ cauliflower, mezze plates and cheeseboards. The menu at this 100-seater retains Nutcracker classics—from bagels and pancakes to handmade pastas, rice bowls, and desserts, while Powai’s design blends earthy materials with statement lighting, swings, curated artwork, and a pet-friendly open-air section.

Lygon Street, Mumbai 

In Andheri West, a new wine-led Italian neighbourhood spot is named after a Melbourne strip. There is a story behind it. Chef-founder Sneha Upadhya spent years cooking and living in Melbourne, often hanging out at Italian cafes and relaxed dining spots on Lygon Street, places that were intimate and unpretentious. In Versova, her Lygon St is an interpretation of the time she spent at the original. This suburban one has a cosy indoor room, 38 seats, a road-facing alfresco section, and a wall of wine bottles doubling as a working cellar, with an on-floor sommelier guiding selections table-side. The food mirrors the easygoing mood: daily-made fresh pasta, comfort-led pizzas, simple, hearty, shareable plates, and a pistachio affogato. 

Sora, Sahtain, and Vyanj, Ahmedabad

Mann & Salwa, Ahmedabad’s premium catering company, launched The Primo, a culinary and events destination on Rajpath-Ambli Road with not one but three restaurants, spread across 10,000 square yards.  The first launch was Sora, the city’s first Asian-Peruvian concept, which combines Peruvian coastal flavours with east Asian techniques in an Art Deco-inspired setting. Sahtain came next with vegetarian north African and Levantine cuisine led by Lebanese chef Abdullah. The most recently opened Vyanj focuses on clean, seasonal, ‘progressive’ Indian vegetarian cooking rooted in regional traditions. 

Brooklyn Bardez, Goa

Located in a 100-year-old Assagao bungalow, which is also the new home of Goa’s favourite fashion and design store Rangeela, Brooklyn Bardez is a sandwich-erie by Matt Daniels of The Verandah Goa and Detroit food truck The Nu Deli. On the menu are Indian-inflected American sandwiches, such as Flatbush, a ghee roast shrimp po’ boy with rocket and remoulade toasty baguette, and The Dumbo, with brie, basil, blueberry compote and balsamic on toasted sourdough, along with salads, coffee, juice, pastries, breads, and spreads.

Bar Stoned Pig, Goa

A new bar by the folks behind Slow Tide, Bar Stoned Pig in Anjuna is named after a magazine that was published in this neighbourhood in the 1970s. We hear the cocktail menu is divided into seven fairly self-explanatory sections: Classic Errors, Collisions (where two classics collide), Martini Situation, Split Milk Dept, Gibson Affairs, Negroni Issue, and High Ballers. More details to come in the coming weeks.

Second Born, Delhi

Staple in GK-II has had a new sibling move in just upstairs, and it’s called Second Born. Built by two second-born siblings, Sangram Singh Samra and Anushka Chaturvedi, it’s being pitched as an easy-going, slow-paced, not-so-loud rooftop living room. To drink there are coffees and cocktails. Olive and Oil has olive-oil-washed tequila stirred with salted olive and cherry tomato wine, stone fruit, floral cordial, and Kümmel infusion. To eat, there are tacos (birria with consommé) and sandos (all-day breakfast toastie, pulled sambal chicken, prawn roll).

OPENING SOON

Loud Mouth, Mumbai

Mere months after opening Kaspers, restaurateurs Gauri Devidayal and Jay Yousuf are about to launch their seventh brand under the Food Matters Group. Loud Mouth, at first look, seems to offer bowls and wraps that make balanced meals on the go for (not-sad) desk lunches, post-gym macros, after-work OTT binges, and long car rides home. It’s being described as “simple food, done really, really well. Extremely high-quality ingredients, bold and new flavours, and options for the days you’re eating clean and the days you’re just wanting to indulge”. Loud Mouth launches officially on February 9; we’ll have more details for you much before that.

Pardon Our French, Mumbai

Fifteen years after launching Le15, Pooja Dhingra brings us Pardon Our French, a cute and sexy 22-seater cafe in a leafy Fort lane. Here, breakfast will be served all day, pastry will continue to be celebrated (albeit in an evolved, grownup, slightly improv, irreverent way), and all of it will be bolstered by well-crafted caffeine. An early tasting has us scarfing a creamy, buttery malty chikoo and hazelnut cup; strawberries and cream with mascarpone, basil oil, and honey toast; a salted Earl Grey matcha latte (Dhingra’s pick); a brown butter and a dark chocolate cake with silky swirls of mousse topped with olive oil and sea salt. Everything we tried at PoF had a gentler sweetness than regular pastry and came with a very pleasant touch of salt. There’s also a savoury section on the menu (we’re looking at you, eggs and soldiers) and cold brews with chunky passion fruit or white truffle spritz. The cafe opens on February 15; watch this space for a full review.