Nonchalant Gourmand

19/05/2026

19/05/2026

We are but passing shadows beneath a galaxy that existed long before us.

The Milky Way : Pangong Lake, 2026

18/05/2026

This Sundays has me dissecting the evolving trend of wine for investment over consumption. Interesting viewpoints after my chats with some key stakeholders in the Indian market of wine.

Give it a read! Maybe pick that bottle you were thinking of getting…

Thanks for enlightening me:

16/05/2026

New Yorkers opened in 1981. It shut a couple of years ago. And whatever said and done, it made an entire city unreasonably obsessed with a cheese sauce.

If you grew up in Bombay, you already know. If you didn’t — this is where I explain that their nachos weren’t really Mexican, weren’t really American, were completely vegetarian, and were completely, devastatingly addictive. A very desi translation of a cuisine most of us had only heard about from someone’s NRI uncle.

I’ve been trying to replicate the sauce ever since. This recipe comes close. The exact shade of yellow remains a mystery I’m still chasing (and the fully gooey consistency) — but there are some incredibly unassuming ingredients in here which will change your mind.

Full recipe + the origin story on the blog.

(Eat it while it’s hot. Non-negotiable.)

14/05/2026

Another visit to a land I fell in love with the very first time, and this time on a very different perspective filled with not only the beautiful people and culture but a slightly more geological and origin related focus.

Staying at an old ancestral home turned into a hotel by a family & — traditional Ladakhi architecture, wooden beams, carved details and courtyards that reflect centuries of tradition, sitting right in the old town of Leh. A city that somehow manages to be both a living, breathing high altitude bazaar and a place that slows everything down (in all for slow living). There is a particular kind of luxury in staying somewhere that belongs to the place rather than just existing in it, and that is exactly what this family has created.

This time around an elevated and slightly more in-depth understanding of the regions existence and how it impacted India as a whole all led by geologist .

A week long expedition filled journey speckled with great food, the lovely friends I made and the more I make here — stay tuned to follow my journey as everyday seems a different angle.

13/05/2026

Wrote this one for .

I went to this new restaurant in Hyderabad called — and before you even sit down, there’s a wall of giant matchboxes staring at you. Vintage desi graphics, Telugu script, chilli reds. Inside, everything is bathed in red, the servers wear LED name tags, and there’s a referral-only bar hidden inside the restaurant. The room has been fully figured out, by their 3 co-founders and chef .singh.kanwar

The food is getting there. The mains are genuinely good — a butter chicken that’s the chef’s mother’s recipe, a kali miri seekh that melts, breads that are worth the trip alone. The starters are where the kitchen is still finding its footing. Drinks by ! This place is a full-fledged ambition, to be real!

Full review at the link.

10/05/2026

Top Beverages | Jan 2026

Traveled to a region I’ve never been and discovered some ace beverages, back to the bay and then some…

Local Spirits — , Meghalaya
Bichi & Taid Krai — two local spirits, potent and versatile, wondering if I enjoyed this more straight or in the numerous cocktails?

Chocolate Old Fashioned — , Goa
It’s fine to not mess with classics and just elevate them to the T — at the 30 best awards showed me around

Usual Cafe — , Airport
This has become a staple cafe given I spend more time in this building than I do out on mumbai streets, a wide smile sometimes helps
craft.gin.sg Gin — Meghalaya
A unique copper bottle, even more unique botanicals — the cherry blossom is wild for this locally made gin.

Elevated Classics — , Mumbai
We leave no stone unturned when it comes to themes and working on our menus, after all; that’s all we do.

Truffle’ing — , Mumbai
so makes the food, but hidden talent in and her team at this comfort restaurant involved some banging themed cocktails

Experimental Creations — , Shillong
This shows up again in this list but honestly from straight up classics to these incredible creations Sagar and his team truly know what they up to.

Zero— 30,000ft in the air
I prefer this over Diet Coke under pressure. You ?

Tea Tasting — , Meghalaya
We tasted some serious teas straight from the slopes of north east’s beautiful hills at this luxurious stay. A truthfully excellent afternoon.

Negroni — .in, Shillong
How can you not have Negronis at an Italian restaurant? That too high up north… but here, you’ll find many reiterations

09/05/2026

“A festival always brings across a reason to dine,” and with ’s Thingyan celebrations, there was every reason to linger a little longer at the table, all thanks to the endless *tea* (salad) served.

Spent a perfectly delightful culinary morning with and .kampani, moving through the menu at a snails pace - one little friendly family passing plates around, arguing over favourites (mine was the shiitake radish salad), ordering more than necessary and somehow still finding room for dessert.

The interesting thing about well put together menu, especially this one — was contrasts: refreshing salads bright with crunch and acidity against comforting rice bowls layered with spice and warmth. There’s a certain template to Burmese food that’s familiar yet so very different, and Burma Burma’s team is heavily committed to exploring those inner depths of the cuisine — not merely recreating dishes, but building an entire ethos around them.

Inspired by Thingyan, the Burmese New Year festival, the limited-edition menu channels the spirit of Burmese Lunch Houses that come alive during the celebrations — lively tables, abundant spreads and meals that are fueled with a sense of social purpose.

From fermented notes and open-fire flavours to tamarind coolers cutting through the summer heat, every part of the experience felt immersive, as is the case in any of thier branches which almost always are full no matter the day.

Even the smallest details — the fun popsicle carts (brings out the child in you), fruit leathers and ceremonial touches at the table — had a sense of culture embedded so beautifully.

This is on till the end of the month, do go try!

07/05/2026

New cocktail trend stories are my jam, and for I dive into the increasingly savoury world of drinks — where salt, ferments, herbs, brines, umami and a whole lot of culinary inspirations are slowly taking over the bar (well they have been, but what’s the real dope behind them?)

From Bangkok and Singapore to bars across India, this story looks at how cocktails are becoming bolder, stranger, more ingredient-led — and whether, inadvertently, we’ve started mistaking complexity for balance.

Featuring conversations with , , , Cavity at , , , , , .daak, .in and more.

Read the full story at the link in bio / stories.

05/05/2026

In a manner of speaking …
… I’m a people’s 🍺 person
when I’m in Goa.

📍:

03/05/2026

Gir, for most, is all about the lions.

But over the last few weeks, on my (well, our) visit at this beautiful stay, I found myself equally drawn to everything around it—the stillness of the landscape, the pastoral ethos of the region, and a way of experiencing luxury that seems to be the new age of India’s cultural movement when it comes to attracting locals.

My stay at was on max slow-mo: mornings by the pool, wellness rituals and yoga sessions, pottery and village visits, afternoons drifting between the forest and the spa, and meals that flowed from deeply local Kathiawadi flavours to comfort food orders for my favourite little +1.

Have a look at the beauty of this space, set amongst the very heart of the wilderness, and gosh! The silence that seems to settle over Gir at dusk, this became less of a getaway and more of a wellness scene.

And yes… eventually, the lions too. 🦁
9 of them ! Achievement unlocked.

PS: Linked Reel contains a special recipe from Gujarat.