Rasoi

Another Michelin winner, Rasoi is the brainchild of stellar chef Vineet Bhatia (the first Indian chef to receive a Michelin star back in 2001) and his wife Rashima. Enter their restaurant in Chelsea (close to Sloane Square), and you feel like you’ve been welcomed into a modern Indian home—decked in dark shades, Kashmiri rugs, Rajasthani wood panels and a large glass dome over the dining room—where the service is as warm as the interiors are comforting. However, it’s still the food that reigns supreme, or to be more specific, the seafood. The cumin spiced scallop sits pretty in the centre of the plate and is served with a side of white tomato soup affixed to the rim in a test tube; the lobster lollypop (deep fried lobster meat coated with almonds on a stick) resembles an icecream bar and comes to the table aside a soya concoction and dab of wasabi; and even the staple naan served alongside has been innovated and infused with flavours like wild mushroom. End on a sweet note—the desserts here transcend the staid gulab jamun, phirni and other such Indian staples—we’re talking more on the level of marbled chocolate, roasted almond samosa and tea icecream. Rasoi is a testament to the chef’s ability to elevate Indian flavours to a gourmet level.