India's one of those places where you visit a single city and are still closer to knowing absolutely nothing than everything about the country.
Of course, the main reason is due to its sheer size–India's humongous and populous–but it's also a country of extremes, the most obvious one being wealth inequality and development gaps, which undeniably are linked to how huge the place is.
Thus, even though my second trip to India in November of 2023 was one where we decided to do a little more than the touch-and-go on my first visit, trying our best to fully experience and explore all four cities we visited (Mumbai, Jaipur, Agra, Delhi), I have to acknowledge that we still very much travelled like the privileged tourists we were.
While we got lost in local non-touristy, authentically colourful neighbourhoods that ignited all–and I mean all–of our senses, we also found ourselves in India's best restaurant that served up a gastronomic experience meant to tease all of these same senses, but in an industrial-chic, black & white space.
The extremes in way of living within the same geographical region were so stark, and in Mumbai we tried our best to experience it without a local guide. Here's a little glimpse into how it all went.
Day 1 | 24 November
As one can imagine, commuting around a new, unfamiliar country is usually stimulating, not to mention one known for traffic that is not for the faint-hearted, so by the time we reached our hotel post-flight, we were ready to call it a day despite it only being early afternoon.
Plans to have lunch outside were scrapped in favour of a much less hectic meal at the hotel's in-house restaurant in. Not our proudest moment, but exactly what we needed at that point.
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The trip's first chai from the hotel lobby.
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View from our hotel at the ITC Grand Central.
Post-lunch, we decided to rest up before reconvening for dinner. Sure, we wanted so badly to explore Mumbai in the little time that we had, but we also knew we needed enough stamina to last us through a 10-day, 8-person trip.
And as it turned out, it wasn't just our lunch plans that faced change. We were all excited for our dinner at Masque, arguably India's finest restaurant, but when we arrived, they told us we'd made a booking for the next evening instead.
No biggie–the food was going to taste much better with a day's anticipation anyway. We then headed to SpiceKlub at the recommendation of our colleague from the local India team. No reservation required, perfect.
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If you hadn't told me this was an all-vegetarian meal, I wouldn't have noticed because it was so yummy.
Strong start, especially as a back-up.
The night closed with a lil' bar-hopping. We first visited Aer, a rooftop bar at the Four Seasons but it was a little too crowded for our taste. Ultimately, we ended up at the Koi Bar at St Regis, which was lovely–quiet and calm.
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The drinks were strong and well-crafted.
Day 2 | 25 November
Our second day in Mumbai was one of the best of the entire trip and might just have cemented the city as my favourite one in India. As a self-professed city girl, I'm entranced by the energy that densely packed spaces and people emit, and the spots we headed to in Mumbai gave me the high-octane vibe I love.
We started our day out at breakfast at Leopold Cafe, a historic and iconic cafe in the Colaba neighbourhood. Established in 1871, it's been featured in a popular novel 'Shantaram', and was tragically among the first sites attacked by terrorists during the 2008 Mumbai attacks; the bullet holes are still preserved on-site.
Even without the knowledge of the cafe's background, one would probably still appreciate the food that people describe as a fusion of Indian and Continental.
Old-school, no frills.
Sweets that we sadly didn't leave any stomach space for.
View from inside the cafe.
Bustling, lively tables–there were equal parts tourists and locals, and that was a good enough signal for me.
Ridiculously generous portion size.
The Bombay Masala Cheese sandwich (or simply 'chilli cheese toast') is a must-try and a strong contender for the best bite of the trip. A real carb-overload, think: buttered bread filled with a flavour explosion of spicy chutney, boiled potatoes, onions, tomatoes, cucumber, capsicum, masala spices, topped with cheese and toasted until crisp. Potatoes are my least favourite carb, but when dressed up this way, they make you keep coming back for more.
Pair that with a gorgeously smooth chai and it's a breakfast of champions. A post of this on my Instagram story led to a reply from my ex-boss:"my college meal." I can see how this checks all the boxes of college kids in terms of satiety and affordability.
We then attempted to walk off those carbs and check off some tourist attractions. Our first stop was the Gateway of India located at the waterfront.
Built in 1911, it was meant to commemorate the visit of King George V and Queen Mary.
V & TT!
The weather was blistering that day, but we much preferred this to rain.
We also walked past the Taj Mahal Palace hotel.
It was in these popular areas that we started getting approached by locals and domestic tourists to pose for photos with them because of how different we looked. Though it wasn't my first rodeo in India, experiencing a pseudo-celebrity moment is never something you simply get used to. Truly entertaining, especially since it was such a big group of us.
We also saw the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya–an art and history museum–from a distance, but didn't get a chance to explore as we were short on time.
Instead, we checked out the more accessible street-side artists and vendors.
There's something about that tan uniform that the policemen in Mumbai wore that felt so vintage-chic–I loved it.
Sleepy doggo in the foreground, boy and mum in the background.
Awake catto and a man enjoying each other's company.
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Along the way we stumbled upon The Cacao Mill by Subko, a gorgeous chocolate factory & cafe that you could walk into, and if you're lucky would be able to witness a pod to bar process.
At some point, a couple of us split up from the larger group who were doing some intensive outfit and furniture shopping (I don't blame them, shopping in India is pretty elite), and wandered into a little village, away from the main tourist hustle & bustle.
Real colourful streets.
Everything was just so vibrant and gorgeous.
At some point, we ended up in a village procession where adults and children were holding signs and throwing flower petals and we were welcomed to join in despite not knowing what it was for.
We also chanced upon Project 88, a contemporary art gallery and ended up being the only ones in there.
The exhibition we were lucky to see was A Butterfly in Amazon, by Indian artist Mahesh Baliga, which showcased large scale paintings exploring ordinary life, memory and muted personal struggles.
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We love art, yes we do.
After a full day of exploration, we headed back to the hotel to freshen up before attempt number two at dining at Masque (though of course, this time we knew it'd be successful and were hyped). And well, the hype was so worth it.
This meal alone makes this restaurant one of my top 5 in the world, even to this day.
We were seated on the second floor of the restaurant, which is nestled in a standalone old textile mill, which gave us a lot of much-needed privacy especially as a relatively large, loud crowd.
Interior was industrial-chic, but still warm and inviting.
Eight of us were seated at the same long table, but here's F & B, whom I was seated opposite throughout the night.
With S beside me, the four of us has so much fun.
If offered a choice between a wine and cocktail pairing, trust that I'll always go for the cocktail option and I did not regret for a second the decision especially with the company I had.
Every little morsel was jam-packed with flavour, but also balanced out beautifully.
A take on pani puri–this is a dish that I prefer the original version though.
While I can't recall every dish I ate (and the menu has probably changed since), I genuinely remember that every plate did not disappoint.
The cocktails started off really bright, citrusy, which made us want to come back for more and cut through some of the very intense flavour-forward dishes.
Unanimously, our table's favourite dish was a delightfully buttery and crisp roti paired with juicy sausage, and several other elements that gave it more depth; when we conveyed this to the staff, they brought us each a second serving of it.
Indeed, the drinks were being served at a speed quicker than the previous ones had been downed.
Mid-meal, we were led into the kitchen for a quick behind-the-scenes moment, which was such an exciting way to interact with guests; though depending on whether you were a 'The Bear' or 'The Menu' fan, it could be seen in vastly different lights.
Thankfully, this was real life so it was closer to the fine-dining restaurant featured in season two of 'The Bear'– the kitchen was so clean, running like clockwork, and we had a pleasant interaction with the chefs.
More drinks, and at this point they were getting a bit stronger in both taste and ABV.
This was such a satisfying, savoury end to the meal, served with both fragrant rice and brioche–they absolutely know the way to my carb-loving heart.
Their take on kulfi.
A cocoa-centered dessert.
The last pairing of the night–not that I needed any more by that point.
Modern Indian petit fours.
Apart from the incredible food, the staff (two of them pictured here with us) at Masque truly made the meal wonderful–they were personable, yet so professional and knowledgable, and made the environment fun and un-stuffy.
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A delightful last night in Mumbai.
With our bellies and hearts full, we headed back to the hotel for one final sleep in India's city of dreams.
Mumbai truly is a place of stark extremes–where raw, everyday grit lives beside sophisticated luxury, and I was privileged enough to experience a little bit of both. But what grounded both extreme ends was the incredible warmth of the people. We were always met with genuine hospitality and well-intended curiosity, be it in a fancy restaurant or simply out on the streets where there was genuinely zero incentive for kindness.
With such a beautiful chaos of contrasts, it was the perfect start to our trip. The next morning we headed off to Jaipur, and we were ready to see what the Pink City had in store for us–which I'll be recounting in my next post.