The jury&rsquos out. The cards have been opened, champagne popped and the judgement made. The winners of Asia&rsquos 50 best restaurants 2019 were announced this week and no points for guessing India&rsquos top contender&mdashIndian Accent.
For the fifth year in a row, the New Delhi establishment serving &lsquomodern Indian&rsquo cuisine has taken the top spot in India. And in the 2019 Asia rankings, it occupies a comfortable spot &ndash no. 17, flanked on one side by Gaa, Bangkok and on other by Japan&rsquos Il Ristorante Luca Fantin. But it hasn&rsquot always been that way. The restaurant has had a tumultuous history with the ranks, slipping from being no. 9 in 2016 to no. 30 in 2017, climbing up to no. 19 in 2018, and the most recent, no. 17.
Helmed by chef Manish Mehrotra, the fine dining restaurant with a playful take on Indian food is best known for its six-course tasting menu. Dishes loved widely include pani puri, ash-roasted sweet potato, black garlic naan, truffle butter and chicken tikka meatballs.
On the list, Ministry of Crab in Sri Lanka, Odette in Singapore (and in Asia, overall), Gaggan in Thailand, Mume in Thailand are some of the other country winners. Indian Accent is the only country from India from the 50 restaurants, a far cry from a few years earlier when Bukhara from New Delhi and Wasabi by Morimoto, Mumbai have featured alongside it too.
So what exactly is the food here like Chef Manish Mehrotra describes it as &lsquoIndian food with an international accent&rsquo. Or should we say that it&rsquos the other way around
Where The Lodhi, Lodhi Road, New Delhi
Price @INR 5000 for two (without alcohol)
Indian Accent also has outposts in London and New York. Reserve a table at the Delhi restaurant here.