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Stepping out to eat in Delhi, Mumbai or Bengaluru? Hit up these spots for exceptional Mediterranean, Japanese, modern Indian and more

- VIR SANGHVI

I don't write very often about individual restaurants because I am not sure if I get anything like the average guest experience when I am recognised (which happens reasonably often).

So, I worry about recommending restaurants, only for readers to be disappointed when they follow my recommendations.

Even so, I have eaten out more often than usual in the last month. This is where I ate and, full disclosure, I was recognised or knew the chefs at most of these places. So, don't mistake these for reviews by an anonymous critic.

Nisaba, Delhi. What's left to say about Nisaba? I ate there twice during their preview phase (which was just as well, because it's hard to get a table now that the restaurant is fully open) and wrote about it here. I predicted that it would be the hottest restaurant in Delhi, which sounded like a rash prediction, but was actually quite a low-risk sort of thing to say because Nisaba is the great Manish Mehrotra's first restaurant of his own. And Manish has been, for the last decade or more, the best chef cooking in India.

Nisaba is more casual than Indian Accent, but more formal than Comorin, two of the most famous restaurants that Manish opened for Rohit Khattar. The cuisine is one generation removed from anything Manish has done before, and I have yet to meet anyone who hasn't liked it. If you can get a table, grab it!

Perch, Humayun's Tomb. There are many Perch outlets and this one has the advantage of being located below Nisaba in a buzzy courtyard. But that's a disadvantage too, because people think it only does wine, cocktails and snacks. I went for lunch one day and was very impressed. It has serious food, masterminded by a gifted and experienced, chef and the service is warm, friendly and efficient. One to try for a weekend lunch.