Bengali cuisine is charged with the livewire taste of mustard oil, which ripples across the menu here, even in the martinis. This is the latest venture from Plate It Forward, the social enterprise behind Kabul Social and Kyiv Social, but it does more than showcase regional Indian fare.

For Kolkata-born chef Ahana Dutt, the food doubles as family portraits – the dishes her grandmother and mother used to make. Crunchy bites of moong dal el boram (described on the menu as Indian falafel) are spiced with bhaja moshla, a mix of toasted cumin, coriander and dried red chilli.

The tamarind-chutney tang of a potato salad (aloo kabli) is sharpened with lime juice, and fried chicken with a chilli-fragrant sauce of soy, garlic and green capsicum comes from Dutt’s regular visits to India’s oldest Chinatown. Pound cake with saffron cream is another recipe you’ll be glad the chef has shared beyond her immediate family.

Good to know: The restaurant donates meals to Calcutta Rescue and locals in need, while also functioning as a training ground for migrants and refugees

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