Inside Varsoo, Mumbai’s decadent new ode to Indian comfort food

Some restaurants are visited for the food, and some for the ambience. The rare one is the one you visit because it makes you feel something. Varsoo, Mumbai’s newest Indian dining destination by restaurateur Pinky Chandan Dixit, invites you in with the promise of childhood nostalgia on a contemporary plate.

Housed inside a stunning 200-year-old heritage bungalow, Varsoo comes from the founder of Soam, the iconic restaurant that has spent over two decades defining comfort Gujarati food for generations of Mumbai diners.

But Varsoo isn’t Soam 2.0. It’s softer around the edges, more playful, slightly moodier, and designed for the way we eat today, as emotionally as aesthetically. The name itself means “inheritance” in Gujarati, and that idea runs through every inch of the space, from the recipes to the architecture.

The restaurant’s 60-seat heritage bungalow setting feels cinematic from the moment you walk in. High ceilings, arched doorways, old windows, wooden doors, and original floor tiles have all been lovingly preserved, allowing the architecture’s history to remain part of the experience. 

The menu understands the power of childhood treats. Take the dal dhokli vavioli, for instance, a dish that sounds wildly experimental but tastes comfortingly familiar. The beloved Gujarati staple is reimagined almost like an Italian pasta, delicate yet hearty, rich with memory but refreshingly modern. The mara mari sev tameta with makai ajwain bhakhri arrives bold, tangy, spicy, and deeply satisfying, while the nachni makai nu khichu feels like the kind of dish wellness influencers wish they had invented first. Then there’s the samosa kadhi chaat. Crispy, creamy, chaotic, the dish deserves its own fan club. 

Even the beverages lean into this philosophy. There’s fresh sugarcane juice sharpened with ginger and lemon, kokum chaas that tastes like summer holidays, saffron lemonade, and jamun panha that feels cool old-school. No modern dining experience is complete without a little theatre, and Varsoo features both a live beverage counter and an open kitchen where you can watch your favourite dishes like panki being made. 

Somebody will inevitably say, “Let’s order one more thing.” Which you should, especially when dessert looks like this. The mango sandesh ravioli and the akhrot halwa khaja cups with malai kulfi are a playful medley of flavours. There’s also jalebi with rabdi, delicate ghewar tarts, comforting mohanthaal, and seasonal fruit ice creams that linger long after the meal ends. 

The beauty of Varsoo lies in the fact that nothing feels intimidating, despite how considered every detail is. You don’t need to understand regional Indian cuisine to enjoy it. You don’t need a fine-dining vocabulary. You just need an appetite for flavour, nostalgia, conversation, and perhaps a little indulgence. 

At its heart, Varsoo is about preserving the soul of traditional Indian food while giving it a new little spin.

All photos courtesy Varsoo 

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