HŌM Bandra Is (On) Fire, Quite Literally

Fire is sacred to India—it’s been woven into our rituals, kitchens, and stories as a living force. In our homes, it’s the crackle of the chulha that turns raw ingredients into nourishment. In our bodies, it’s the spark of passion that fuels creativity. Outside, it’s the warmth that sustains life. Fire doesn’t just exist around us; it shapes the way we eat, pray, celebrate, and remember. At HŌM, however, fire lies at the very heart of the place—it forms the fabric, the food and the soul of the restaurant. HŌM is a homage to the fire of passion, to the fire that flavours our food, and keeps alive the spirit of India. Here, the reverence for fire isn’t metaphorical—it’s the foundation of the entire dining experience.

As I made my way inside the restaurant, in Bandra, at 10 pm, I was already met with the authenticity and truth in its name that refers to sacred fire: a strong gush of smokiness, of a lit tandoor, and that of burning charcoal hit my face, while I prepared to sit down right before the open, Omakase-style kitchen at the restaurant. It smelled homely, warm, and so Indian. It reminded me of how my mother’s kitchen from whenever she cooks up tandoori roti or naan. I’m a believer of my senses; I tend to think through my touch, smell and sight before I do through my brain, and HŌM had already impressed them all. 

Opened by first-time restaurateur Pratik Gaba, the space is sprawling with passion, thanks to the bustling staff, whistling away as they cook food into art, the aroma of freshly smoked meat, and lively chatter. At the heart of the 2000 sq. ft. space stands the HŌM theatre—an open kitchen that allows guests to join in on the fun of what happens behind the scenes. It comes built-in with a traditional tandoor and a custom-built wood-fired grill. So when you take a seat, you’re already part of the plot. 

As I settled in, just a few feet away from the brigade of chefs orchestrating controlled chaos in the open kitchen, I was instantly transported to that iconic, dialogue-less sequence from ‘The Bear.’ The one where chef Carmen’s crew moved like a single organism—cooking away as if that was what they were born to do. The chefs at HŌM worked in perfect rhythm, exchanging hearty banter between instructions, slipping into effortless tricks of the craft that looked unintentionally cinematic. It felt less like watching food being cooked and more like witnessing a team of artists mid-performance, guided by a head chef who knows exactly what’s coming next. 

A bowlful of dahi bhalla— an aerated bhalla, whipped dahi, and Delhi’s 2 best chutneys (imli and coriander, of course)—landed in front of me, as I made myself comfortable. Nothing speaks to my heart as does a plateful of chaat. And Chef Saurabh Udinia, a Delhihite by birth and the culinary director at HŌM, captured my cravings perfectly. I always announce and retort that no one does chaat better than Dilli, but perhaps, star chefs hailing from the land whip it up even better. The dahi bhalla was almost perfect: light, airy, crunchy, creamy, and refreshing.

A flip through HŌM’s menu is enough for you to know Chef Udinia loves travelling across the country and trying every state’s culinary gems. Each dish brings together flavours, ingredients, and techniques from across India, as if plated out of the recipe book curated from his many travels. Wandering around the world is a reminder that food is universal but never the same everywhere. That philosophy sits at the heart of HŌM. Every dish is crafted with a sense of curiosity and respect, making the menu a personal passport—stamped with experiences, influences, and the joy of discovering different parts of India, one dish at a time.

The Star Dish

A few courses into the generously-offered meal, the Mountain Potato was served. It was hands down, the star of the show. The non-vegetarian counterpart was a classic chicken seekh kebab, served alongside garlic yoghurt and onion salad. Nothing against it; it was soft, delicious, spicy, just how I like my kebabs. But the mountain potato was different. In fact, it was unlike anything I had ever tasted, which is exactly why I loved it so much.

My first question to myself after tasting it: Why are we ever eating fries if such wonders can be cooked out of potatoes?! True story: the mountain potato was the most premium, scrumptious, and creamy version of potato I’ve had.

The dish looked perfect: A block of potato pavé—precise, golden, and delicate—sat at the centre. Its carefully-layered structure was too pretty to be broken into. The first bite shattered that hesitation: crisp-edged, buttery slices giving way to a soft, lightly charred interior. The tempered yoghurt beneath was a tangy anchor, and since I love condiments with absolutely everything, it paired perfectly. Every forkful dipped into it felt intentional, like the dish was designed around contrast. Cooked with herb oil, the flavour of the herbs, the warmth of the potatoes, the soothing acidity of the yoghurt: all of it made for the perfect, smoked, and fiery dish. 

What Else Is On The Menu?

At HŌM, the food, curated, imagined, and brought to life by Chef Udinia, is smoked, seared, and fulfilling. The restaurant takes the love for crispy edges and burnt ends to a whole new level, while implementing techniques and incorporating ingredients borrowed from all around the subcontinent. While the Theatre Menu is an 11-course culinary journey, they also have an à la carte roster featuring everything that’s served in the tasting. Starting December 3, HŌM will also introduce their much-awaited lunch menu—so, hold your horses (and cross your fingers for a reservation)!

As far as the starters are concerned, I was surprised by how flavour-packed the sambal toast was: served tiny and garnished, it was quite like a chhota packet bada dhamaka (small size, big party). The dish served smoked aubergine and peas with sambal on a brioche, making for the perfect starter to get the meal going. It was a combustion of perfect flavours in my mouth, and I absolutely loved it!

A personal highlight among the main courses was the laal maas, served with stock khichdi and tangy, delicious pickled onions. Borrowed from Rajasthan’s warrior tradition, where the dish was originally made by royal hunting communities using freshly hunted game, this version at HŌM pays homage while giving it a contemporary refinement. The meat was tender and infused with delicious chillies. The heat was such that it didn’t bully my palate but slowly made itself obvious. Instead of pairing it with an expected roti or naan, Chef Udinia chose to serve it in a stock khichdi: silky and savoury, cooked down with the richness of the meat’s own broth. It acted as a comforting, fragrant, and acting as the perfect canvas for the fiery curry.

I also really enjoyed their kulcha, stuffed with cheddar and served alongside pindi channa. As a kulche-chhole connoisseur who has tasted some from all around, be it Delhi, Amritsar, Patiala, or Chandigarh, my favourite has always boiled down to my mother’s kitchen. This one came very close! The kulcha was fresh, soft, stretchy, and perfectly seared on the tawa, stuffed with the creamiest cheddar that didn’t overpower the flavour of the kulcha. The pindi channa was deeply spiced, dark, glossy, and packed with warmth. My favourite part was the reimagination of the dish: the soul of Amritsari kulcha-chole, but reimagined with a creamy, luxurious centre. The cheddar doesn’t overpower—instead, it melts into the kulcha’s layers, turning each bite into a comforting, salty, tangy hit that pairs beautifully with the earthy spice of the channa.

What I also loved was the pacing of the menu and the precision with which the dishes were arranged one after the other. The starters didn’t overwhelm and made just enough space for the main course, followed by the desserts, which rounded it all off perfectly. While the food was extremely filling, it didn’t focus on a single ingredient or set of flavours, and instead played around with all that the culinary side of our country has to offer.  

May I Have The Drinks Menu, Please?

Designed by Pankaj Balachandran from Countertop India, the drinks menu at HŌM is another reason why I will keep coming back to this place, over and over again. When I say that they have one of the best cocktail curations in all of Bombay, I mean it. Everything was ingenious, fresh, and unheard of, lacking all that we hate about alcohol. The drinks were strong, and yet not harsh on the palate or the throat, feigning a zero-proof taste despite being heavily spiked. The cherry on top? HŌM’s bar does not add any additional sugar to its drinks, preserving the flavours of the ingredients. The cocktails remain true to the natural juices and purees, made in-house.

The first drink I tried was their pornstar martini, made with vodka, vanilla, lime, passion fruit purée and liqueur, served with half a passion fruit on top, alongside a tiny vile of chilled champagne. It’s refreshing, dessert-like and just fruity enough—everything I like a cocktail to be. Served bright and golden, it hits all the right notes, while the sidecar of champagne makes for a perfect palate cleanser. 

I’m not a beverage connoisseur and hence quite used to asking the bartenders who know the drinks through and through to bring me their best. Ashish Tamta, the beverage manager at HŌM, took on the challenge and served their in-house special next: ‘Split Decision’. This drink was the highlight of my evening. Made with white rum, banana, strawberry, basil, lime, and a tinge of almond milk, it was garnished with fruit loops that sat atop the pink-colored goodness. And if you think it only looks good, well, it tastes even better. The cocktail was sweet and tangy enough. fruit loops as garnish add a very surprising and nostalgic aftertaste that I loved most. Described aptly by the founder, Mr Gaba, it tastes like the drink embodiment of “breakfast in bed.” 

I also tried their ‘Watermelon Sugar, Why?’, which was a fruity and chocolaty take on a cocktail, all in one. Made with rum, rosso, watermelon juice, cacao, strawberry syrup and malic acid, it was again a hearty twist on your average cocktail at a bar. Their ‘Beets By Cafe’, HŌM’s own variant of an espresso martini made with the twist of adding beetroot to the drink, was quite fascinating and delicious. 

HŌM’s cocktail menu is a clear-cut crowd-puller. No one’s doing it like them, and if I were pressed to rate it, I think I’d run out of stars! 

Vibe Check

HŌM is a 40-seater space, divided into three sections. My favourite? The HŌM Theatre, of course! This is the open kitchen located at the heart of the restaurant, right alongside the bar, offering guests an intimate glimpse into the genius behind each dish, long before it’s prepared to be devoured. This omakase-style experience is available exclusively for eight diners, while the rest of the restaurant can enjoy an a la carte-style meal. 

There’s an area for waiting and sipping on drinks outside the restaurant, while the two distinct areas inside can be chosen based on how you’d like your meal to be. These include an outdoor brick British-style garden and an indoor space that evokes the intimacy of a Swish living room. Focusing entirely on terracotta-coloured walls in stucco and red burgundy tiles, HŌM is a space that is designed to feel refined yet relaxed and quite laid-back. The makers want it to feel fun and vibey, and that’s exactly what it’s like. With a banger playlist playing the best of 2025, enjoying a meal at HŌM feels unintentionally fancy and fun. 

The wooden interiors make it softer, and the smell of fire and burning charcoal, of course, makes for the perfect setting for a place named after fire. It’s warm, surprisingly comfortable, and just indulgent enough. 

There’s Always Room For Dessert!

No meal is ever complete without dessert, and this one was no different. While I felt like I couldn’t possibly eat another course by the end of the meal, a singular spoonful of the dessert at HŌM changed my mind very quickly. 

For desserts, I first tried their ‘Saffron’, which was the best of Indian sweets, all in one, rivetingly designed dessert. Consisting of gajar ka halwa (or carrot fudge) and saffron espuma—in simple words, a sort of ice-cream-like foam—it was covered with milk skin with slivers of silver. If I were to describe this dessert in one word, I’d use beautiful. The flavours hit my taste buds in waves: the milk skin first, sweet and chewy, acting as the perfect entrance into the dessert. The saffron espuma was next, with the most overpowering taste, but in the best way. It tasted like saffron milk but better, chilled. Last was the decadent halwa, right at the centre, which was indulgent, fudgy, and so, so rich. It was a treat of a dessert, meant to be eaten with all layers in one spoon, taken right from the centre.

To top it all off, I devoured the chocolate, made with Callebaut 55, crémeux, and topped up with generous helpings of hazelnut. Milk chocolate is the bane of my existence, and the object of my desires, and this one was made of the best of my dreams. It was creamy, decadent, and very chocolate-y—hence the name. It was the perfect way to end the very filling meal and a refresher for the palate. It’s difficult to go wrong with chocolate, and this one was an impressive take at that.

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