Mizu came onto Mumbai’s F&B scene when izakaya was a foreign concept in India. In fact, back then, Japanese cuisine was becoming popular at a snail’s pace, and was only confined to fine-dining establishments. This was back in 2017. Now, almost a decade later, not only does Mizu come highly recommended by actor Deepika Padukone, but it has found its second home in Goa. Yet, founders and childhood best friends (more like brothers, honestly), Chef Lakhan Jethani and Vedant Malik, remember the early chaotic days like they happened yesterday.
“I used to run a bar in Mumbai before—just a small place. Malik worked as an assistant on film sets back then and often came to the bar. At some point, we decided to take the plunge and open our first restaurant together,” said Jethani, in an exclusive conversation with Outlook Traveller Eats.
Unfortunately, eight months in since opening the doors to diners, COVID happened. “We lost everything—furniture, equipment, you name it. A lot went wrong during that phase of our lives. We both had almost given up, until our families stepped in,” says Jethani. Malik completes him (literally)— “We were located on the ground floor of Atria Mall. But unlike others, we weren’t allowed to enter the mall, do deliveries, or even get our staff inside. We couldn’t access the restaurant at all. Eventually, though, we got pushed by the belief that we had a solid product, so we decided to give it another shot. This was still during the in-between phase of COVID when restrictions would ease and then return. Nobody really knew what was happening.”
Opening a restaurant is not an easy business to begin with, and sustaining one is even harder. The situation during the pandemic only made it worse, forcing many restaurateurs to shut their doors. But Jethani and Malik went against the tide—they set out to find a new spot, funded by their own money, some borrowed from the family, and a bank loan at a whopping 30 per cent interest. They found a two-story space in Worli, but soon (after a few months) realised that it was not it.
“It just wasn’t the right fit for us,” said Malik. So, they began their hunt again, this time, guided by the right question: “Where can we find a space that does justice to our vision?” said Malik. “Having studied hospitality, the first lesson drilled into me was that location is central,” added Jethani.
In the next few weeks, the team scanned every available space in Bandra until landing upon one that fit the bill. Having been through the rigmarole for years, the duo didn’t take a second to lock it in and get to work. The restaurant was ready at lightning speed, and that’s when the second lockdown was announced. Everything came to a halt—again. But backing down wasn’t an option this time, and they were used to starting from square one by now— “We pivoted to delivery to stay afloat. We thought that at least this way, people would know we’re still on. Even if we didn’t have footfall at the restaurant, we wanted to keep the food going—our idea was to make sure it is reaching people’s homes. In this industry, out of sight is really out of mind; so we had to stay visible, even if that meant taking a slight hit,” said Malik.
Sticking To The Guns: Becoming Mumbai’s Best Japanese Restaurant
The early days were full of trial and error, a lot of trust, and goodwill: underrated key ingredients to survive the gruelling F&B business. “Before we launched, our partner was kind enough to give us a test kitchen inside his office. We had no resources at the point, just an idea,” said Malik. Jethani got to work, drawing up a list of 10-12 dishes, with his friend as sounding board who kept it real with his feedback, and brought the yin to his yang. “He (Malik) has a more commercial palate. He’s like the Salman Khan blockbuster, and I am the Indie cinema guy. But that dynamic works. His feedback—and my brother’s—has been my best guide,” he said.
The curation of the menu was far from being straightforward. A central question that Jethani asked himself for each dish he tested was “Will this work for more than one palate?” For him, simply asking this worked like magic. “A lot of chefs are emotionally attached to the dishes they create—and I understand that—but it’s important to be able to step back. And that’s not always easy. We spent months just trying different flour combinations for the gyozas and buns, and experimented with dishes that never even made it to the menu,” he said.
But now, six years on, Malik and Jethani have not only decoded Mizu’s philosophy but have mastered it. “Through all the changes, we’ve stayed true to one core belief:
We are a Japanese restaurant, but we’re also very conscious of the landscape we’re in. So, instead of blindly replicating Japanese cuisine, we try to use local ingredients—process them in the Japanese way—and create something unique. That approach is what’s helped us stand out. We’re not trying to ‘fuse’ two cuisines. But at the same time, we ask: Why can’t we make a mango kakigori when mango is the king of fruits here? If Japanese cuisine can showcase seasonal fruits like matcha and strawberry, then surely we can do the same with what’s native to us. So, we’re not deviating from the cuisine—we’re simply being mindful of our surroundings. The philosophy has remained consistent. But our style has evolved. Our food, our service, our restaurant as a whole—it’s all constantly growing. We make mistakes, we learn, we adapt. Sometimes we fall. But then we get up again,” said Jethani.
A great example is their hamachi smoked ponzu, which features the quintessential Indian spice mix, garam masala. “At one point, everybody was serving white fish with some version of ponzu sauce. But I didn’t want to use the store-bought ponzu. I wanted to put a distinctive stamp on it, so we created our own version by infusing it with Indian spices. Instead of adding the spices directly, we smoked the ponzu with it—kind of like giving dum to a biryani. The result is subtle but distinct,” explains Jethani.
This dish has been on the menu for over five years now, alongside other unique dishes like salmon yuzu gondhoraj and truffle. It was created during the pandemic when access to Japanese ingredients was severed due to supply chain issues. The situation led Jethani to improvise and turn to Bengal’s native citrus fruit instead—the gondhoraj lebu.
Taking On Goa
This evolution has not been one-sided. Though Jethani admits to having been “a bit of a purist” when he started out, his evolution has accompanied the Indian diner’s too. “In the beginning, people don’t trust you. You’re just some new name trying to do something different. But over time, guests start to come back. They order the five things they love and know. Then one day, they look at you and say, ‘What do you recommend?’ That’s when the game changes, the possibilities open up, and that’s when your food can really evolve,” says Jethani.
Having earned the diner’s trust and curiosity, Malik and Jethani have now launched Mizu’s second outpost in Goa, which remains true to its original spirit of being an izakaya, yet pushes the envelope fueled by refreshed inspiration.
“Just before we began designing the space in Goa, we took a trip to Tokyo—and it turned out to be one of the most valuable learning experiences we’ve ever had.
Being in Japan allows you to truly feel the essence of its culture. You begin to understand it at a fundamental level.
One of our biggest takeaways from the trip was the principle of ‘less is more.’ We didn’t want to replicate a formula; we wanted to create something original.
So, we approached the space in sections, designing it to be fluid and multi-dimensional. The bar, for instance, was envisioned as its own standalone experience—a casual, open-air setting where people could gather, have conversations, and enjoy louder music. That’s also where the name Mizu—which means ‘water’ in Japanese—comes into play. It’s about fluidity and the seamless movement between different areas. The indoor dining section, on the other hand, was designed for a different kind of guest: someone looking for a quieter, more refined dinner,” explains Malik.
As for what’s on the menu, Jethani is back to the drawing board and is experimenting with new combinations, ingredients, and even formats. “We’ve been testing menus for a while now—it’s something we’re deeply excited about. It’s the next big chapter for us. In the next couple of months, we will be starting our omakase experience, and for the future, a Goa edit of the menu is definitely in our plans,” reveals Jethani.
