Virat Kohli revamped Kishore Kumar’s old bungalow into a plush new restaurant in Mumbai

You know him for the runs, the centuries, the sheer desire to win, the attitude, and his leadership. After a trip to One8 Commune in Mumbai, rest assured that a lot of people are going to know Virat Kohli for culinary perfection! With an already existing line of restaurants under the same name in Delhi, Pune, and Kolkata—Mumbai becomes the latest addition to the list with the place all set to open to the public today. How did it go? Were we left with much food for thought? Let’s find out. 

The place did evoke memories of nostalgia for my mother, who accompanied me, as Kohli has converted legendary singer Kishore Kumar's grand old bungalow—'Gouri Kunj'—into a swanky restaurant (Kumar was a family friend). What’s the idea behind the location, the main man Kohli himself tells Cosmo, "Nobody can offer much to Juhu that Juhu is lacking in, it doesn’t... it has a beautiful identity which I love... it's why I chose to live there as well. In fact, to put One8 Commune’s entry here is best said as a missing niche moving into Juhu and making friends... that's what’s the real nature of One8 Commune coming to Juhu”

Let’s start with the ambience as that’s the first thing we laid our eyes on. The place is huge, to begin with, and one that made us wish it was raining. Why do you ask? With a glass ceiling above you, raindrops would have made it look beautiful! The jute lamps hanging on the top also added to the minimalist elegance of the decor. Be it a date, or an after-office meet-up with friends, one can hit the restaurant if they are looking for a place that exudes a chill, laidback vibe.  

One look at the menu tells you that the food is as Kohli as it can get. For starters, the majority of the recipes here are vegetarian and very much on the health-conscious side. Thanks to an insightful conversation with Pawan Bisht, the corporate chef and R&D executive pan-India for One8 Commune and Shivraj Shendre, the executive chef at the venue, very few recipes at One8 Commune are fried. 

We started with the only recipe on the menu that had a cricket reference—'Mushroom Googly' (picture above)—which is apparently a Kohli favourite and we weren’t disappointed. What I loved the most about these dumplings was the perfect mix of soupy (veg broth) and fillings inside. An avocado overload followed in the form of avocado flatbread (picture below) and tartare (another dish that's Kohli’s favourite).

While the former went perfectly with my mom’s drink (more on that later), the tartare (picture below) was an explosion of flavours in my mouth—offered by a mix of sliced avocado topped with tempura avocado, and sweet corn sriracha mayonnaise, scallion, and ponzu soy.

Do you know who else is a fan of this dish? Kohli himself, "If I were to pick one dish from the One8 Commune Juhu menu, Chef knows very well the winner is hands down our Avocado Tartare. I remember the first time I had it...I actually asked the chef to give me another portion, which I took home with me. it's literally just THAT good... "

Knowing that there was more to come, we had saved some real estate in our stomachs for the dishes in the small plates section. We tried the Taro Wadi (picture above), which is nothing but art for bringing together so many ingredients—edamame, pomegranate, avocado, cherry tomato, tomato, onion, mint chutney, yoghurt coconut lassi—in such a seamless and delicious way! 

Full marks for the presentation here as I waited a few seconds to just be in awe of this scrumptious dish served in a phyllo basket. And taking into account how good the texture and taste of the mousse were, all I’ve got to give is a chef’s kiss to the dish!

With there being a lot of options in the non-vegetarian section, I being the half Bengali-half Catholic foodie had to go for the Peruvian Grill Fish (picture above). It almost looks like you're having fish (sea bass) onan ice cream stick. With a lot of chili, soy, mirin, basil and leeks in it, each and every bite made you savour the abundance of flavour. Add to that, it was also a case of Taco Thursday as we tried out Hunter’s Taco Chicken (an on-the-spot suggestion by Bisht and Shendre).

And yes, one bite was all it took for me to know that the duo knew exactly what they were talking about. If you’re a fan of dry coconut and Indian spices, you won’t get a better dish on the menu than this one. Like the golden rule suggests, we did leave some space for dessert and the best one, which was Crème Brulee, was what we concluded the meal with. 

While the food was good too, a cocktail was what intrigued me the most. Ratan Upadhyay, the bar captain, surprised me big time with the Deconstructed Picante, a house concoction that’s an absolute favourite at the other outlets. To begin with, this gin cocktail comes not in just a glass, but in a huge container of ice with a cube of clear ice and marigold in it. Adding a further element of surprise are the additional spreads around in the form of pickles, jalapeños, cocktail onions, olives, cherries and yes, a betel leaf as well. Did I want to eat them since I was drinking or was it the other way around? I’ll leave it to you to decide. Those looking for something on the fruity side can try out the Fraise sour, a vodka cocktail topped with balsamic reduction, fresh strawberries, lime and fresh rosemary. 

Where: 18/B, Juhu Tara Rd, behind Little Italy, Shivaji Nagr, Juhu, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400054.