Where we’d rather binge eat — Mumbai gets a new outpost of The Nutcracker in BKC designed by Tejal Mathur

That’s the thing about comfort food – pitch any cuisine, any culinary technique, any esoteric recipe against it, and the first thing the spoon finds its way to and digs into is comfort food. At least, that’s the case for me, especially after savouring the menu at the newest outpost of The Nutcracker in Mumbai, at the current hotspot that is the Jio World Drive in BKC!

Nutcracker was first imagined back in 2016 by Annie Bafna, the creative who first dipped her feet in the world of finance for over 15 years before wearing the restaurateur hat.

The first outlet in Kala Ghoda was followed with launches in Bandra and Lower Parel, each space doused in a certain art deco, opulent feel. That’s where the new Nutcracker in BKC hits the refresh button with its natural, organic design grammar draping a 2,000 sq ft area. Like all the other outposts, this novel space is also designed and assembled to perfection by interior designer Tejal Mathur. 

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What’s new at Nutcracker, BKC?

Stringing together a spectacular concoction of earthy and elegant, Tejal muses, “One thing we both wanted in the high volume space were swings along  the windows. At that point I imagined a softly high cave with solid grained furniture  and oversized jute lamps.”

Warm, minimal interiors meeting an even warmer and soothing selection of recipes make up the experience at Nutcracker. Annie says, “I wanted the space to be minimalist, clean and modern while maintaining a sense of comfort and warmth that the brand and our food resonates with.”

Inside the new outpost…

Promenading towards the restaurant, soft arches and straight lines converge on a cold, polished canvas, conveying the designer’s mood board of making the facade look like an inviting, dimly lit cave. 

As you step indoors, the door closing behind, the cosy rhythm of minimal, raw design whelms you. Every element here croons the colour story of sand, gravel and graphite, coalesced with seamless curves and large jute lamps. 

The restaurant hosts three different sections. The Dune and Fluid are two spaces that Tejal enjoyed imagining the most. She informs about one monolithic curved wall that they draped with rough edged tiles and carved semi circular pods as its extension, contouring raised micro-cement platforms. Hence, the name Dune. This design thought transpires into a cocooned spot overlooking the rest of the community-seating area and the bar across! 

As Annie divulges, this emerges as a potential section at The Nutcraker BKC to host open-mic, book reading and other such entertainment sessions.

Continuing the language of curves is the Flow Bar that stands right opposite Dune, stacked and queued with wines and other tipples.

Lean, arched windows on the other side of the restaurant draw attention, in company of playful swing seaters crafted with rope suspensions and black grained sandblasted tables. In Tejal’s words, this is a back to basic glam version of living in raw nature — and, we see no point in disagreeing here. 

With the other end of the seating area dubbed The Perch, the restaurant is also thoughtfully decked with decor objects that seamlessly become a part of Annie and Tejal’s minimal, organic narrative.

A crinkled, pure white artwork dresses up one of the walls, while shelves bear the aesthetic weights of amorphous, mottled pottery, flanked with a surprising addition of a floor-to-ceiling raw bark and sprinkles of dry fronds and matted leaves that elevate the natural mood of the space. 

Menu for the eyes and soul!

The menu at the new outlet of The Nutcracker in BKC brings a rather elaborate, soul-satiating spread of the classic all-day breakfast specials, luscious salads, warm plates of handmade pasta and ravioli alongside small plates and mains!

A special shoutout to the beautifully cooked Dhansaak that the menu reads as ‘a bowl of comfort the Parsi way!’ and in fact the recipe and inspiration of which comes from Annie’s very own household.

Annie also emphasises on maintaining the menu as a seasonal one, bringing a wide selection of flavours to the patrons in the most comforting style. The binging here bundles up to a perfect end (only for us to come back here yet again!) with an assortment of desserts such as the gooey chocolate cake, drunken tiramisu, baked almond cake, tarts and the delectable mango cheesecake that melts and just melts away as soon as it touches the tip of the tongue.

For the first time at Nutcracker, what stands as a pitstop here is the display counter, stocking up a cool assortment of its in-house spreads, dips, sauces, breads and crackers for the guests to buy! 

Scroll through to savour the delicious plates served at The Nutcracker, BKC…

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