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The high-altitude flavors of Himalayan cuisine are celebrated in Across, the newest fine dining restaurant of celebrity chefs Viraf Patel and his wife Prakriti Lama Patel in the Kala Ghoda art precinct. "We often fear what we do not understand. When Prakriti and I got married 18 years ago, I wasn’t sure what to expect when it came to the cuisines from her Himalayan heritage,” Viraf told Parsiana. "However, as I began to explore and appreciate these dishes, I grew to love them more and more. At the same time, as she embraced the flavors of my Parsi heritage, I experienced an awakening — a deeper connection to my roots and a profound sense of belonging to the ancient mountains of Pars.”

In Across, Viraf says, "We’re celebrating the culinary culture of the Himalayas while retaining the region’s rich heritage. We use the techniques passed down through generations and aim to highlight the distinctive ingredients while offering a contemporary twist to suit modern tastes and preferences.” 

"We are reimagining the world’s most unexplored culinary traditions. It’s an exciting journey that blends ancient flavors with modern techniques, celebrating the diverse tastes from some of the most remote regions — and bringing them to your table for everyone to enjoy,” adds Prakriti. Every dish on the menu reflects profound tastes with the influence of geography on gastronomy and tells stories of remote mountain communities, notes a press release from the restaurant.

The space is minimalistic in design, its focus being the fare, notes a write-up in The Sunday Indian Express (SIE) of December 1, 2024. Prakriti, a clinical psychologist turned restaurant consultant and researcher, is co-director of FireBred Hospitality along with her husband. She told SIE that when travel restrictions eased after the pandemic they went to Nepal for two years during which they "explored western Nepal under the Annapurna range, and it was exhilarating. (In 2024) we ventured east to the foothills of Everest… The experience was humbling,” she recalled.

Prakriti says she "was convinced that the Parsi food served in restaurants and by caterers represented just the tip of the iceberg when it came to the richness of this cuisine. This realization inspired me to delve deeper and uncover old and forgotten recipes. Together, we have since explored the cuisine in its purest form, free from the limitations imposed by economies of scale.”

The couple’s journey finally came together in the menu at Across bringing together Prakriti’s roots in Nepal and Viraf’s Parsi upbringing in Bombay, wrote Conde Nast Traveller on November 14. The duo has "crafted celebrated careers as restaurant consultants, building, conceptualizing, (and rescuing) some of the city’s most notable spots. Viraf, once at the helm of Bombay’s beloved Café Zoe which shut in September 2019, watched the industry shift dramatically with the onset of the pandemic.

"Himalayan cuisine is challenging to define; the vast terrain and isolation have allowed food cultures and recipes to persist, unaffected by passing trends. The further up a mountain, the scarcer the vegetation becomes, changing with every altitude. These mountains boast an array of ingredients that simply don’t exist elsewhere, and their isolation has preserved culinary traditions largely untouched by time.”

Diners can look forward to a menu that provides a melange of new flavors created with less known ingredients. Among the options are Corn and Nettle Soup sprinkled with Himalayan wild chives, Fry Bread, a flatbread topped with Kalimpong cheese, Buff Cholia, spicy buffalo meat with a cumin rub, served along with spring onions and red rice flakes, Himalayan Trout, Mushroom Thupka, Buckwheat Fries, the Festive 9 Bean Stew, Lentil Pancakes with poached eggs served with tomato chutney and Ema Datsi, a spicy Bhutanese stew made with hot chilli peppers and cheese, as well as a choice of desserts.

Located at 5, Hari Chambers, 58/64 Shahid Bhagat Singh Road, Fort, Bombay 400001, the restaurant is open from 5.30 p.m. onwards on Wednesday to Sunday. A meal for two works out to over Rs 4,000 plus taxes. For reservations call 7506128945.