As we step in, a mobile ceiling installation of suspended golden and blue circular metal plates, which move with the wind and represent balance, comes into view. Below it stands a familiar face. It's a leaner, fresher-looking Alex Sanchez, who first came to India as a 26-year-old in 2010 to lead The Table. When Gauri Devidayal and Jay Yousuf opened the Apollo Bunder fine-dine, Sanchez was part of the launch team, moving on to lead the kitchen during his two stints before hanging the apron in 2017.

Sanchez, who began his year-and-a-half long sabbatical with a trip back home to San Francisco — and later Italy with his partner, Mallyeka Watsa — is now set to open Americano on March 19. The American-inspired Italian restaurant replaces AKA Bistro at Kala Ghoda.