As the F&B sector in the city witnesses a semi-lull this season, barring the odd big-ticket opening, one hopes that it’s the calm before the storm, leading up into the festive season and the end of the year. Amid the fanfare and celebratory mood, we also hope that Mumbai’s gourmands and foodies get to experience more variety and out-of-the-box thinking as far as new restaurants go.

For one, we expect to see more standalone, high-quality restaurants bring in flavours from across the seven seas — from continents like South America and Africa and some of the Pacific isles. There’s nothing in the city from these two vast playgrounds of cuisines, cultures and techniques. The closest we’ve come to savouring food from that part of the world has been Tex-Mex and Egyptian food. And I’m sure you, dear food-loving reader, will agree that Mumbai can do better than that.

Closer home, West Asia, or our neighbours including Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Maldives are known to be home to treasure troves of spices, condiments and rich culinary traditions simmered over centuries of influences that haven’t been tapped into. We’d love to see a restaurant that celebrates the food that originated from regions along the historic Silk Route, for example. Or dig into dishes influenced by the Khyber Pass? We’re salivating.