New Delhi, Oct. 31 -- The charcoal embers burn bright, slowly roasting the crescent-shaped green pumpkin slices brushed with tare (a Japanese glaze made from soy sauce). Once charred to perfection, chef Saurabh Udinia plates them up with pumpkin sauce, scatters toasted pumpkin seeds on top, and slides the plate towards me. The pumpkin has a slight bite to it, which contrasts well with the creamy sauce. At HOM, which opened in Mumbai last month, 80% of the dishes are cooked on fire using the charcoal grill, the plancha (flat-top griddle) or the tandoor.

"I have been to really cool, intimate grill restaurants like Kiln in Soho (London) and Burnt Ends in Singapore, but there's nothing like that in Mumbai where you can watch the chefs in act...