Chef Michael Swamy On Why He Chose Delhi Over Mumbai To Open Nueva

Virat Kohli recently dropped by at Nueva. Photo via Instagram

Delhi has a new restaurant, and it's got everyone talking, including Virat Kohli!

Chef, food stylist and photographer Michael Swamy recently opened his first-ever restaurant, Nueva in the capital. The two-time Gourmand Award winner, who specialises in progressive Indian and French cuisine, has gone a step further with his latest venture.

We spoke to Chef Michael Swamy about his inspiration to open a restaurant, the cuisine it will serve and more.

Tell us about your new venture.

This is the first restaurant serving South American food in the country. I wanted to do something different from the rest, and since South American food is the newest trend, we thought of starting a place with a little bit of Latin and Spanish influences. The place has fine dining, high tea and tapas under one roof.

Can you take us through the menu?

It has tapas, fish, pork and a variety of meats. The fine dining section has a lot of pre-created food.

Why did you choose to open Nueva in Delhi and not Mumbai? Can we expect it to open here soon?

To be honest, in Mumbai the rents are very high and space is also an issue. Although we do plan to open something soon in Mumbai as well, mostly in South Mumbai. That one will be different as it will be more of a cafe.

You love to cook with fresh produce. How did you set up the pantry in the new restaurant?

Setting up the pantry was very exciting since it is an open kitchen. It's very artsy so it was a lot of fun putting it together. Talking about the produce, a lot of it is local. Since the cuisine is American, we do source it from the Embassy to get more original ingredients.

Finally, how was it serving Virat Kohli?

It was good fun! We served him quite a few dishes from the menu, and I am happy that he liked everything.