Toronto’s Financial District has a new Indian restaurant, with Michelin-recommended restaurateur Ambica Jain opening Raani, a two-level, 162-seat dining establishment at 360 Bay St. that draws on the culinary traditions and hospitality of India’s former royal courts.
The opening marks a new chapter for Jain and MJAJ Hospitality, following the Michelin Guide recognition of the company’s Adrak Yorkville restaurant. The new concept is designed to serve business lunches, meetings, private events and evening dining, with additional plans to introduce a speakeasy and spirit-tasting experience.
Two-level restaurant and private event space
Raani occupies two levels and includes a cocktail bar and lounge, a main dining room and a 10-seat Chef’s Table. The restaurant’s layout is intended to accommodate different dining occasions throughout the day and evening, including corporate gatherings and larger celebrations.
A former bank vault beneath the restaurant has been converted into The Vault, a private event space featuring its own bar and lounge. The space is now accepting bookings, while plans call for its code-locked doors to eventually provide access to an intimate speakeasy and spirit-tasting experience. Further details about that offering have not yet been announced.
The restaurant takes its inspiration from the princely states of 18th- and 19th-century India, with an emphasis on regional cooking traditions, elaborate feasts and recipes historically associated with royal households.
For Jain, the opening also represents an opportunity to establish a different approach to Indian dining in Canada. The company describes Raani as an ambitious project that reflects Jain’s position as a woman operating in an industry traditionally dominated by men.
Seven-chapter menu draws on traditional cooking techniques
Executive Chef Shrikant Tadke leads the kitchen, with a menu organized into seven chapters that follow a journey through the Queen’s palace.
The menu incorporates traditional Indian cooking methods, including pit cooking, slow-braising, dum preparations, tandoor cooking and live-fire grilling. The approach focuses on established regional techniques and ingredients rather than creating contemporary interpretations disconnected from their culinary origins.
Among the signature dishes is Raja Kachori, featuring a semolina shell filled with masala prawns, blueberry yogurt and house chutneys. Other offerings include Konkani Red Snapper, grilled over a Sigri with coastal masala and kokum-pickled shallots, and Trio Mini Kulcha, with mushroom, spinach-corn and paneer bhurji fillings.
Another featured dish is Khad Khargosh, consisting of yogurt-marinated rabbit that is bread-sealed and pit-cooked, accompanied by saffron jus and smoked apricot chutney.
The menu’s seven-chapter structure is intended to connect the dishes with the restaurant’s broader inspiration, drawing on the culinary traditions and hospitality associated with India’s royal courts.
With its combination of a full-service dining room, private event facilities and planned late-night entertainment offering, Raani adds a new hospitality operation to Toronto’s Financial District.
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