The sound that stayed with Amit Sharma from a food recce in Hong Kong was not the buzz of a night market or the clatter of a busy restaurant. It was the rhythmic clanging of the wok.

It became the foundation of his latest venture in Mumbai, a Cantonese restaurant called Jùun, housed inside the landmark Eros Cinema in Churchgate. “The thak thak of the wok was a constant across food markets,” says Sharma, the chef and co-founder, who zeroed in on Cantonese because he believes it is a cuisine the city has not explored enough.

A regional speciality from southern China, Cantonese cuisine has had little room in the Chinese food scene in India. In Hong Kong, it is the foundation of everyday cooking, built on the wok and the steamer, and an almost obsessive respect for fresh ingredients. When it comes to Mumbai, it has often been reduced to an afterthought on a pan-Asian menu.

Sharma is a pastry chef, who honed his skills in five star kitchens at the Taj, Westin and Marriott from 2007-2012. He co-founded Love and Cheesecake, a chain of popular dessert cafes alongside business partner Rucheyta Bhatia. Both of them are familiar with Hong Kong—Bhatia lived in the city in 2015 while Sharma spent months eating his way through small eateries, dai pai dongs (open air food stalls) and upscale restaurants. Siblings Sherwyn Noronha, the founder of Design Circle, has designed the new space, and Samantha Noronha of Bard & Butter is in charge of branding.

“Cantonese cooking is built on restraint,” Sharma says, “which is what makes it so different from the Chinese food most Indians are familiar with. Where Sichuan food mainly uses bold spices and numbing heat, this is a cuisine that lets the ingredient do the talking.” The techniques move between slow braising, steaming and wok-firing over high heat to develop wok hei, which translates to ‘breath of the wok’ lending that smoky, caramelised flavour to stir-fries. “The seasoning is light, typically soy, ginger, scallion and a splash of Shaoxing wine.” The popular Chinese rice wine from Shaoxing, a city in China’s Zhejiang Province, is great for making meats, vegetables and sauces.

It starts with nine housemade sauces that arrive encased in a wooden trunk. You taste all of them and select three, which return alongside crisps as the opening act. There’s a scallion sauce, lemon coriander and a roasted sesame, which are subtle and gently offset and complement the dishes.

Sharma's pastry background announces itself early and consistently. There is a bite to the pumpkin puffs. The lychee and prawn puff is a showstopper: each one is deep red in colour from beetroot juice and arrives looking more like a jewel than a starter. The dumplings almost melt in the mouth. Char siu holds a special place in Cantonese cuisine, and here it comes as slow-roasted pork in a soy and caramelised onion glaze sealed inside a soft steamed bun. It is sticky, slightly sweet and deeply satisfying. Interestingly, the starters arrive in a layered tiffin, the kind Sharma noticed Hong Kong locals carrying home-cooked meals in. The tenderloin claypot rice arrives sizzling accompanied by a bone with the marrow intact. The claypots have been sourced from China, and impart an earthy depth to the rice. The marrow is scraped from the bone and folded into the rice, and is topped with a runny egg at the tableside.

But, not everything lands with equal confidence. Coco Chanel once said that before leaving the house, you should remove one accessory. The lacquered duck and toasted almond salad needed that edit. The duck lacked crispness, the pomelo was barely there and the microgreens took over the plate.

Sharma's pastry instincts carry through to the desserts, which are the most inventive part of the meal. The dark chocolate crystal dimsums carry the geometry of a dumpling and the soul of a fondant. The Hong Kong egg tart trio arrives as three tarts with three fillings, classic custard, dark chocolate ganache and pineapple cream, a nod to one of the cuisine's most beloved street snacks. But if you are looking for just one dessert to end the meal on, then let it be the warm ginger-spiced whole pear topped with cheesecake.

The cocktail programme keeps things approachable, and is at the same time bold and expressive with the bartender experimenting with rotating cocktails. Asian ingredients run through the menu: a martini spiked with shochu and topped with basil oil, a tamarind-infused tequila and a rum cocktail with pandan distillate.

Only time can tell if Jùun can shift the city’s understanding of Cantonese food. For now, give the egg tarts, dumplings and char siu a shot.

Nivedita Jayaram Pawar is a Mumbai-based food and travel writer.

The sound that stayed with Amit Sharma from a food recce in Hong Kong was not the buzz of a night market or the clatter of a busy restaurant. It was the rhythmic clanging of the wok.

It became the foundation of his latest venture in Mumbai, a Cantonese restaurant called Jùun, housed inside the landmark Eros Cinema in Churchgate. “The thak thak of the wok was a constant across food markets,” says Sharma, the chef and co-founder, who zeroed in on Cantonese because he believes it is a cuisine the city has not explored enough.

A regional speciality from southern China, Cantonese cuisine has had little room in the Chinese food scene in India. In Hong Kong, it is the foundation of everyday cooking, built on the wok and the steamer, and an almost obsessive respect for fresh ingredients. When it comes to Mumbai, it has often been reduced to an afterthought on a pan-Asian menu.

Sharma is a pastry chef, who honed his skills in five star kitchens at the Taj, Westin and Marriott from 2007-2012. He co-founded Love and Cheesecake, a chain of popular dessert cafes alongside business partner Rucheyta Bhatia. Both of them are familiar with Hong Kong—Bhatia lived in the city in 2015 while Sharma spent months eating his way through small eateries, dai pai dongs (open air food stalls) and upscale restaurants. Siblings Sherwyn Noronha, the founder of Design Circle, has designed the new space, and Samantha Noronha of Bard & Butter is in charge of branding.

“Cantonese cooking is built on restraint,” Sharma says, “which is what makes it so different from the Chinese food most Indians are familiar with. Where Sichuan food mainly uses bold spices and numbing heat, this is a cuisine that lets the ingredient do the talking.” The techniques move between slow braising, steaming and wok-firing over high heat to develop wok hei, which translates to ‘breath of the wok’ lending that smoky, caramelised flavour to stir-fries. “The seasoning is light, typically soy, ginger, scallion and a splash of Shaoxing wine.” The popular Chinese rice wine from Shaoxing, a city in China’s Zhejiang Province, is great for making meats, vegetables and sauces.

It starts with nine housemade sauces that arrive encased in a wooden trunk. You taste all of them and select three, which return alongside crisps as the opening act. There’s a scallion sauce, lemon coriander and a roasted sesame, which are subtle and gently offset and complement the dishes.

Sharma's pastry background announces itself early and consistently. There is a bite to the pumpkin puffs. The lychee and prawn puff is a showstopper: each one is deep red in colour from beetroot juice and arrives looking more like a jewel than a starter. The dumplings almost melt in the mouth. Char siu holds a special place in Cantonese cuisine, and here it comes as slow-roasted pork in a soy and caramelised onion glaze sealed inside a soft steamed bun. It is sticky, slightly sweet and deeply satisfying. Interestingly, the starters arrive in a layered tiffin, the kind Sharma noticed Hong Kong locals carrying home-cooked meals in. The tenderloin claypot rice arrives sizzling accompanied by a bone with the marrow intact. The claypots have been sourced from China, and impart an earthy depth to the rice. The marrow is scraped from the bone and folded into the rice, and is topped with a runny egg at the tableside.

But, not everything lands with equal confidence. Coco Chanel once said that before leaving the house, you should remove one accessory. The lacquered duck and toasted almond salad needed that edit. The duck lacked crispness, the pomelo was barely there and the microgreens took over the plate.

Sharma's pastry instincts carry through to the desserts, which are the most inventive part of the meal. The dark chocolate crystal dimsums carry the geometry of a dumpling and the soul of a fondant. The Hong Kong egg tart trio arrives as three tarts with three fillings, classic custard, dark chocolate ganache and pineapple cream, a nod to one of the cuisine's most beloved street snacks. But if you are looking for just one dessert to end the meal on, then let it be the warm ginger-spiced whole pear topped with cheesecake.

The cocktail programme keeps things approachable, and is at the same time bold and expressive with the bartender experimenting with rotating cocktails. Asian ingredients run through the menu: a martini spiked with shochu and topped with basil oil, a tamarind-infused tequila and a rum cocktail with pandan distillate.

Only time can tell if Jùun can shift the city’s understanding of Cantonese food. For now, give the egg tarts, dumplings and char siu a shot.

Nivedita Jayaram Pawar is a Mumbai-based food and travel writer.