Tonka
Indian 2.0 down a sneaky laneway (l,d; $$$)
Down a nondescript city alleyway – and in a building that once housed Honky Tonks (an antipodean Studio 54) – sophisticated Tonka is the stomping ground of Indian-Italian Australian chef Adam D’Silva, who reworks Indian flavours into commanding, modern dishes.
Highlights include pani puri, a dainty pastry filled with mung beans and spiced potato, and spiked with date and tamarind chutney. The main-course curries are fabulously complex while the well-curated drinks list includes Tonka’s eponymous, rum-spiked mango-and-coconut lassi. Book ahead.
20 Duckboard Pl, Melbourne
Opening hours: Tue 6-10.30pm, Wed-Sat noon-3pm & 6-10.30pm
Transport: Train to Flinders St
tonkarestaurant.com.au