Review: Nara Thai: A Taste of Bangkok Lands in Gurugram

The first sign that the new Nara Thai isn’t just another pan-Asian import comes with the colour: a regal, almost meditative purple accents the chairs and banquettes, washing the room in a shade that feels both ceremonial and contemporary. It’s the signature of a brand which, over more than two decades, has presented Thai cuisine not just as food, but as culture — plated, garnished and gently perfumed.

The name itself, Nara, comes from Sanskrit, translating to “Thai woman.” Their emblem, inspired by interlocking traditional armlets worn by Thai women, signals lineage and togetherness. What started as a heartfelt ode to family dining has grown into a quiet empire: 35 restaurants across Asia and the Middle East, and now, the third outpost in India, under Aditya Birla New Age Hospitality. After Mumbai’s Worli and BKC came first, Gurugram is the brand’s newest bet.

This is a dining room built on intention. Designed by Thai architect Nitipattara Yensup, the space leans into subtle luxury-rattan and cane, carved wood, botanical motifs, golden glints of light falling delicately over tables. There are more than 80 seats, including a private dining room tucked away like a secret. The lighting is warm, diffused; the air carries soft aromatics of lemongrass and coconut milk even before the menu arrives.

A Menu Rooted in Authenticity, Served With Finesse

At the Gurugram outpost, this is expressed in dishes that arrive vibrant and
unfussy, often familiar but with a kind of modern clarity.
The Pomelo Salad opens bright and aromatic, bursting citrus against the subtle heat of chilli and toasted coconut. Tom Yum is everything it should be on a winter afternoon: sharp with galangal, rich with broth, almost comforting enough to cure something unnamed. The Chicken Wrapped in Pandan leaves is tender and fragrant, unwrapping like a gift, and the Soft-Shell Crab with Garlic arrives crisp and indulgent. For vegetarians, there are thoughtful plates, too: Stir-Fried Water Chestnuts and Cashews; Edamame & Eryngii Salad; and Butterfly Pea Fried Rice in a shade that feels conjured straight from a Bangkok market at dusk.

There is nostalgia here: the Pad Thai done the Nara way, the soulful Khao Soi, the warm depths of a Massaman Curry, and then there is novelty, like the grilled programme developed specially for India: John Dory in Kaffir Lime, Thai Grilled Pork Spare Ribs, Chicken Nam Jim Jaew.

At the Bar, Broths Become Cocktails

Perhaps the most playful part of the Nara experience sits behind the bar. Clarified cocktails are the house pride — clear, silky drinks that retain complexity without cloudiness. The Pandan & Coconut is gentle and fragrant, with gin and orange notes that fade into something fresh, green, tropical. The Bangkok Burn follows heat with tamarind sweetness, striking a balance like Thai street food in a glass.

Then comes mischief: the Tom Yum Twist, which actually infuses Tom Yum broth into vodka, brightened with lime. It shouldn’t work. It does. The Thai Green Curry cocktail — rum, curry reduction — is similarly bold, the sort of drink that demands silence for the first sip.

A Restaurant That Moves Slowly, On Purpose

Dining here is not hurried. Courses flow like conversation. Servers pause to explain a paste, a herb, a preparation. It is easy to forget, for a moment, that you are in Gurugram and not in a Bangkok dining room where family recipes were first written down, where two women imagined hospitality as legacy. And that perhaps is the triumph of Nara: it invites you into a story. Whether the city embraces it as a weeknight comfort spot or a celebratory destination remains to be seen.

_{Read Also:
Review: With jazz, martinis, and sharp mixology, Upstairs brings back the golden era
Review: Masala Code in Indore is tracing India’s culinary code, one dish at a time
Review: Raise a glass to Cicchetti Italiano’s new cocktails}