European and Mexican cuisine is Chef’s Sitapathi’s speciality, and Ithaca’s interiors complement the food nicely. It is divided into two areas by a glass wall spanning two floors, which lets in enough light to remind its diners of a picture-perfect day in the Mediterranean. The latter half of Ithaca is spread out around the turquoise pool, and diners take advantage of Bangalore’s weather for a classic al fresco banquet.

Ithaca showcases a different cuisine every evening, ensuring that regulars and long staying guests are never bored with frequent repetitions. Chef Sitapathi and his crew of 70 lay out a lavish spread of Italian food on Monday and Indian on Tuesday. Wednesdays are seafood nights, Thursdays are for Oriental favourites, fusion food takes the spotlight on Fridays, and the weekend is reserved for international cuisine. The Sunday brunch is a hot favourite with Bangalore’s glam set and IT bigwigs, who lounge around the pool relishing the lobster neroli, pepper crusted New Zeland lamb rack and tiramisu.

Celebrating the vast array of Indian flavours is the Indian Affair, which recreates traditional Avadhi, Kashmiri, Goan, Rajasthani, and Keralite cuisine by the book. If Ithaca is positioned as the dining destination for the gastronome who likes the occasional innovative rendition, Indian Affair is a treat for The Chancery Pavilion’s many globetrotting guests in search of the real McCoy.

Tastefully decorated in hues of rich brown, gold and beige, the mellow and stylish restaurant invites diners with its incandescent interiors and knick knacks – jewellery boxes, a violin, a strand of pearls, a chess board – to cosset in a journey that is as much cultural as it is culinary.

For those who would like to shake a leg, the lounge Amnesia is the place to join Bangalore’s young tycoons as they sip the signature drink ‘18 till you die’, and snack on finger foods from the Caribbean, Mexico and the Mediterranean. With a DJ console made of molten lava, it does set pulses racing.

Amnesia has a funky colour scheme of deep purple, metallic green and red; streaks of cobalt blue glimmer over the violet walls, setting off luxurious pink couches.

Coming soon is another addition on the rooftop with a breathtaking view of the city; the pan-Asian restaurant will serve Japanese, Thai, Korean, Malaysian, Singaporean and Chinese fare. Chef Sitapathi is understandably enthusiastic about what will soon be a four-fold culinary canvas. “There is no full stop to one’s imagination here. I never call my work station a kitchen; it is a temple,” he says.