Oriental Fusion at Magique - There’s just a hint of delicious chill in Delhi’s dusk these days. The season to dine out, under the stars, has just begun.

Queue up for a table at Magique, culinary celebrity Marut Sikka’s daytime café turned evening sit-down, where everything is magical. A winding path fringed by fairy lights, leads to swaying paper lanterns, flickering candles, and strains of lounge.

Sink into the cushioned garden chairs, and sip the sparkling coolers, spiked with peppermint, camomile, cinnamon and a splash of soda.

The food is strictly Oriental fusion. Sikka knows his grilling techniques, the subtleties of Oriental flavours, and the art of marrying these two. The succulent Tandoori Grilled Lemon Grass Chicken starter, with a hot chilli pesto, is superb. To the horror of all Bengali grannies, and delight of the discerning foodie, the tang in the dip (that’s on each table with soup sticks and munchies) comes from basic kashondi! And don’t mistake the zing in the mash, served with well-done Char Grilled Lamb Chops, for a dash of mustard. It’s actually wasabi. More fusion surprises in the dessert: the custard is replaced with coconut cream, in the popular Cream Caramel pudding.

Our Trendy pick? The litchi and crab wontons. Crisper than the autumn air.