The name translates to “foreigner,” but at the upscale Feringhee Modern Indian Cuisine restaurant, the hope is to connect diners through a common, cultural interest: exquisite food.

Madhavi Reddy—a Chandler resident who owns Pastries N Chaat in Tempe and Saffron Indian Grocery N Restaurant outlets in Phoenix, Scottsdale and San Antonio—developed the restaurant concept along with co-founder and celebrated international chef Sujan Sarkar. Reddy, who has worked in IT and marketing, has always had an interest in agriculture and food, and wanted to fill a noticeable gap in the fine dining Indian scene in the Valley.

“I was in the industry and thought we can do more than this. We can elevate Indian cuisine, bring it to the mainstream, and demonstrate what it is and how flavorful it is. I just wanted to show the journey of India—the different flavors, different states, different cuisines,” she explains.

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Whether you’ve eaten Indian cuisine or not, Feringhee, which opened in June 2022, will be a surprising dining departure, according to Reddy. The menu features traditional flavors from diverse regions of India with a contemporary twist on the aromatic cuisine.

The team tapped chef Karan Mittal, whose background includes working in Michelin-starred restaurants and earning the Rising Star of the Year 2018 by Food & Wine Magazine Ireland, to execute their vision.

Mittal references his upbringing in Delhi, recipes from his grandmother, and travels throughout India and the world—as well as experimenting with local and seasonal ingredients such as huckleberries, avocados, finger limes and mushrooms—for inspiration and to bring a greater depth and flavor to Feringhee’s interpretative menu.

“The biggest passion of my life is to explore more of Indian food, get into the detail and showcase that to the world,” he says.

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Diners can enjoy small and sharing plates such as chutney flights, masala ricotta kulcha and coastal scallops. Larger plates include seasonal squash and vegetable kofta, Hyderbadi eggplant, Old Delhi butter chicken, dum jackfruit biryani and Kashmiri lamb.

Dark chocolate cremeux, coconut panna cotta, kulfi popsicles, and house ice cream and sorbets are available for dessert. Some menu items are vegetarian and gluten-free.

“We make sure that we portray Indian food as it should be. Even in terms of the spices and the taste. We present authentic, traditional food in a new light using local ingredients, some seasonal touches, interesting textures and a lot of innovation so that it feels modern to the eye,” says Mittal. “But when you dig in, it transports you back to the memories that we’ve all grown up with. That is what the experience that we want to recreate here—nostalgia through a modern lens.”

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The upscale, chic space has a main dining area with a bar, private dining room, patio and banquet hall and is decorated in golden saffron, blues and browns and warm woods indicative of Indian design. The extensive beverage component includes Indian whiskies and spirits, specialty cocktails, and global wine and beers.

“Our goal is to have the finest cuisine in the valley. My message to everybody is we did our best to bring the best food, not only to the Indian community but to the mainstream,” says Reddy. “Come see what kind of journey we are going to walk you through.”

Map: 3491 W. Frye Road, Chandler, AZ 85226 or (480) 534-7178