“Have you tried idli-dosa yet?” This was my first question to Piyush’s Japanese –American friend Kenji, who recently moved to Mumbai for work. Kenji replied with an assertive “Yes. I tried the dosa at one of the Udipi restaurants across my office. The sambar is nice and spicy. I like South Indian food.”

Now if there’s one thing that Mumbai has no dearth of, it’d be the Udipi restaurants sprawling across the …