It wasn't long ago that Indian food in this city was regarded as little more than something you wolfed down with a few beers. Aloy Joshi has worked hard to change this perception by illustrating the sheer variety, complexity, and subtlety of the subcontinent's cuisines. Regulars eagerly anticipate his monthly regional menus, served in the convivial upstairs dining room. From the Punjab via the tandoor come three simply satisfying batons of paneer (cottage cheese), sitting on piquant contrasting chutneys. This might be followed by Amritsari machchi - barramundi fillets, steamed, then oven-browned, with a tomato sauce perky with coriander and fennel seeds. Then, perhaps, rich and dark fork-friendly lamb shanks - sparked up with cumin and black pepper - and roasted eggplant touched with cardamom. Would that desserts went beyond a fine kulfi. But nevertheless, Nilgiri's is to be highly commended for its unflagging promotion of Indian cuisine and the superior ways in which it brings it to our tables.