Bombay has never seen it better. Its entertainment life is finally coming of age. The pace at which the city is changing is phenomenal. Whether it�s new restaurants that open, or successful night clubs just two years old that close � for a makeover, because people now get bored easily, Bombay is a-changing. Disco's are pass�, now we have swish night clubs, and what's de riguer are lounges, with great emphasis on music, the Buddha Bar variety. And the new breed of entertainment entrepreneurs are more interested in opening resto bars, where food may or may not be good, but the atmosphere is. Young people love drinking more than eating good food! Pubs, the old tested and tried ones continue to rule the roost and, of course, bars will be bars just as boys will be boys and will always be there, packed to the gills.

The places that now open are swanky. Many are pretty large by Bombay standards. Great emphasis is paid to the d�cor which is pretty international. Entire kitchens at these restaurants are literally transported from abroad, money is spent most generously. Concepts are getting more esoteric. Food presentations are going to another level and finally it does feel there are places you can now go to and expect consistency in the standard of the fare. And not come away feeling cheated, ripped off! In addition to the physical changes in the culinary and gastronomic topography of Bombay, there is another interesting change in this its new social avatar. The people who people these places. Suddenly there is great confidence all around you. There is a type of person on the next table you hadn't noticed before. He dresses smart, has his wife with him and some other friends, he talks loud enough, not necessarily in English, to be heard at the next table, experiments with some wine drinking, pays by credit card, doesn't flinch at the amount and will be ready next Saturday to try another new place. Oh yes, the average Bombaywalla is spending. But then he is also earning big bucks. The economy is again looking good.

For college students, the going seems real cool. Their hangout places have suddenly gone so chilled out, I am surprised they even attend lectures. This change is so recent other young people, as young as in their early 20s who may have finished college barely four years ago, are aghast. They didn't have it so good in their times, they lament. So which are these places? To start with, it�s Barista, which made its presence first felt in Fort. It made an impact with its cheery peach look, trendy furniture, fresh approach, with a pin board to complete the college feel. And then suddenly, overnight there were Baristas opening all over town, and the teenagers had camped in. Caf� Coffee Day, the chain from South India, soon followed and there was another adda for the kids. Mocha is another on the regular beat, but here the crowd is not necessarily the college students. It�s also an after hours place where people head for some shisha activity. If you don't know what shisha is, go to Mocha tonight!

There was always a difference that existed between the two ends of Bombay, commonly known as town and suburbs. Town meant Colaba, Churchgate, Marine Drive, Malabar Hill, Napean Sea Road, Breach Candy, Altamount Road� Places where the first good hotels of the city were built, where the small, chic restaurants were. People living in areas downtown were the snooty ones with old money. They considered themselves more stylish, more with it. All that even if at all true has now changed. To start with it's now North Bombay and South Bombay. North Bombay which would seem to start from Bandra and include Versova on one side and the Airport on the other, is where all the action seems to have shifted, it's where the big bucks are being spent, where all the fun seems to be taking place. It certainly has a lot more younger people living there and therefore it follows, more night life. Interestingly, the area that falls between North and South Bombay which is Worli has suddenly got its own identity with the redundant Phoenix Mill land in Lower Parel (now called Upper Worli) being developed into a huge entertainment centre. Worli it seem is enjoying the best of both worlds, located as it is were. It even has the fabulous, spanking new ITC Hotel in the vicinity, not to mention the hugely popular banquet and party hall, the Blue Sea on Worli Sea Face.