You’d be hard pressed to recognize the space at San Jose’s Santana Row that formerly held Amber India. Gone is the once dramatic celestial ceiling complete with shooting stars, which was cutting edge back in the early aughts. In its place is Fitoor, with modern luxuriousness and an elegant clubby vibe, an archetype perhaps more in keeping with this sleeker day and age.

Husband-and-wife restaurateurs Anu and Vikram Bhambri have completely revamped the space down to the studs, creating three distinct dining areas, a rear dining room done up in shades of emerald, a middle dining room gilded in gold accents, and a front lounge with floor-to-ceiling accordion glass windows that can be completely tucked away to make it open-air.

It’s been a busy year already for this enterprising ouple, who also opened the Mediterranean Alora on Pier 3 in San Francisco just two months prior. It joins their other restaurants, Rooh in Palo Alto and San Francisco, and Pippal in Emeryville. And more may be in the works.

Fitoor is Hindi for “passion,” and weekends exemplify that with added high energy, courtesy of a live DJ plus fire dancers. On weeknights, such as when I was invited in recently as a guest of the restaurant, the atmosphere is more subdued, with plenty of tables filled with tech types gathering after work.

Overseeing the menu of shareable plates and larger entrees is Chef Vaibhav Sawant, who cooked at the acclaimed Masala Library in Mumbai, which made the “50 Best Discovery” restaurants list.

The Bhambris’ have always offered a creative cocktail program at their restaurants. The one at Fitoor is no exception. Take the Canchanchara ($18), a rum-based cocktail with citrus that sports a garnish of black garlic. It’s refreshing and bright at first sip. Swirl in the spear of black garlic and the cocktail takes on a roundness with a subtle sweet, musky earthiness.

“Chaats of India” ($25 for two, $40 for 4) is sure to become a signature because it’s not only beautifully presented but makes for a fun way to kick off the meal. A large wooden tray is heaved to the table, holding tomato and mozzarella samosas that squirt with sweet-tangy juices when bitten; deconstructed bhel bar of crisp puffed rice cakes topped with tamarind and mint chutneys; and crunchy dahi puri topped with chutney “caviar” balls.

Served in separate bowls is dahi vada, lentil dumplings reminiscent of falafel that are served chilled, with a blanket of creamy, rich yogurt with cranberry dust.

The fryum sampler ($18) is like chips and dips — Indian-style. A basket of thin, crisp papadam and other crackers comes alongside bowls of coriander mint chutney (the spiciest of the bunch), cherry tomato chutney, roasted pepper coulis, and curry leaf yogurt.

From the small plates side of the menu came one of my favorite dishes of the night: duck ghee roast ($25). You don’t often see duck on the menu at an Indian restaurant. What makes this dish stand out even more is that it’s like duck confit except the duck is cooked in ghee to render it rich and meltingly tender. The shredded meat, seasoned with gunpowder and black garlic, comes atop idli, fluffy steamed rice cakes. It eats almost like pulled pork.

The coconut sambal-marinated chili buffalo wings ($20), from the small plates section, possess a good amount of heat, the kind that warms the entire esophagus. You’d think the sweet-salty coconut chutney on the bottom of the plate might cool things off. But because it has a liberal amount of ginger, it just adds to the prickly warmth of the overall dish. The wings are so tender and delectable, though, you’ll find you can’t stop eating them. If you have any leftover curry leaf yogurt from the fryum sampler, it does a good job of cooling things down.

From the grill section, there’s the divine asado branzino ($25). Although restaurants usually serve branzino whole, here’s it’s a filet done up with influences from both Bombay with a green mint-coriander chutney and Calcutta with the addition of mustard seeds. Together, they provide rousing herbaceous and piquant flavors. Crisp shoestring potatoes and radish sprouts crown the incredibly moist fish.

Also from the grill is the “Peshawari Lamb Seekh Kebab” ($27), probably the spiciest dish of the night, thanks to its thecha condiment of pounded chiles, only this one has horseradish, too. The two ground lamb kebabs are tender and smoky. The mint chutney foam adds a fanciful touch while the creamy onions help douse the heat.

If you think butter chicken couldn’t get any richer tasting, then you haven’t had this version that’s made with burrata ($30). By the time it hits the table, the soft, creamy cheese will have mostly melted into the spiced tomato and butter sauce, save for a few white streaks here and there. Definitely order some garlic naan ($6) and cumin seed-flecked basmati rice ($10) to soak up the voluptuous sauce that’s as extra as it sounds.

For dessert, there’s a 72-hour vodka panna cotta ($15) in which coconut milk is fermented with vodka for three days before gelatin is added. The result is panna cotta that tastes a little boozy, but doesn’t feel boozy, if you know what I mean. It’s garnished with a strawberry compote, white chocolate “soil,” and a mint quenelle with a similar bouncy gelatin texture, making for a cooling dessert that resets the palate.

The malai choux bun ($18) is more substantial with a crackly-topped cream puffs filled with condensed milk custard that are garnished with caramel, crumbles, and ice cream flavored with peppery betel leaf and rose.

I was sad to see Amber India close up shop here after 20 years. But by all accounts, Fitoor is a worthy successor.

More: Dining at Alora in San Francisco

And: Dining at Rooh in Palo Alto