Fair-priced booze is nudging out the faddy cocktail. Is the city’s new love affair with affordable bars, scripted by pub owners, here to stay?
Last week, when flamboyant former Indian cricketer Farokh Engineer decided he’d celebrate turning 75 at a two-month-old bar near the heritage precinct of Horniman Circle, he was making a smart choice. While most tipplers at The Lazy Dog are one-third Engineer’s age, they tumble out of cars on a street deserted after the last office-goers have left the commercial district to rock the night without ripping their pockets.
The split-level bar has carefully positioned itself as chic but affordable, painted in soothing ivory, offering regulars a seat on bar stools and art deco couches as Coltrane spills from the speakers and Tsar, the owner’s late dalmation and inspiration behind the name, watches from a framed portrait.
The varnish is key says partner Rahul Bhasin, if he is to cater to the discerning value-conscious customer over the plain budget-conscious one. “We set out to create a premium experience while offering customers their money’s worth.” And they have.
Its investors, all well-travelled, were keen to recreate a hint of the New Orleans and NYC pub culture in Mumbai, while attracting footfall through reasonable prices. The Lazy Dog’s showstopper is the ‘Patron’ scheme, essentially a loyalty programme that lets you pay half-price, even less. Purchasing an annual patron card for Rs 250 (a figure you’d recover in just two drinks) means you get a Budweiser pint for Rs 125 (tax inclusive) which is otherwise priced at Rs 270. A 30 ml peg of Smirnoff costs Rs 100 against the regular Rs 220; a Johnnie Walker Red Label comes for Rs 150 instead of Rs 300. The card will be valid across all future outposts of the bar, like the one at Hiranandani in Powai that opened last fortnight.
Bhasin says his team spent 13 months designing an efficient model that touched on design, pricing and tech solutuons — like with the Patron card — and benchmarked it to international standards.
While the last few years in Mumbai were dedicated to the gourmet rash and fine dining experience that placed the Rs 1,300 cocktail at the centre of the table, it’s now the turn of the budget bar to hit stardom.
Booze next door
Value for money is the central theme at veteran restaurateur Ketan Kadam’s soon-tolaunch Crazy Dog, too. Inspired by the popularity of Bar Nights at local members-only clubs patronised by both, the middle income group and the affluent who down a few drinks before heading out to fancier joints, Kadam’s Bulldog chain of ‘wellpriced’ bars, will, he hopes, be comparable to New York’s jukebox bars. “It’s for young professionals and college-goers who want to enjoy a casual nightout without worrying about stressful gate rules, dress code and if they need a date to gain entry.”
Kadam’s contemporaries support his conviction. Pratik Parikh, a partner at Three Wise Men, the Santacruz pub that became a hit almost as soon as it opened in March last year, says their idea was to promote the British style of pubbing. “We aimed to open a neighbourhood bar where you didn’t feel awkward wearing flip-flops or walking in directly after work.”
Ashok Datwani, partner at Amigos, Versova’s two-month-old Tex-Mex bar where beer under a limited promotional offer is priced at an unbelievable Rs 100 a pint, says young Mumbaikars don’t enjoy the pretence associated with fine dining after a tough day at work. At Datwani’s The Big Nasty in Bandra, it’s not unusual to spot crocs among stilettos. Kishore DF, Datwani’s co-partner and the man behind Versova’s budget bar WTF, adds, “A decade ago things were different — your choice of venue was a symbol of your lifestyle.”
A drink a day
The city’s painfully long commutes have played supporting role in the rise of hipster bars. It’s not often that you’ll come across a 30-year-old willing to waste an hour-and-ahalf in traffic to get home, dress and head out for a drink. The market research team behind Three Wise Men arrived at results in favour of a budget joint. “They (young Mumbaikars) want to go out every night,” Parikh says, “rather than save up for that special occasion. That’s why prices are make or break.” Theorising on what might be responsible for the shift, Parikh who is in his 30s too, says several well-paid professionals continue to live with parents, cutting down on key monthly expenditures.
Source: Anjana Vaswani, Mumbai Mirror, http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com
