A new high

Recently-opened pubs in the city add spunk to casual meetings and hangouts.

Recently-opened pubs in the city add spunk to casual meetings and hangouts.

The celebratory sound of glasses and ice clinking rings through the air,as Rajesh Nambiar and his friends raise their drinks high for a toast at the newly-opened bar WTF!. There is no occasion. The group is simply unwinding and busy chatting. Years ago,people would go out to five star hotels and lounges to enjoy a meal with a couple of drinks. This would be an expensive affair,with only fine-dining restaurants serving alcohol. Over the past few years,and especially since 2012,new pubs such as The Irish House,WTF! and the Manchester United Cafe and Bar have set up,offering an entirely new culture to the city. “It’s okay to go out to a pub for just a few drinks with friends. You don’t have to eat a big meal,or pay a huge bill. It’s all very informal and affordable and it’s the kind of thing you can do often,” says Nambiar.

In fact that does seem to be the ethos at WTF!,where posters,coasters and other artifacts display cartoons depicting different excuses to drink and ask,”What’s your excuse?” WTF! co-proprietor,Nick Hawkins moved to India from Manchester,UK about 12 years ago and has watched the country’s drinking culture change completely. His own experience as a bartender helped him set up WTF! in December,last year. “In the past few years,there has been a big surge because of the huge multicultural population with Indian and international people,all of whom now have more disposable income,” he says. “They are looking for a friendly and happy place to have three or four drinks without paying too much. Low pricing had made massive impact in the drinking culture recently,” he adds.

Another trait that sets pubs apart from regular restaurants is the prime focus given to drinks,with an extensive beverage menu,while the food menu usually comprises finger food and snacks to complement the alcohol. “Food is not necessarily a secondary concern,you can’t run a bar without good food,but people do prefer finger food which is easy to eat and is also affordable.

Even before pub culture really took root in the city,people would travel to other cities for the experience of a modern bar,says Kedar Bhosale,the manager at the city branch of the Manchester United bar. “When we opened in Mumbai,lots of our customers who visited the branch were from Pune. That’s how we knew Pune was ready for its own branch,” he says.

It’s pretty much the same with The Irish House,which opened in October last year,after several successful branches in Mumbai. Kersi Mistry,general manager,says,”Pune has a lot of young people who want to try the western drinking experience.”

The city will soon add another pub to its ever-growing list,with The Pint Room,expected to launched in April. The pub has branches in Mumbai,Delhi,Chandigarh and Bangalore. Pradip Gidwani,who manages The Pint Room,says,”Part of the Reason for the new drinking culture is that newer and better varieties of alcohol are being served by the new pubs. We serve 40 different kinds of beer which are very popular with customers.” Describing The Pint Room as a casual meeting space,or a coffee shop for beer,says Gidwani,”People used to meet and hang out at coffee shops. Pubs will soon be just as popular.”

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