Monkey Bar Delhi
India’s first ‘gastropub’ Monkey Bar has now opened its doors in Connaught Place, Delhi. Need reasons to drop in? We’ve got you plenty.
Monkey Bar gave the term ‘gastropub’ a unique makeover with an Indian twist. This fun and quirky New York-inspired bar promises much more than just food and drinks. Warm service, drinks served in jars and Moscow mules and a relaxed vibe is what you should expect. Nakul Chandra, Business Development Manager at Monkey Bar, told us about everything amazing at the bar, here are the excerpts from the interview.
Nakul Chandra: Gastropub is a very simple concept. I know the name sounds a little bit fancy but it’s not. It’s just a pub or a bar that usually you go to for drinks but we serve really good food and that’s where the gastro angle comes in. Our burgers are really famous and we put a lot of effort into them. And other than that our cocktails, so not just trade drinks and beer, we keep innovating and changing flavours that suit the Indian palette.
Already an established name in Banglaore and Delhi’s Vasant Kunj, Monkey Bar has now reached the heart of the city, Connaught Place. While this seems to be a part of the strategy to win over all the bar-lovers in the city, it’s actually their love for the heritage and the architecture that got them to CP.
Nakul Chandra: It is where people, anyone who comes to Delhi for the first time, if they want to come anywhere its India Gate or CP. So this has historical value, it’s a gorgeous place I mean if you look at CP, the architecture, the heritage everything is amazing. So we wanted to be a part of the revival of CP.
Innovation and creativity is exactly what you see when you enter Monkey Bar. Not only the decor but also the signature food and drinks are customized to the location of the bar.
Nakul Chandra: So drinks would be ‘Mangaa’ that is our main signature drink which is an ‘Aam Panna’ based cocktail which has been with us since the opening of the first monkey bar in Bangalore (patch). For Connaught place we have created a new signature called Cherry Pop “CP”, that’s a drink which is made with cherries as well as candy so it has got a very nice colour and it has got a very nice flavour to it. Copper Monkey is another one which is served in a copper mug, its take on a Moscow mule and that’s based with whiskey. Food-wise like I said burgers our are main signature we’ve got some Indian food which is also our take on regular classics like ‘Tikki of Joy’ which is a Calcutta inspired dish so that’s got fish in a Calcutta-style mustard sauce and we‘ve got ‘Berry Pulao’ which is a Parsi dish very traditional Chicken-Pulao made with Parsi berries so those are our signatures.
With a strict no reservations and no judgement policy, Monkey Bar is managed by a bunch of happy and welcoming people/staff who offer a bit more than a usual neighbourhood bar would.
Nakul Chandra: We have a pool table in all our bars across the countries and they are all free of charge. We do not charge for them, it’s a part and parcel of the experience at Monkey Bar. So we would like everyone to come and play and have a good time and enjoy themselves. We take great pride in foosball ourselves because we are always playing it so any guest who wants to challenge us is always welcome to.
Where: P 3/90, Connaught Circus, Connaught Place, New Delhi
Plot 11, Upper Ground Floor, LSC, Pocket C 6 & 7, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi
Must Try: Signature Cocktails ‘Mangaa’, ‘Cherry Pop’ and ‘Copper Monkey’ , Mushroom Bruschetta, Mobar Buger and Berry Pulao
Cost: Rs.1,800 for two (including alcohol)
Opening hours: 12 PM to 12 AM (All days of the week)
Serves Alcohol
Outdoor Seating: No
Delivery: No