Beyond ‘pohe' and ‘misal', Pune's F&B scene gets a whole lot buzzier

Mint

5 days ago

There is a certain hum in the quiet lanes of Kalyani Nagar. As the weekend sets in, the upscale neighbourhood in Pune's eastern quarters comes alive with folks gathering over drinks and chatter. If you linger, you will notice the lively cocktail scene that everyone's been talking about — bar hopping feels natural.
As a student back in the aughts, weekends usually meant queuing up for buttery bun maska and Irani chai at the legendary Vohuman Cafe. For dinner, there was Mysore masala dosa at Vaishali, or an occasional treat at Malaka Spice and Arthur's Theme. It's rather strange to return to Pune every few months now to find a glitzy bar or a swanky restaurant taking over the familiar streets and neighbourhoods.
Over the last couple of decades, an IT and real estate boom followed by the pandemic, have amplified the city's culinary landscape, bringing in a young crop of chefs and restaurateurs, who are steering modern ideas and concepts for the increasingly discerning diner. The leafy lanes of Kalyani Nagar and Koregaon Park are now buzzing with cocktail bars and breweries. While on the other side of town in Deccan, Baner and Aundh, experimental restaurants driven by global inspiration are offering equal doses of nostalgia, storytelling and creativity. Hola Tomatillo from Juju.
City-based restaurateur Karan Khilnani of ECO Hospitality, which owns the popular cocktail bars Elephant & Co. and Cobbler & Crew, says, 'When it comes to Kalyani Nagar, there is a dynamic crowd culture comprising corporates and young entrepreneurs, who are well travelled, have the spending power, and are also open about new experiences.' Since its opening in 2023, Cobbler & Crew has become the neighbourhood bar, where cocktails are concocted with Kolhapuri chilli and garnished with the classic Puneri bhakarwadi. The group also owns Juju next door, a Mexican-inspired bar known for its exhaustive agave-based drinks programme and smart tapas bites.
'Although the trend is that of cocktail bars, I wanted to open a restaurant where food was the highlight,' says Vardaan Marwah, chef and co-founder of Farro, where he draws inspiration from 'farro', an ancient grain that is commonly associated with Mediterranean cuisine. 'I did my research and decided to showcase the journey of the grain through different regions of the world, and also blend in my travel and childhood memories into the dishes,' he adds. Try the savoury jalebis piped with Parmesan batter, a 30-layer truffle latke, a take on the Jewish potato pancakes, sourdough flatbreads stuffed with baba ganoush and tempered with the Bengali five-spice mix panchphoron, and lamb terrine inspired by his grandmother's saag mutton. Negroni-spiced kingfish crudo at Nanna's Negroni.
A similar approach nudged chef-restaurateur couple Ambar Rode and Damini Halli to open Nanna's Negroni in January. 'We wanted to create a space where food is the hero, and the cocktails are complimentary,' says Halli, who believes diners are now more curious about techniques and provenance of ingredients. Rode brings his French flair by focusing on slow cooking techniques such as curing, brining, fermentation, and confit to pack in maximum flavour. He uses cheese and peaches from Himachal, wheat from Punjab, trout from Kashmir, and seafood from the western coast, to plate up sourdough pizzas, handmade pastas, cured salmon, and a standout Negroni-spiced kingfish crudo. 'It makes sense because everyone is travelling more after covid. Even kids are watching MasterChef Australia these days,' says Rode.
It's an exciting time for chefs and fermenters, who've spent years mastering their craft through extensive research trips and international training. In 2024, chef Gayatri Desai relaunched Ground Up with a fermentery, to make miso from scratch using native grains. On weekends, her test kitchen brings people together over unique tasting menus that spotlight hyperlocal ingredients sourced from all over the state as well as the North-East. At Gather, an all-day restaurant on Law College Road (that opened in January), head chef Hanoze Shroff has managed to get people talking about his deeply comforting, nostalgia-driven dishes. The joojeh kebabs, Japanese kare omelette, pork chilli fry and squid rechado are a few favourites from the menu. Andulasian spiced chicken tacos at Loco Otro.
Breaking away from the mould was natural for chef Siddharth Mahadik (of the much-loved Le Plaisir), who opened his second restaurant Loco Otro in 2023. The idea was to offer shareable, tapas-style plates, in a setting that felt like a neighbourhood restaurant and bar. 'In a crowded and competitive industry, why should dining out follow rigid structures of starters and mains?' he says. From date nights to family reunions, Mahadik is excited to see his diners return for Andalusian spiced chicken tacos, eggplant feta rolls, and karela tacos, a take on his family recipe.
In a city where diners hold on to nostalgia, brands are also finding their voice with experimental formats. At Aragma, chef Amit Ghorpade takes inspiration from his roots growing up in the hinterland of Maharashtra for his inventive tasting menus. 'The idea is to keep the integrity of our food traditions alive in a fun, aspirational way,' he says. Along with founder Poornima Somayaji, the duo wants to drive the conversation around the farmer and his produce and create contemporary plates 'not with caviar or yellowfin tuna', but with matki and pavta (types of beans), and leafy greens like shepu and millets. A highlight from the summer menu is a superlative ice-cream sandwich infused with chafa flowers (Magnolia champaca). Food at Gather.
For years, Punekars relied on a certain version of south Indian food made popular by the city's many Udupi joints. And then We Idliwale arrived with its playful idli-curry combos. 'The awareness of regional south Indian food can be quite linear. Growing up, idli-chicken curry was a Sunday staple, so it's definitely not my twist,' says chef and co-founder Abhishek Joshi, who launched We Idliwale Barroom in 2023, to elevate the experience with innovative cocktails and rock n' roll playing in the background. 'People knew us for our food, but we also wanted them to come and party with us,' he adds. Go for the molgapodi cured bacon, ghee roast sausages, haleem toast, and Kerala toddy shop favourites, along with Negronis and highballs infused with kachampulli (vinegar), coconut and turmeric.
Like any Indian metro, growing infrastructure and traffic chaos have impacted the eating-out culture in Pune. But all's well as long as there's good food and drinks to while away the weekend.