Khar West has a chic new cocktail bar and promises to please the lovers of literary and other arts. Hitchens – cocktails and ideas opened their doors in November 2024. It is founded by a filmmaker, and a acclaimed production designer, Aparna SUD, Rakesh Singh. The establishment is also supported by a group of acclaimed creative entrepreneurs of literature, theater, film and art. The team tells us that they have tried to create a place that can promote intellectual curiosity and stimulate interaction while a delicious food and beverage feast. Although it is named after the prestigious writer Christopher Hiches, it is not the only source of inspiration.
Photo Credit: Hichens
The walls of the first floor are decorated with the quotes of hichens and other literary legends – designed by the great brain to feel the preservatives (from the metaphor). This upper level is dedicated to live performance. There are plans to host various types of events that aim to promote the community and spark dialogue, including spoken words from sessions to Urdu blues. The kitchen of Hichens is starred by Gracian de Suja and supported by Chef Harsh Parakh. The food menu has modern European tastes with unique Asian effects. Chef Anunita Ghosh is in charge of the sweets section.
Hichens’ remarkable bar program is the brainchild of Mixologist Pawan Singh Rawat, whose famous career includes stents in the award winning bar in India and Shanghai. Pawan says, “The bar menu is a mixture of powerful flavor combinations and unexpected ingredients. It is designed to surprise and challenge the palate.” Cocktail names are the name of bar or have fun references to work by special intellectual/literary concepts.
Photo Credit: Hichens
The signature drink includes Foxhole Nastik (gin, pineapple, kafir, watermelon, sour), feminist (rum, sugarcane, jaggery, absinthe, sherry, citrus) and Editor’s choice (whiskey, Umeshu, Sherry, Abstent, Borst) . Each drink is designed to ensure its story, creating a unique and memorable experience for the patron. There is also an array of creatively concocted zero-proof options. Highlights include a hurdle (beetroot, apple, sheesho, honey shrub) and a long short (papaya, turmeric, honey, sour, cells) in time.
Photo Credit: Hichens
The food menu bends towards modern European rent, but Asian touches it expands the possibilities. Chef Gracian says, “I like to see the fare of the old school through a modern lens, and I mean none of that molecular item. I am stunning and more in elevating the classics known with novel texture and taste I am interested. ” Some Just-Tri recipes include juicy jackfruit toastadus, creamy sweet potato gratin, fiery community tofu, lip-smoking market fish escapek and comfortable Kerala Mutton Fry. At the House Special, the mushroom cooked in three ways from ‘someone’s own room’ stood for us. Finish your food with bhogi mini eclars, a satisfactory apple or a shared plate of petit squares.
Photo Credit: Hichens
The environment is characterized by subtle beauty details that manifest themselves in the stages and you discover a place that suffers with creativity. Open the menu and you can be called “Purvabhas” not only with the names of the consonant/ drink, but also with the bite of the bar and mainly from the title “The Plot Fat”. Look around and you can appreciate the panoramic center of Hichens (and depiction of other authors), brought to life by artists Atharv Ghatulkar and Nagnath Mankeshwar. Greet the employees and you will see the uniform created by Bollywood costume designer Priyanjali Lahiri. Even bill folders include a eccentric touch.
Photo Credit: Hichens
Hichens is imagined as a establishment that celebrates the joy of connection, the thrill of intellectual discovery and the art of enjoyment. It provides a stimulating mixture of sophistication and access. Team says, “Christopher Hiches believed that great ideas cannot be born without the right setting. In Hichens here, we expect you to give you the right setting. What do you do with it – that man himself Will agree – depends on you.
Where: Hichens, 494-486, 17th Road, Khar West, Mumbai.
Photo Credit: Hichens
