Taste test: What you need to know about this new neighbourhood bar in Bandra

Bacon wrapped prawns and Miso buff stir fry

We are of the belief: Home is where the party is. Order the booze, whip up the dips and put your best pyjamas forward. Sixteen33, Bandra's newest neighbourhood cocktail bar, is reason enough even for homebodies like us to dress up and show up for a night out.

Ranwar and Chimbai

Named after its location at the intersection of 16th and 33rd Road, the 64-seater is spread across 1,100 square feet, and serves as an all-day dining (and drinking) space that transforms into a sleek cocktail lounge by night. This vibe spills onto a top floor - a private and cosier box dressed in black, burgundy and golden flutes. Dim lights set the mood for a more intimate gathering.

Cocktails for the community

The cocktail menu is an ode to Bandra and six of its famous villages, namely - Ranwar, Chimbai, Chuim, Pali, Sherly, and Kantwadi - and its earliest residents. Chimbai (Rs 750) celebrates the Koli fishermen with a savoury muddle of shrimp liqueur, which mixologist Denzil Franklin has spiked with vodka, watermelon and sea salt. It comes with a fruit leather, made from leftover waste of oyster and watermelon rinds. The drink is palatable with a lingering taste of the sea.

Next, we dive into Ranwar (Rs 690), namesake of the East Indian village with a 400-year-old history of paddy fields. A sweet and potent Indrayani rice liqueur with gin, lemon tincture is poured on a block of ice with the finishing mist of absinthe. The rice garnish is limp, but the flavour of fragrant floral rice unfurls well on the palate.

Bar bites and Pali

Pali Village oozes character and charming local heritage. This is interpreted as a drink in Pali (R650), which comes in a cocktail glass flaunting a dramatic stroke of pink-tinted cacao butter. The drink has a strong hit of rum, heightened by citrus, along with pineapple syrup, Campari and finished with strawberry yogurt. For eats, we tried truffle mushroom pâté in phyllo cups (R370) that have a paté of Shimeji, button shitake, porcini. These bite-size parcels line the stomach and open up the palate for more food.

Patron comes first

Consulting head chef Gracian D'Souza who crafted the menu, focused on dishing out the classics with a strong technique. "The food is not experimental, but known classics done well. Diners appreciate this, which is why we are doing this," he shares. His theory is right, when we pop a portion from chorizo scorched olives (Rs 300) into our mouth. The no-one-can-eat-one challenge fails here. They are meaty, juicy and finish the texture of a deep-fried coating. The hummus (Rs 320) on the other hand, is creamy, and swirled on a flat plate, garnished with oven-baked chickpeas.

1633 cheesecake and Miso tofu

They are served with slices of sourdough garlic bread. The chicken strips (Rs 390) come with a hot sauce we want to dunk all our bites in. The bacon wrapped prawns (Rs 490) are semi-fried on the pan; here, the bacon fat mingles with caper butter. The miso buff stir fry (Rs 520) is served in a watery sea of Asian ponzu and shiitake mushrooms. For vegetarians, umami flavours are heightened in the miso poached tofu (Rs 570). The 1633 cheese cake (Rs 450) by sous chef Anil Gupta is the smoothest cheesecake to round things off. It's served with a fluff of fresh cream and a caramel sauce that's left on the pan just a few seconds longer to earn a deeper flavour.

Sixteen33
At 16th and 33rd Cross Road, Khar, Pali Hill.
Time 12 noon to 1.30 am
Call 9758999555