Bengaluru’s new ZLB - A Kyoto Speakeasy at The Leela lives up to the mystique of speakeasies

At Bengaluru’s latest speakeasy, expect rare spirits, fusion food, and old-time jazz tunes. But first, you need to find it

A snapshot of ZLB – A Kyoto Speakeasy’s interiors | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

The first rule of a speakeasy bar is that you do not talk about it. Yet here I am, shattering it, sharing it forth, attracting more people to a hush-hush space even as I risk being barred from there in the future.

Of late, the speakeasy trend has truly taken a steady grip on metropolitan India. Perhaps it is the lure of being ‘in the know,’ of belonging to that set of the cognoscenti with the most refined of tastes. It is like being a member of a club but without having to swear your fealty to it for the rest of your socialising life. 

A cocktail at ZLB – A Kyoto Speakeasy | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

This is what made PCO, which is probably India’s first legitimate speakeasy, a bit hit in Delhi. The bar, Cocktails and Dreams, is in Gurgaon and situated in a market with an easy-to-find shop front so technically it is not really all that hidden, despite the basement location. Mumbai had a speakeasy inside Thirsty City a few years ago, although, to be honest, given the deep-inside-a-mill location of many star outlets in India’s starry city, one will be forgiven for assuming they are all speakeasies in a manner of speaking.

The one defining characteristic that makes a speakeasy special is that it allows you to walk in with friends and immediately impress them with the tremendous prowess of your uber F&B quotient. It is little surprise then that even in the smaller towns, the idea of opening lavish bars with nondescript locations and murkily hushed-up entrances is catching on.

The latest offering from The Leela Bengaluru is precisely all that. It starts when you make a reservation, then you receive a Whatsapp message with walking directions to the bar from the hotel lobby; believe me, you will need them. I have spent the cumulative equivalent of months staying in that hotel and yet I wouldn’t have ever ventured to where ZLB – A Kyoto Speakeasy is located. While I will not give you too many details, since finding the space is a large part of the charm, I will admit that I meandered my way through the kitchens, past chefs chopping away nonchalantly, on my quest.

Snacks on offer at ZLB – A Kyoto Speakeasy | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

On entering you see the exclusive wall which has bottles of rare spirits that have already been claimed by the cognoscenti, now kept here in a display case, locked up, with access provided only to the owners who can come and partake of their personal stash. The liquor storage room doubles up as the smoking area and the restroom is cloaked behind a walk-in freezer door.

This is a lot to absorb immediately, but the main course is yet to come. As you walk into the main salon, you almost seem to travel back in time — a jazz band is playing, a crooner leading the pack sexily serenades the crowd, the well-heeled (and dressed) lounge on plush designer sofas (Sabyasachi for Nilaya by Asian Paints), huddled around small tables with exotic drinks. As far as optics go, you will want to dress up just to do justice to the space.

The drinks are mostly a harken back to the roaring 20s when shirts and dresses were starched and the drinks, stiffer. When I unintentionally lock eyes with someone at another table, we almost exchange that subtle nod between ‘people in the know’, a sign of approval that acknowledges each other’s good choices in bars.

We tried a few cocktails and snacks, and without dissecting recipes, they played well on all senses — from the extravagant presentation of a smoked whisky drink to the subtle garnishes at play in another; the bartenders are doing a fabulous job behind the stick and the chef has provided a worthy jugalbandi with the snacks.

A cocktail at ZLB – A Kyoto Speakeasy | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

The drinks are a nice juxtaposition of the classic with the modern, such as the Paleman, inspired by the well-known Halloween monster, or Kyoto Sunrise, a tribute to the Land of the Rising Sun. It almost feels like a noir movie set.

Running a successful speakeasy bar, like recognising humility as a virtue, is an inherent contradiction — the minute its existence becomes common knowledge, its value stands diluted. Only time will tell whether this bar remains the low-key cult choice of the connoisseurs or picks up more mainstream flow. Either way, do not turn up without a reservation.