By the time the first cocktails hit the bar, it was clear this wasn’t a regular night at Novotel Hyderabad Convention Centre. Bartenders Raiza Carrera and Luz Artiaga from Agite Club in Argentina, along with KJ from Bangkok’s Opium Bar, had taken over The Bar, bringing with them flavours, stories and techniques shaped by travel, cities and long nights behind bars across the world by a specially curated menu using 1800 Tequila and Bushmills Irish Whiskey.
Raiza and Luz’s approach to bar takeovers is rooted in place, but is never limited by it. “I think about the flavours around the city and try to use them while placing ourselves within that space,” Raiza explained. Being a largely Latin American team with members from Argentina, Lebanon and Spain, their menus naturally blur borders. “If you think about it, it’s not that strange. Spain conquered all of Latin America,” she said, slipping into a wider conversation about shared culinary histories and borrowed ingredients.
At Hyderabad, the Agite Club menu leaned into familiarity with a playful twist. Knowing spices are central to Indian cuisine, they kept things simple yet bold, introducing drinks like Teikerisi, Dumbai and Juxtaposed. The names, Luz admitted, often come from improvisation. “I like playing with words. In Peru, we mix English and Spanish the way we hear it, even if it’s terribly wrong,” she smiled. Her personal favourite of the night was Teikerisi. “I like how balanced it is. The texture, the balance, everything, it is amazing,” she added.
The cocktail menu brought together bold spirits and layered flavours, each drink telling its own story. Pleasure Spiked With Pain blended 1800 Tequila Añejo with pineapple, Cocchi Americano and basil distillate for a balance of sweet, bitter and herbal notes. Teikerisi used 1800 Tequila Blanco, fat-washed with extra virgin olive oil, finished with humo and soda for a savoury, silky texture. Dee Dee Da Da Dah paired sage-infused tequila añejo with lychee cordial and elderflower tonic for a light, floral highball. Dumbai mixed tequila blanco, Cocchi Americano, mandarin marmalade and yellow curry powder, while Juxtaposed combined Bushmills Irish Whiskey with mushroom butter, ginger honey syrup and shiitake ponzu for deep umami warmth.
Sharing the bar was KJ from Opium Bar; this was a first visit to both Hyderabad and India. “This is my first time in India and my first time in the city. I arrived after flying from Mumbai, and it felt very nice. The view and the people stood out, and I feel it is a developed city,” he said. Opium’s cocktails are built around what he calls ‘liquid serenity’, capturing emotions from places travelled. That philosophy translated into drinks like Pleasure Spiked With Pain, Dee Dee Da Da Dah and Juxtaposed, each inspired by cities such as Hanoi, Chinatown and Sardinia.
For KJ, ingredients always come first. “When I taste something new, that’s when the idea starts,” he said, hinting that Hyderabad’s flavours may well find their way into a future drink. For now, the takeover served as a reminder that cocktails, like cities, are best experienced when cultures collide beautifully.