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Harbour Bar, Mumbai's oldest rendezvous
An old time patron explains how Taj's waterfront bar has kept its dignity intact -- since 1933
Mumbai's oldest licensed bar: As it was in the 1930s and after its renovation in 2009.Every city has its classic bar. Iconoclastic or premier, it must capture the mood of the city, reflect its heritage and its pulse.
In Mumbai the classic bar must be the Harbour Bar at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel at Apollo Bunder. Its only possible rival is The Eau Bar at the Oberoi, but the view from Harbour Bar is infinitely more interesting, and being situated in one of the great hotels of Asia is itself a huge historical advantage.
Harbour Bar looks out on the Gateway of India, a monument built to commemorate the visit of King George V and Queen Mary in 1911. This is the historic waterfront of Bombay, while the Oberoi is built on reclaimed land looking out on the bay.
In fact the Taj, in their renovation of the bar after the 26/11 terrorist attack, have succeeded in bringing the harbor view back into the bar ambience. There is more light, with windows opening to the greenery. The entrance has a mother of pearl feel as if you are entering somewhere extraordinarily glamorous.
In the old days the bar had a very clubby nautical feel, closed in with wooden floors and a makeshift wooden bar. Now the image has changed.
The wood has given way to some exquisite marble, the floor has been raised so that from the comfortable art deco chairs clientele can view the harbor -- surely one of the most iconic sights in the city with its boats, yachts and ships bobbing in rhythm on the ocean waves. The trellis has been removed and a massive marble bar has been placed by the entrance.
Modernizing an institution that has been around since the 1930s is a task fraught with risk, but somehow the Taj has pulled it off.
Vignettes from the oldest bar in town
Harbour Bar is the oldest licenced bar in Mumbai. The licence plate used to be displayed prominently and proudly at the entrance of the original Harbour Bar. And Bertie Gomes, an extremely popular bar tender, managed to salvage the original licence permit during the terrorist attack and fire despite the risk.
If one looks back in time there is reason for this pride. Despite the colonial influence, few Indian cities other than Bangalore have a pub culture. They have a bar culture, which is more American.
Philip Larkin wrote about the happy confluence of the age of jazz and the cocktails from 1925 to 1945 when prohibition in the United States encouraged illicit speakeasies. The connection between the American prohibition era and Mumbai's Harbour Bar is as tangible as its signature cocktail, Harbour Bar 1933, was invented in the year the bar opened, which happened to coincide with the abolition of prohibition.
The story behind the cocktail is that an American who had his yacht moored by the Gateway of India heard about the abolition of prohibition in his country, entered the Harbour Bar to celebrate and demanded a cocktail which would blow him away. The bartender used Indian fruit juices to concoct a cocktail that is now known as Harbour Bar 1933.
I personally was not blown away by the cocktail, but there are some interesting twists on traditional drinks to note. For example, rather than the mundane Bloody Mary, they publicize the Red Snapper, which was the predecessor to the Bloody Mary, a gin-based cocktail with the same ingredients.
Another specialty is termed the 'smoking martini' -- vermouth with a dash of whisky and Smirnoff black. As a concession to changing tastes, there is an excellent single malt collection, and with Wasabi, Morimoto's nouvelle Japanese restaurant above the bar, also a wide range of sakes from which to select.
The wine list has become much more comprehensive but unfortunately, because of swinging taxes and duties, the prices tend to hover between seriously expensive to astronomical.
Tehmton Mistry, what's shaking?
It was interesting talking to Tehmton Mistry, a bar tender who has been working here for the last 32 years.
I ask him how the bar and its atmosphere has changed. His first comment: prohibition against smoking had meant that there were few customers who ordered cognacs. In the old days guests leaving various functions in the hotel would enjoy a nightcap with a cigar and that is not possible today.
He also comments on the change in cuisine.
In the good old days guests could order meals with their drinks from any of the Taj restaurants, such as the Golden Dragon and the then Tanjore or even continental from the Coffee Shop. This rather naff multi-cuisine experience has been replaced by a more sophisticated 'Global Tapas' menu in tune with the international image the Taj management wants to promote.
Some very exotic and innovative bar snacks include guacamole gol gappas, curried crab samosa and some exquisite sushi (try the golden apricot and foie gras sushi) created in Wasabi upstairs. There are standard favorites like the chicken tikka and the golden fried prawns as well.
Maybe one is getting older, but I like to return to favourite haunts and when they evolve with time the experience should improve.
Today there is a glossy sleekness and understated opulence about the Harbour Bar which defines it, but more importantly a unique sense of discrete gentility belonging to a world that has vanished. There is no loud music distracting conversation, the lighting is perfect and even casual dress does not preclude smart.
