New town’s newest nightlife destination Malt is a luxe, commodious gastro pub with an easy uptown interior and new-age outdoor set-ups and its 26,000 sq. ft floor area is just one of the highlights. The joint’s USP is obviously the diversity in its seating arrangements which is ideal for the new normal of the pubbling experience. Malt has seven different zones, including four open-air dining areas , a mezzanine set-up, a dancefloor, a bar-adjacent dining space, and a swanky, mid-air VIP section reserved for celebrity guests. The resto-lounge is curated to make social distancing easier as the city’s nightlife recuperates, and the fact that it’s one of the most spacious gastro pubs in the country obviously helps.
The Garden of Eden at Malt has been getting a lot of social media attention, and is a contemporary cabana-splattered space, with a functional in-house garden. “We actually source a lot of our ingredients from this very garden, like thyme, mint etc, that we’re constantly using in the bar and kitchen,” Kobid Sinha, of Malt, tells us. Each cabana is topped with elaborate, bushy creepers which add an element of seclusion to each set-up.
Plus, there are 4 and 6-seater party tables which are set up along the middle, with a mix of high-back and low chairs, and the open area also accommodates a bar which makes the space a really desirable garden lounge. In fact, for IPL season Malt is also hosting an open-air screening of the games in the capacious Garden of Eden.
Malt introduces a no-frills, utilitarian approach to pubbing, with industrial-forward, minimal detailing, unassuming wood and granite flooring, muted lights and spaced out neon signs. You’ll also notice that some of the decor features recycled metal scraps from the railyard and it fits the tonality perfectly. There’s also a 40 plus-seater terrace space called the Sunset Deck which offers a view of the sprawling garden lounge downstairs, and can be great for some winter, al fresco brunching.
The cocktail menu is impressively in sync with what the young urban drinkers of the city want, in terms of flavour and ingredient. The Nush Ka Nakhra, for instance, is a fruit-toned wine and vodka-based drink blended with fresh pomegranate, honey and kaffir lime sourced from Malt’s own garden. The food menu is a convenient mix of old classics and fusion numbers, there are easy being-worthy platters like The Chaat Dukan which features Phuchka shots, bhel, paapri chaat and basket chaat.
There are also familiar assortments like Highway on a plate which styles beloved dhaba classics to be bar-friendly and includes baby naan, dal makhni, kadhai paneer etc. We also spotted some trending bar nibbles which are picking up pace in most gastropubs around town, like pocket naans and nachos in a can. The Roasted Jamaican Grilled Chicken comes with a juicy side of grilled veggies, and is a must-have from the mains menu. Helpful tip: To make the most of the space in daylight, start with drinks at the garden lounge and then move up.