Tryst brings India’s regional flavours to a new cocktail bar beneath Trèsind in Mayfair

Tryst, a 30-seat cocktail bar focused on the regional ingredients and drinking cultures of India, has opened in Mayfair beneath the modern Indian restaurant Trèsind on Hanover Street. The bar comes from the team behind the restaurant, part of the Passion F&B group that also operates restaurants in Dubai and Mumbai, and its concept and drinks programme have been developed by Marina Juszcyk, formerly head bartender at SOMA. The venue aims to give Indian drinking culture a dedicated space in London, applying contemporary cocktail techniques to Indian produce.

The venue’s approach centres on applying the technical methods common to high-end cocktail bars to Indian regional ingredients. Techniques used across the opening menu include fermentation, clarification, milk washing, carbonation and sous-vide infusion.

The debut selection, titled Volume One, is organised region by region across India, with each libation built around a single defining ingredient or culinary tradition. These include kokum from the Konkan coast, jasmine from Madurai, Assam tea, Alphonso mango from Ratnagiri and Gondhoraj lime from Bengal. According to the bar, future volumes will move beyond geography to address India’s rituals, artistic traditions and everyday culture, with the menu changing edition by edition.

Among the signature serves is the Konkan, which combines kokum, Chopin vodka, chaat masala, apricot, fino sherry and toasted coconut into a highball finished with a dehydrated toasted coconut crisp. The Bikaner, described as a slow-clarified sour drawing on Rajasthan’s preserved fruits and dry spices, features kumquat, Johnnie Walker Blue Label, aamchoor, cognac, Amaro Montenegro, peppercorn and buttermilk, and is served with a hand-cut mandala grain sheet. The Tanjaur, inspired by South Indian rasam, is built on centrifuged clarified tomato water with Don Julio Blanco, pisco, curry leaf, cumin, coriander and hing.

The space is built around a Tayer Station from Behind Bars and takes a minimalist approach to the hidden-bar format, using plaster, natural stone and brushed metals. Lighting has been arranged to focus attention on the bar, which is positioned at the centre of the room.

Suyash Nath, chief executive of Passion F&B in the UK and US, said: “As a group, we’ve always been passionate about showcasing the incredible depth and diversity of Indian cuisine through a contemporary lens. With Tryst, we wanted to extend that same philosophy to the world of drinks. India’s regional ingredients and flavour profiles offer an extraordinary palette for cocktails, and our ambition has been to treat them with the same creativity, technical precision and respect that define our kitchens. We hope every guest discovers a flavour they didn’t expect, but if I had to recommend just one drink, it would be our take on the Tomato Rasam. It’s familiar, savoury, a little unexpected and perfectly captures what Tryst is all about.”

Tryst sits downstairs from Trèsind and opens Monday to Thursday from 5.30 to 11.30pm, and Friday and Saturday from 5.30 to midnight.

Food Desk

To book a table at Tryst at Trèsind, 13-14 Hanover Street, London, W1S 1YH, call 0800 369 9555 or visit the restaurant’s website here.