Fruity sips

He loves stirring cocktails for the glamorous Sen sisters, actors Riya and Raima, who are regulars at the Plush Lounge & Bar at The Astor Hotel. But that’s all in an evening’s work for 29-year-old Ajit Bhardwaj, in-charge of the bar at the lounge, who loves concocting his signature cocktails with everything including vodka, rum and whisky as base.

A graduate of the International Institute of Hotel Management (IIHM), he has been some eight years in the hospitality industry, of which four have been spent as a bartender. After finishing the three-year diploma course in 2002, Bhardwaj moved to Delhi where he worked in a pizzeria for about two years. He returned to Kolkata and joined the lounge-bar, Marrakesh, as a bartender. After working there for about two years, he joined another lounge-bar, Soho, and spent time there as a bar supervisor till end-2009. He’s been with Plush since.

Bhardwaj says that he also learnt a lot from ace bartender, Irfan Ahmed, while working at lounge bars like Soho and Marrakesh. Ahmed was associated with these outlets at certain points of time. Working with Ahmed helped him decide on bartending as a career.

He shares his favourite recipes.

Mango Minty Maria

Glass: Old-Fashioned

Ingredients: 60ml vodka, 90ml mango juice, 15ml pineapple juice, 10 mint leaves, 15ml lemon juice, Worcester sauce (to taste), Tabasco sauce (to taste), Salt (to rim the glass), Pepper (to rim the glass), Chaat masala (to rim the glass)

For garnishing: Wedge of lemon, Sprig of mint

Method: Put all the ingredients in a blender with a few ice cubes and serve in an old-fashioned glass. Rim the glass using chaat masala, pepper and salt. Garnish with a wedge of lemon and a sprig of mint.

Green Apple & Grapes

Glass: Martini

Ingredients: 60ml vodka, 1 apple, chopped, 30ml apple juice, 10 green grapes 15ml lemon juice 20ml of green apple syrup

For garnishing: A few chopped apple, A few cherries, A few grapes,

Method: Put some crushed ice in a blender along with all the ingredients. Pour into the glass and garnish with grapes, cherries and apple slices. Take a few toothpicks and pierce the cherries, grapes and sliced apples and add on top for garnish.

Sparkling Peach

Glass: Wine

Ingredients: 90ml white wine, 10ml Cointreau, 50ml orange juice, 5ml lemon juice, 20ml peach syrup, 50ml soda,

For garnishing: Orange slices, Orange peel, A few cherries

Method: Put all ingredients (except the soda) in a cocktail shaker with lots of ice cubes and shake for 30 seconds. Pour into the glass. Top up with sparkling water or soda. Garnish with sliced oranges, orange peel and cherries.


The Personal Telegraph
As told to Nandini Guha