Some places are meant for a big night out. Others are where you walk in for a drink and end up staying longer than planned. The Kowloon Tiger in Baner feels very much like the latter.
An all-new neighbourhood cocktail bar and conversation room from House of Malaka Spice, The Kowloon Tiger is the brainchild of second-generation restaurateur Ilvika Chandawarkar. But what makes this space interesting is how much of its personality comes from Hong Kong and its distinctive drinking culture.
The team has travelled to Hong Kong to soak up stories, explore its bar culture and gather inspiration that has found its way into the space, the cocktails and even the food menu. And you can see that influence in the details. The menu itself is designed to look like a newspaper, adding to the feeling that you’re stepping into a little slice of East Asian city life rather than just another cocktail bar.
The idea is to bring together the chaos and charm of Hong Kong’s hidden drinking dens, the energy of Taiwan’s bar scene and the easy-going spirit of neighbourhood watering holes. It’s not about making a night out feel like an occasion. It’s about good drinks, plates to share and conversations that go on longer than expected.
Dark, intimate and a little mysterious, the interiors have that hidden-bar feel, with moody lighting, deep reds, dark wood and raw textures. There’s an edge to the space, but it doesn’t feel overly formal or intimidating. The bar counter takes centre stage, making the cocktail-making process part of the experience.
It’s the kind of place where you can walk in on a weekday evening, order something interesting and let the night take its own course.
The Hong Kong influence goes beyond the interiors. There’s a sense of storytelling running through the experience, from the character-inspired cocktails to the food, which takes cues from the city’s street-food culture and late-night eating spots. It’s a concept that feels personal rather than borrowed purely for aesthetics, especially with the travel and research that have gone into shaping it.
The cocktail menu is built around characters and stories inspired by Asian syndicate culture, with each drink having its own personality. I tried Sister Ping, priced at 700/-, which brings together gin, cheese liqueur, strawberry, sweet basil and citrus, and Blue Lantern, at 500/-, featuring honeydew and melon-infused gin, Earl Grey and honey.
The combinations are certainly unconventional, and that’s part of the fun. The drinks invite you to step outside your usual orders and try something a little different. There’s a story behind the names, too, which makes browsing a menu designed like a newspaper feel like part of the experience rather than just another design detail.
Now, let’s get to the food, because I have thoughts.
The deep-fried chicken skins were, quite honestly, mind-boggling. Crispy, addictive and dangerously easy to keep eating, these are the kind of bar snacks that disappear before everyone at the table has had their fair share. I could genuinely eat them every day. If you visit, order them. That’s all I’m saying.
The Taiwanese chicken popcorn was another favourite. It had a lovely zing to it, making every bite a little more interesting than your usual popcorn chicken. The char siu pork belly was nice, while the pork sausage chilli fry was quite good, I must say. Both made for easy, satisfying plates to keep coming back to between drinks.
The prawn toast was the one dish I felt could have done with a little more flavour. It wasn’t bad, but compared to the other plates, it needed that extra something to make it stand out.
For the mains, I tried the pork breakfast rice, which was a good, comforting dish in its own right. It didn’t need any accompaniments or extra fuss, and I appreciated that. Sometimes, a dish that knows exactly what it is works better than one trying to do too much.
The Kowloon Tiger is a welcome addition to Baner if you’re looking for somewhere that puts the focus on cocktails, conversation and food that works well with both. It’s not trying to be a fine-dining destination, nor does it need to be. The appeal lies in its laid-back approach, interesting drinks and a menu that gets several things very right.
What I particularly like is that the Hong Kong inspiration isn’t confined to a few design choices. It carries through the concept, the menu’s newspaper-style presentation, the cocktail stories and the food itself. You get the sense that the team wants to bring back more than just flavours from their travels; they want to recreate the feeling of discovering a neighbourhood bar in a city where the best nights often happen by accident.
Could a few dishes use a little tweaking? Sure. But between the atmosphere, the cocktails and those ridiculously good chicken skins, there’s enough reason to return.
I’d go back for the chicken skins alone, order another round, and let the evening figure itself out.
Rating: 4.5/7 — ★★★★☆
Where: The Kowloon Tiger, Lower Ground Floor, S16, One Place, Plot A, Pancard Club Road, Baner, Pune.
