Bar Kin Rü

There’s loads of slick places doing whacko drinks and fusion food. But I’d like to think Bar Kin Rü outshines them – in Hyderabad, at least. Yeah, they’ve gone experimental, but nothing they serve loses the hearty, robust flavours that often slip out of fusion menus.

Best visited on a weekend, grab a bar seat to watch true-blue mixologists at work. The Sher-Rü-shayari comes with an actual shayari written on it, while Gongura delivers an unapologetically local, spicy Telugu punch. The Monday Morning feels like a European breakfast in cocktail form, complete with a cornflake biscuit and a tiny cupcake. 

Bar bites are tiny, experimental. Classics like Patthar ka Ghosht and Yakhni Pulao retain their old-world charm. And as a hardcore non-vegetarian, I’m willing to admit just how much I liked the Jackfruit Haleem.

And If you’re a sucker for vintage-looking stuff, you’ll love Rü. The space itself is built around the rocky landscape of Jubilee Hills, and manages to feel harmonious with the massive grey boulders instead of looking blocky and awkward. The bar’s divided into three distinct sections: warm indoor seating with copper ceilings; an airy outdoor section with a massive boulder centrepiece; and a subtler cocktail bar.

They regularly host bar takeovers from across India and the world – rare for Hyderabad right now, at any rate, and they’ve done wonders when it comes to pushing the cocktail culture in Hyderabad. It’s also the only Hyderabad bar to feature in India’s Top 30 Bars list (back in 2024).