Paradox

As you climb upstairs to Paradox’s seating area near the bar, you can sense you’re entering a solemn oasis dedicated to design. The midnight forest wall tapestry’s reminiscent of what an Indian season of The White Lotus credits might look like. Carpets absorb the clickety-clack of your heels, the tent section feels like a baroque dream, electronic music bathes the space in sophisticated surround sound. Is this what a real cocktail bar should feel like?

A zany zine menu of cocktails with abstract illustrations and mixed typeface is offered to you. You’re seriously considering stowing it away in your bag. A peachy gimlet and earthen tumbler arrive. They are mysteriously titled the Cymatic and the Prodigal Son. The tiny tables (offset by fashionably ergonomic stools), you realise, fit the pair of drinks astutely well. Is that an ice-cream cone staring at you from inside the Prodigal Son? 

Other drinks hold their fair share of mysteries. Peaks of kasundi mustard and an aam papad-laden toothpick inside. Three to Mango reminds you of a sticky, spicy curry. Cheap date, priced at an eyewatering ₹10,000 (you look at the menu twice to make sure), comes armed with Johnnie Walker Blue Label and lashings of caviar. You’ve already licked a scoop of caviar off your closed fist, placed there by the Head Chef (on request), so what’s a couple more weird garnishes?

Another flight of stairs takes you, if you fancy a smoke break, to a terrace with most of the Mahalaxmi Mills in sight. Back at the bar, you may choose to pick at bar nibbles. The Bone Marrow and Buccatini are as wondrous a pair as a bumble of bees and a honeycomb. Thecha and char, cheese and pasta, all set fire to your palate, and satiate with gentler cream and dough. But we’re told the Kakigori, a fluffy fruit custard, is only available in the dining room. 

It’s a must to fill up on another round of cocktails – Taps #1 and #3 – clarified liquids in tall glasses – for a well-deserved nightcap. Both very fruity and sweet. They make up for the missed dessert. 

Time Out tip: Don’t come in here with kids or expecting a hearty meal.