A last toast to good times on Wood Street

Toast & Tonic, Bengaluru's beloved restaurant, closes its doors after nine years, leaving behind a legacy of innovative cuisine.

Somewhere between simple and artful, cosy and chic, there was everyone’s favourite restaurant, Toast & Tonic, tucked in a corner of Bengaluru’s Wood Street. As you entered, you could never escape the warm, homey feel of the space, the friendly staff always happy to welcome you back. A fine celebration of the art of a perfectly mixed gin & tonic, best enjoyed on unhurried afternoons or when one of those famed, surprise showers came down. A place that championed seasonality, hyper-local, fermented or raw, with a clever use of simple ingredients alchemised into the most delicious dishes; always ahead of the gastronomic curve.

It also held a lot of sentiment for its patrons, many of whom returned again and again, bringing with them new friends who spread the word. Since opening its doors in March 2016, Toast & Tonic has been just that; a place to reconnect. Because, here, it was not just about what was on the table, but also those who were around it.

When I first moved to Bengaluru, it was here that I came on my first date. When a dear friend, moved back to Italy alone at the end of her two-decade marriage, it was here that we met to laugh and cry into our tonics infused with elderflower, jasmine and rosemary. So, many memories!

And now, after nine years of joy and laughter, Toast & Tonic will close its doors for the very last time on June 15, 2025.

“We knew we were much loved in Bengaluru and so many of our diners had some of their best memories with us over the years,” says AD Singh, founder and managing director of the Olive Group of Restaurants. “However, we assessed that they were now looking for a refreshed Toast & Tonic for the future, and we are in the process of creating that. Our senior management team and I are deep in discussions on refreshing the vision and design and figuring the way forward.”

It is not easy to decode the spectrum of emotion behind closing a restaurant. After all, it involves a whole range of human occasions. There was a little bump in the road when Chef patron and a force to himself, Manu Chandra, parted ways with the group in August 2021. With him, went a bit of the shine, of course, but some patrons kept coming due to the restaurant’s longtime repute. “Years ago, they started the gin revolution in India here in Bengaluru. We had never seen ice set with rose petals or spices. I’m so heartbroken that they are shutting; it’s the end of an era for wholesome and innovative food and drinks,” said Ila Dorairaj Naidu, a loyal regular.

The menu - the meeting of comfort food and innovation