Hopscotch in Coonoor serves meals fresh from the garden

The menu at Hopscotch in Coonoor embraces local ingredients, from a chicken curry made with backyard carrots to cocktails infused with tea from the neighbourhood

As the doors open to Hopscotch restobar in Coonoor, two things hit you almost immediately — the buzz of conversation and the eclectic décor, with quirky posters and rustic artefacts lining the way to the bar. With bays for beer games, a pool table and a spinwheel, this feels like a friend’s home.

I start my night with drinks from the spicecraft series, a curated range of signature cocktails using locally-sourced fruits and spices. The Hopscotch hot toddy, garnished with cloves and cinnamon sticks, is made with home-made falernum (a syrup that includes rum, cinnamon, lemon and orange rind) for sourness, brandy and demerara syrup for the sweet notes, and hot water. The soothing drink is light, and warms me up instantly.

“Our curated spice-based cocktails and tea-infused ones are a speciality besides the classics,” says Nikhil Suresh, who along with his brother Nitin Suresh run Hopscotch, and also a group of hotels and restaurants in Coonoor, including the Realm resort, Sri Lakshmi Cafe and Hotel Ramachandra.

“In the hills, people love rum and brandy because of the weather while whiskey is the most preferred drink in the plains,” explains Nikhil adding that they collaborate with Havukal and Warwick tea estates in Kotagiri and use their curated teas for their SpecialiTea series of cocktails.

These include a mini tea martini, a peppermint tea-infused vodka drink and a mango zest fusion, which has mango chilli tea in vodka. I try the Pomme Chuckle, a blend of apple spiced tea-infused bourbon, apple cider and apple syrup, topped with a hint of angoustra bitters, offering a pleasing balance of sweet and sour notes. “Be it the cocktails or food, what we want to offer our guests is a slice of the Nilgiris experience. It’s about going local with ingredients, but prepared in Continental or Asian style,” explains Nikhil as we are served firangi kebabs in chicken and paneer, dressed in continental spices such as cumin, chili pepper, and oregano.

Nikhil sources fresh produce from farmers and estates in Coonoor. “Our honey comes from the Keystone Foundation that works with indigenous communities of the Nilgiris. Most of our dishes use asparagus, celery, rosemary, thyme, bokchoi, and basil, vegetables, fruits, and iceberg lettuce, grown locally by farmers. The avocados go into our hummus. Our sausages, and steaks come from The Ranchers in Coonoor, who specialise in quality meat and poultry. Paintings of local artisans adorn our walls. We whole-heartedly embrace going local,” says Nikhil.

He adds that chef Darius Madon, a consultant from Mumbai who is associated with Bastian Hospitality curated the menu. “We gave him all the local ingredients and the result is a menu that is unique to Hopscotch. For example, a firangi kebab or Asian steak fried rice with Hopscotch curry made with fresh carrots and sweet potato in Thai style, and hence can be enjoyed only here,” says Nikhil.