Have you ever heard someone rave about the taste of raw silk? And no, it does not involve tasting an actual saree. It is a drink! The thought of tasting a fabric as a drink seemed rather bizarre until we stepped into the Pass Code Only (PCO) outlet in Mumbai. Located in Kamala Mills, Rakshay Dhariwal launched this outlet of PCO in 2021.
If you thought that Rakshay Dhariwal is just another restaurateur then you are mistaken. Besides launching one successful restaurant or bar after another, followed by their outlets in other cities – he is also the visionary behind the homegrown agave spirit called Pistola.
He launched Pass Code Hospitality, a boutique hospitality firm in 2012, along with his sister, Radhika Dhariwal. Rakshay is now a pioneer in the F&B industry in the country with several restaurants and bars such as Ping’s Café, Saz, Jamun, PCO, and more under his portfolio. After more than a decade, the brother-sister duo have managed to build an empire in this culinary industry with multiple franchises of their restaurants as well.
By now the name Rakshay Dhariwal has been synonymous to crafting experiences and indulging in the art of storytelling — be it via cocktails, decor, or a theme, or even staying relevant for more than a decade. We sat down with Dhariwal to pick his brain on how to #StirCreativity in this industry.
From conceptualising to rolling out a new menu, it takes a good six months. If you think coming up with a new menu is child’s play and all that is required is a bunch of new cocktails, then you are wrong. Even factors such as location play a key role in Dhariwal’s process of curating a menu.
PCO Mumbai is a prime example of this as it is located in Mumbai’s Kamala Mills. “The exact location [of PCO Mumbai] was an old textile factory belonging to Mr Naveen Kapoor,” states Dhariwal. Kapoor was said to run his textile export business out of the same premises and his kaarigars also sat there and made clothes. “So we thought, for our menu, let’s pay homage to what he had, the location and specifically fabrics.” India’s rich culture and close relationship to fabrics across states turned out to be a bonus for Dhariwal and his team. PCO Mumbai’s cocktail menu called ‘An Ode to Textiles’ is inspired by fabrics across India! Imagine drinking a cocktail that resembles the texture and feel of Pashmina, Banarasi, Velvet, Satin, Muslin, and much more. “We wanted to showcase the different and intricate fabrics across the country in a cocktail. Also, with cocktails anything is possible and you can create anything. It’s the same thing with fabrics as well and that is why we chose fabrics as our cocktail menu,” he explains.
There is no denying that Dhariwal knows the industry like the back of his hand. While he was a sport and open to sharing his ideas, vision, inspiration, and more; he knew where to draw the line when it came to discussing his processes. “I have a very concrete process and I wouldn’t want to reveal that but my team had a checklist of items for each cocktail.” He also goes to the extent of sharing that the bartenders in Mumbai competed in an internal competition when it came to choosing the best cocktails to be on the menu.
But once the theme is set, what’s the step after that? Dhariwal breaks it down for us. “First, you come up with a theme for the menu, then you come up with your menu matrix and check whether you have enough spirits and styles of drinks and after this basic draft you move onto the designing phase where you make sure your cocktails are ready and then it is time to get an illustrator on board and work on the design,” he explains.
His latest creation can be seem through the new menu at PCO Delhi called the Forbidden menu. The menu includes forbidden ingredients such as apple which was forbidden in the Adam and Eve tale, tobacco, hemp, and more. “We use one such ingredient in each cocktail and thought this was a good concept from the perspective of a speakeasy since that is how they came up.” It is an event more exciting theme since PCO Delhi is considered to be India’s first speakeasy.
The previous menu at PCO Delhi included drinks inspired by Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, and even the Duranto Express. His idea behind these themes and the storytelling concept for these drinks is simple – it has to entertain people at the end of the day. They should have a good time when they step out and have a fun experience.
Weaving a story around a drink or tying all cocktails together under a theme is interesting because “it’s better than getting a piece of paper with some names written where you can’t engage. “It’s about engagement,” he says.
One would imagine that acing a menu and staying consistent for over 10 years (PCO Delhi) would require in-depth market research but Dhariwal just shrugs, “I have been doing this for 12 years so to be honest, I have never done any kind of research as such,” he states confidently. “We’ve never given people what they want. I feel it’s my job to shape people to drink better and to drink things that I think they should be drinking,” he declares. He gives an example of the time when they introduced regular cocktails at a time when people couldn’t get decent cocktails. “If customers like sweet drinks, then I am not going to develop my menu where I just give those to the customer. There has to be a good mix of everything. I don’t try to go after what people want, instead, I try to go after what I think they should be having.”
As a speakeasy, PCO Delhi has stuck to a few elements based on the theme of the space. “[At a speakeasy], apart from elevated cocktails, you’d expect leather plush furniture and stuff like that. So whatever you set up at your restaurant or bar has to fit into its theme it. If your décor looks like something and your product looks like something else then people are never going to understand and engage with it,” he explains.
PCO Mumbai, on the other hand, has a completely different look than the Delhi one. With a Secret garden theme, it has a different look and feel. But these interiors, paired with the menu and the product transports the diner to the world created by the restaurateur.
Dhariwal breaks down the process of acing this for us. “If you stick to the theme, to what you’re trying to do, and if your product is strong, then the diner automatically picks up on everything. It’s from the music you play to the way you’re greeted, the look of the menu, how is your social media, what’s on your menu, and the price point – all these factors play a big role,” he shares.
This is probably a common thought for all chefs and restaurateurs out there before they open a new space. Dhariwal admits that this is more like a hit-and-miss opportunity. “No one knows until your product is launched and people try it. What you think their experience will be is their experience then you know you have accomplished your goal,” he shares. But at the same time, he admits that there is no way to know until the guests experience it. “I’m always nervous before launching a new product. It’s easy for us to replicate the existing brands but every time we create a new brand, there’s so much nervousness whether people are going to understand or not.”
“Luckily, I am blessed with one of the strongest teams in F&B in the country and all of us apply our brains and we seem to get it right. It’s an art and science and you make sure you do everything right,” concludes Dhariwal.
