Overview
The former home of Ponsonby's Chai Bazaar has been transformed into a new pop-up experience from Garage Project and Satya Chai Lounge. Where the Bazaar was a rustic nod to Shanti Town filled with washing machine tables and cushioned crates, the Hyderabad Hotel is a colourful homage to its namesake city and 1970s Indian hotel lobbies.
Located on Pollen Street, opposite the Countdown supermarket, the pop-up venue and courtyard space was designed by the team from Wellington's Garage Project and their long-time collaborator Matt Smith, who helped realise the vision with a bold orange paint job and hand-painted Hindi text.
The pop-up features a full-service Garage Project bar, including eight beers on tap and two dedicated natural wine taps. The drinks list will be headlined by a new beer brewed in cahoots with Samrudh 'Sammy' Akuthota of Satya Chai Lounge. Sammy flew to the capital to create the playfully titled 'Beeryani', an Indian-spiced rice lager based on the legendary rice dish. The beer has been made with hints of saffron, cardamom, coriander, cloves and cinnamon, and will only be available on tap at the Hyderabad Hotel. Elsewhere, Sammy's GG Flamingo concept is looking after the cocktail list.
In true Satya fashion, a menu of Indian-inspired street food is on the cards, including the house specialty of Hyderabad fried chicken. On weekends, biriyani will be available until the pot runs dry and street snacks will change on a weekly basis. Sammy says visitors can expect papdi chaat, tandoori chicken drumsticks and Indian-style sloppy joes which punters may remember from the Chai Bazaar concept.
Hyderabad Hotel will be around for a limited time. It opens on Thursday, 13 February at 4pm. Find it at 42 Pollen Street, Ponsonby.