Muro’s Main-Character Era: Why Your Next Cocktail Comes With a Tiny Little Treat

Muro's Sweet Chin Music comes with coconut mousse piped onto a lavash

There was a time when a cocktail garnish - typically a twist of citrus, a lonely olive or a shrivelled umbrella - was an afterthought, a polite nod to festivity. That time is gone.

Now by the time your cocktail reaches the table, you’re not scanning the glass for clarity or colour. You’re left eyeing what’s dangling off the rim or lodged in that iceberg of an ice cube. Is it a garnish? A snack? A side dish? Superman?

In case it wasn’t clear, the cocktail garnish has entered its main-character era. The garnish doesn’t just flirt with your senses - it also takes them to dinner. And maybe a show after. It’s no longer satisfied with being just a sprig of mint or a citrus peel twist. Today, that precariously balanced bite might be a seaweed-salted banana crisp, a pickled smoked edamame, or smoked salmon tartlet. It’s no longer just ornamentation or a missable cameo - it’s a delicious co-star.

In Bengaluru, Asian restaurant and bar Muro has been belting out the Dirty Ceviche, a cocktail meant to echo the freshness of its namesake - it pairs shrimp vodka and gin with a michelada chaser and a smoked salmon tartlet. It’s a drink. It’s a dish. It’s a whole damn event.

Sahil Essani, Muro’s beverage manager, pores over Spanish chef Ferran Adria’s food philosophy and Niki Segnit’s popular compendium The Flavour Thesaurus for inspiration. “We’re consciously tapping into the synergy between the bar and the kitchen,” explains Essani.

Muro’s umami-intense Sweet Chin Music is proof of this approach. It riffs on the savoury brilliance of kombu and shiitake and comes paired with coconut mousse piped elegantly onto a crisp lavash. It’s smart, high-concept stuff. The bite heightens the drink; the drink craves the bite. The entire experience is engineered to keep you circling - sip, bite, sip again.

Originally published by Nod Mag.