6 months in, Roc-A-Coe finally finds its footing in Chennai

There are two truths about Chennai’s nightlife. One, most places shut by 11 pm. Two, people like to eat—really eat—with their tipples.

I learnt the first truth when I lived in the city as a journalism student in 2011. The second has become harder for bars to ignore. Karl Fernandes’s Roc-A-Coe (RAC), which opened in March 2026 on Khader Nawaz Khan Road—where popular spots like Rewind by Radio Room and Secret Story Chennai sit—seems to have figured that out six months into operation.

RAC, an 80-seater designed as a modern take on a 1930s British club with Art Deco details, started out as a serious cocktail-led bar. It had a strong drinks programme and a limited selection of small plates. “When we first conceptualised the place, the idea was to create a cocktail bar built to international standards,” says Fernandes, the Goa-based bartender and founder of beverage consultancy Sip Savvy. “It was a beverage-led space with a strong cocktail programme, complemented by a limited selection of small plates.”

But unlike cities where bar-hopping is part of the night, Chennai tends to favour settling into one place, ordering a few rounds, eating well, and staying put. So, the team pivoted.

Since it launched, Goa-based chef Adrial Branco, who is also behind the food at Bar Outrigger in Goa and Bar Spirit Forward in Bengaluru, has fine-tuned the menu according to what Chennai diners respond to and expect. The menu started with 11 dishes in its opening month. It now has 50 dishes, most of them hearty, carb-heavy plates. It’s the perfect example of how it may take months for an eatery to find its footing in a new city.

There’s tandoori fried chicken served with lachha onions and a Goan chorizo mash and chips that sits next to a ghee podi mac and cheese, an indulgent favourite topped with podi breadcrumbs. The small plates are there too, like Asian-style mash and chips with buttery mash, spicy Asian condiments, and pickled onions.

Avocado served with dosa, which didn’t quite land, has been replaced by a guacamole Bombay chaat, a reminder of Bombay sev puri. Similarly, the burrata, which was previously done as a spanakopita with spinach and corn, now comes with chimichurri, which is punchy, the richness of the cheese cut by the sharp, herby sauce.

“The idea wasn’t to turn RAC into a restaurant but to create a more comprehensive food programme that supports the cocktail experience,” shares Fernandes, whose beverage menu is divided into three sections: Modern Art of Polite Drinking, Cool Cups and Dainty Drinks, and The Vestiges of Old Madras.

The first section has the eponymous Roc-A-Coe, named after a little-known cocktail featured in Harry Craddock’s The Savoy Cocktail Book from 1930, with gin and fortified wine stirred with a cherry garnish. The Plantation Colada revisits the piña colada with rum, pandan, custard apple, red apple juice, and coconut milk, a fruitier and more layered take on the familiar drink.

In the second section, the gin-based Rosette comes with strawberry cordial, vermouth, and sparkling water, while the vodka-based Orchard Spritz has East Indian rosewood, litchi, vermouth, rose mist, and sparkling water.

What I especially enjoyed were the drinks from the last section, The Vestiges of Old Madras, most of which were tequila-forward. Esplanade, First Served, an ode to the area where punch houses and taverns in Old Madras first came up, has a distinctly tangy edge that comes from raw mango brine and saline. The Keeper’s Preserve, which takes its name from the keepers who owned these inns, has brined plum, jackfruit, red apple juice, and saline, bringing together sweet, sour, and savoury notes. Nine O’ Clock Shandy combines tequila and beer with a green savoury mix of cucumber, celery, and coriander.

RAC’s take on the espresso martini takes Madras coffee and shakes it with coconut vodka, espresso, coffee liqueur, and date honey. The coconut vodka itself was a highlight: made by roasting dried coconut chips and infusing them with vodka, giving it a coconut-y aroma rather than a Malibu-style sweetness. 

Every month, RAC comes up with specials on the drinks menu. This time, it is Flip Switch, a more unusual proposition built around miracle fruit. The berry contains miraculin, a protein that temporarily changes how the tongue perceives sourness, making acidic flavours taste sweet. The experience begins by eating the fruit, followed by a taste of the cocktails and noticing how differently the same sour flavours register. RAC uses the effect to create cocktails with no added sugar, including a sour take on rum and Coke, or Cuba Libre, and a picante called Not a Picante. The experience, priced at ₹2,500++ includes four cocktails and four small plates, with pairings such as cauli ghee roast and Cajun fried chicken.

While its drinks are a pull itself, RAC makes a strong case for tuning in to the needs of a city.

Address: Roc-A-Coe, No. 11, Khader Nawaz Khan Road, Nungambakkam, Chennai

Phone: +91 89259 77804

Price for two: ₹3,000 + taxes

Timings: noon to 11 pm (Tuesdays to Sunday). Mondays closed