The Old House, Kathmandu’s New Bar Serving Cocktails And Stories

In the heart of Kathmandu’s Durbar Marg — a stretch better known for luxury storefronts and high-end restaurants — The Old House offers something more grounded.  The award-winning duo behind India’s Sidecar, which was ranked on Asia’s 50 Best Bars, Minakshi Singh and Yangdup Lama, bring this international bar. Their latest venture, launched with Nepalese partner Desal Lama, is less about replicating Sidecar’s success and more about creating a distinctly Nepali experience. Call it their love letter to Nepal!

Rooted in the traditional architecture of Kathmandu Valley’s indigenous Newar community, the bar is an homage to asymmetry, woodcraft, and texture. Every corner nods to history: intricately carved timber columns, terracotta tiles resting on wooden joists (dhalin), and a central courtyard water feature that adds to the quiet luxury of the space. Singh describes it as “a bar that breathes,” one that brings the Kathmandu of the 1970s and ’80s back to life through its sensory-rich environment. The interiors have been designed by a group of young Nepali designers, Three Dots. “They got our vision quite well to marry the old and the new and to present it in a contemporary, fun space,” says Singh. There are personal touches like carved masks of the Bhairava deity that Lama commissioned an artist to make. In Bhairava temples, alcohol is part of the offerings made to the deity. “So it seemed rather apt to have the Bhairava masks at the bar,” says Lama. The overall ambience is warm, welcoming, and culturally layered. 

A Love Letter To Nepal

Lama’s move to Nepal for this project is rooted in familiarity. “When Desal Lama (co-founder of The Park, an upmarket retail and F&B space, where The Old House is situated) reached out for a business partnership,” he says, “something about Nepal resonated with me. I’m from Darjeeling, and the culture and language here feel very close to home.” That sense of connection finds its way into the drinks.

The cocktail list is less a menu and more a narrative arc — 12 signature drinks that traverse Nepal’s landscapes and cultural memory. ‘Why? Why? Riffs’ playfully on Wai Wai noodles, Nepal’s pantry staple, while Sinduli Gadhi is a bold, earthy tribute to a folk ballad and a battle where Gorkhas outwitted British troops. Swing to this tune from the ‘70s with vodka, passionfruit, and red bell pepper – shaken and served over ice. Syangja ko Suntal captures the citrus burst of the region’s famed oranges. The gimlet style cocktail is a combination of in-house orange saccharum with Khukri rum (a product of Nepal) and lime, served straight. Jau Jau Jau — smoky, barley-forward, whisky-based — channels the Terai’s grain-laden soul. It’s made with Old Durbar whisky, one of Nepal’s most popular liquors. Then there is Lali Gurans, a gin-based cocktail with in-house rhododendron syrup, an ode to Nepal’s national flower. Even the Bhadgaule Topi, a black cap symbolic of national pride, finds form as a cocktail.

What sets these drinks apart isn’t just the use of local ingredients like Himalayan juniper or sea buckthorn from Mustang, it’s the careful way each one evokes a memory, or is a nod to a region. Typical of Lama’s style, every ingredient has provenance. Every garnish tells a story. “The mountains are calling and I must go,” – John Muir, is the inspiration for the Mountain Martini, a twist on the classic martini made with gin, Himalayan juniper vermouth, and timber tincture.

The Nepali Palate

Food here is no afterthought. The menu conceptualised by Dhendup Lama (Yangdup’s younger brother) leans meat-heavy, true to Kathmandu’s palate, and is designed to complement the cocktails rather than compete. Expect Sekuwa, smoky, charred barbecue but with modern plating, and Momocha, a richer, meatier spin on the familiar dumpling, served with a spicy peanut sauce. It’s flavour-forward and conversation-worthy, encouraging you to learn something new about Nepali food and culture with every bite. 

There is also a lot of western food on the menu as the bar is targeting a well-travelled audience, so expect Pan-Seared Tofu, Mushroom Vol-Au-Vent, and Baked Wonton Cups, Couscous, Risotto, along with rainbow trout fillet and grilled pork chops. “The clientele we are hoping to get is someone who is curious and open to new taste profiles and experimenting,” says Singh. “We are also looking at a new age kind of storytelling where we hero the local ingredients in a contemporary setting.” “The youngsters, too, understand and appreciate it,” she adds.

A Nod To Legacy

There used to be a restaurant called The Old House that Desal Lama owned for eight years before shutting it down and redeveloping the space into The Park, a retail and F&B hub. But the restaurant had its goodwill, and since the bar was coming up on the same spot, Minakshi and Yangdup decided to retain the name. There are artworks from the original restaurant gracing the bar.

However, the new Old House is a far cry from the old Old House, for it is much more than a bar. It’s a conversation between past and present, cocktails and design. And in that dialogue, it carves out something Kathmandu hasn’t quite seen before.