Ever thought of a daytime pub crawl?

CHENNAI: It is a very different look that 10 Downing Street wears before the pub opens for lunch. Not only are the bar stools empty, the lights dim and the noise level near zero, the watering hole has an unassuming agarbathi flaming at the entrance, as if to smoke out remains of the previous night’s drunken madness on the dance floor. But the waiters and bartenders are not without an agenda, even as they scamper about preparing for lunch time. “When we started out in 2007, we didn’t have many customers for lunch. But now, people have to make reservations to get a table, especially on weekends,” says J Satya, manager, 10 D. At Bike and Barrel, Residency Towers, the scene is no different and more people have been walking in after the lunch has been priced economically, says its F & B manager Anukam Tiwary.Lunch at a pub is not only a cool thing to do, but is also friendly on the pocket. If a single snack or drink on the a la carte menu at night costs a few hundred rupees at most city pubs, a sizable three-course vegetarian lunch with a drink (a big value add) costs less than `250 and a non vegetarian combo less than `350. Apart from being quick and economical, pub lunches are becoming more popular because of their convenience. “The informality of lunching in a pub is an added advantage,” Tiwary points out. Even the drinks are better at lunches than at night, says Umapathi, a bartender and mixologist at 10 D. “I can take five minutes to make a drink during the day, but at night, I get only three minutes,” he explains, referring to the night time crowds. Apart from student lunch outs and kitty parties, it’s the corporate crowd that likes to have lunch at the bar, says Tiwary. “They can have an informal work conversation over a drink or two here.” Well, who knows, a drink or two is perhaps what it takes to close a deal or two!