As the ropeway cars drift like glowing lanterns towards the Karni Mata temple, the City Palace glows with an intensity that only proximity can provide. This is the nightly theatre at Dore. While most Udaipur establishments compete for a slice of the waterfront, this newest cocktail bar housed within the design-forward Manuscript Hotel offers a rare front-row seat to the city's living heritage, along with the timeless backdrop of the Aravali Hills. “The bar’s name, meaning ‘thread,’ reflects the idea of connection – between past and present, story and flavour,” explains founder Pranav Sharma. Sharma has teamed up with Sagar Neve, the brain behind path-breaking F&B concepts like Ekaa, Bombay Daak, and KMC, to create a space where the narrative is as potent as the pour. Together, their focus is to let Rajasthan speak for itself, one glass at a time.
The Drinks
The cocktail programme at Dore deliberately moves away from the usual tropes of royalty and grandeur often associated with Rajasthan. Instead, each of the 20 cocktails acts as a map of the region, distilling indigenous ingredients and forgotten techniques into the glass. Take the cocktail Haldighati, which uses a gin base and a house-made hydrosol of chaitri roses from Khamnor village. Combined with vetiver, it’s a crisp drink that smells exactly like fresh roses and earth. The Peepli Bioscope is a sharp, refreshing highball that leans on the pungent notes of Shekhawati hing (asafoetida) and fennel seeds from Barmer — a combination that I found startling, but addictive. Perhaps the most inventive is the Ode to Camel, where Bourbon is infused with sangri (desert beans), to create a complex, nutty profile that lingers on the palate. My personal favourite? A sharp agave cocktail where local mathania chillies cleverly balance the spirit's caramel notes. Tangy and bright, it's a cocktail that you'll find going down a lot faster than you might have otherwise intended.
The storytelling doesn't stop at the drinks; it further extends to the presentation. The bar has collaborated with local artisans to ensure the presentation is as storied as the spirits. Some drinks arrive in hand-painted terracotta glasses, while others are housed in vibrant, lacquered vessels — each a bespoke creation by a local artist. The most nostalgic of these is a hand-cranked bioscope created by Lalit Soni, a fourth-generation miniature artist. As you sip, you wind through a series of tiny, hand-painted scenes from life in Rajasthan. The menu itself is a tactile introduction to the region, designed by book-binding artist Aditi Babel with a series of intricate, unfolding flaps that reveal the drinks with beautiful illustrations.
The Food
The food menu reimagines Rajasthan’s punchiest favourites as refined bar bites. You’ll find crispy fried okra, mirchi bada, and rajma galouti, alongside more substantial dishes like sev tamatar sabji served with buttery pav. For those looking for bolder game flavours, the tandoori-style bater (quail) and the kharghostkeema (yes, rabbit-meat keema) served with toasted buns are standout nods to the region’s hunting heritage. The kitchen also gets playful with local staples: The famous kachori is reinvented with a keema stuffing, and sangri with makka roti is cleverly repurposed into miniature tacos. There is also a baby kulcha. Pull it apart, and gooey truffle-scented cheese oozes seductively from its centre. But what I found most endearing is the lack of restraint shown by the kitchen. In an era of microscopic bar snacks, Dore offers proper sustenance sparing you that desperate midnight search for a snack once the tab is settled.
RR Verdict
The true draw of Dore is its restraint. While Udaipur often leans into the theatrical, Dore possesses a quiet, self-contained elegance. The lighting is seductive, the noise level is less throttling, and the waiters don’t act like helicopters at the table. Instead, they show up, smiles in place, only as and when necessary. So come early, grab a seat at the marble-topped table and watch the City Palace blush pink in the winter dusk, one sharp, salt-rimmed sip at a time.