Punch drunk: An imperial drink revival in London

Gymkhana, which is styled after a 17th-century East Indian punch house, features a list of punches that combine spices with Indian spirits. The Punch Room is an oak-panelled den evocative of a 19th-century private club. There, customers can order punch bowls for 2–8 people, with unique combinations of ingredients such as oak moss syrup, blossom water, jasmine tea and gin.

The return of punch and colonial-style bars is a sign of exhaustion of the overdone 1920s prohibition aesthetic in bars in the past couple of years. ‘The trend with drinks has been ‘looking back to be able to look forward’,’ says Lance Perkins, director of bars at the London Edition Hotel. ‘We felt that it was the right time to look elsewhere, rather than another speakeasy.’

The appeal of punch is precisely its age-old heritage. ‘It has an old-world charm,’ says Perkins. ‘People already understand what a punch is.’

Punch’s comeback signals a nostalgic mood in the food and drink sector. For more, look out for our forthcoming Food Futures report, coming to The Future Laboratory shop in late November.