Cardamom & pistachio-infused gin, citrus, lavender bitters & saffron garnish
Musaafer's SAAQI bar concept is explicitly Silk Road-inspired — the bar programme draws from all the cultures and trade routes that passed through the subcontinent. Zaffarn 2.0 (the original Zaffarn was a simpler saffron vodka cocktail) uses Farsi for 'saffron' because saffron cultivation in Kashmir has Persian origins — it was brought to the Himalayan foothills by Sufi missionaries from Khorasan. The cardamom-pistachio gin infusion draws on the Persian and Mughal confectionery tradition of combining these two ingredients in sweets, halva, and baklava.
The pistachio infusion adds a subtle nuttiness to the gin — not overtly detectable, but it rounds the botanicals and adds a richness. Use unsalted pistachios to avoid an inadvertently savoury result. Lavender bitters add a Provençal dimension that connects the Persian-Mughal spice tradition to the Mediterranean fragrance trail. Fords Gin's clean, versatile botanical profile makes it ideal for infusions.
Musaafer ('traveller' in Urdu) is the flagship of Houston's Indian fine dining scene, with SAAQI — its dedicated cocktail bar — as one of the most ambitious Indian bar programmes in the United States. Head bartender Bhavna Bhatt has built a menu that treats Indian spirits (Old Monk, Amrut, Paul John), syrups, and infusions as equal partners with global classics. The cocktail menu here is as serious as the kitchen.
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