In Delhi, it is notoriously difficult to obtain an alcohol licence and many of the swishest watering holes and nightclubs are in the five-star international hotels - with prices to match. Apart from hotels, the watering holes of Delhi are concentrated around Connaught Place, with various outposts in the more prosperous southern suburbs. Wine in Delhi is very expensive and frequently of indifferent quality - those who wish to drink would be well advised to stick to beer, spirits or cocktails.

Anyone who has been to Delhi returns to tell stories about the Rodeo bar, A-Block, Connaught Circus, because of its Indian waiters dressed as cowboys and mock saddle seats at the bar. Saqi in Hotel Alka and Maikada in Hotel Marina (both G-Block, Connaught Circus) each boast an outside terrace where you can sit with a drink in the cool of the evening. The Maurya Sheraton, Diplomatic Enclave, has a lively bar behind the lobby of the hotel with a Golfing theme and Henri’s at the top of the Meridien Hotel, Windsor Place, offers a fine panorama of the city. The celebrated Cavalry Bar in the Oberoi Maidan Hotel, Civil Lines, is a relic of the Raj and will appeal to those who like bars to be simple yet smart. In Hauz Khas Village, a good location for deer-spotting is the rooftop of Park Baluchi, inside the Deer Park, while Vasant Vihar has TGI Fridays - very popular with hip young Delhiites and Golden Dragon (C-Block, Market).

Bars : Bars Anyone who has been to Delhi returns to tell stories about the Rodeo Bar, A-Block, Connaught Place, because of the mock saddle seats at the bar and its Indian waiters dressed, quite preposterously, as cowboys. The Pegasus Bar, L-Block, Connaught Place, is the most convincing attempt in Delhi to replicate an English pub. The Maurya Sheraton, Diplomatic Enclave, has a lively bar behind the lobby of the hotel, with a golfing theme, while Henri’s at the top of the Meridien Hotel, Windsor Place, offers a fine panorama of the city. The celebrated Cavalry Bar, in the Oberoi Maidan Hotel, Civil Lines, is a relic of the Raj and will appeal to those who like bars to be simple yet smart. Rick’s, situated in the Taj Mahal Hotel, 1 Mansingh Road offers live music. In Defence Colony Market there is a new and deafeningly noisy bar above the restaurant, Gola. Vasant Vihar boasts a TGI Fridays – very popular with hip young Delhiites – and the Golden Dragon, both situated in C-Block, Market. Expresso bars are increasingly popular and can be found in many areas of the city. The Barista chain is the most widely established.

Clubs: Not much of a club scene in Delhi but there are about half a dozen discos that have become regular haunts of local Delhiites. Most are located in the luxury 5***** hotels and many of them operate a couples-only policy as well as a dress code. The most popular are CJ’s at Le Meridien, Windsor Place, while Some Place Else at The Park, 15 Parliament Street, appeals to the local crowd with its English pub-style aspirations. Oasis, at the Hyatt Regency, Bhikaiji Cama Place, is quite lively in a flashy kind of way, and Annabelles, at the Inter-Continental, Barakhamba Avenue, Connaught Place, and Wheels, at the Ambassador, Sujan Singh Park, both have an large regular clientele