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Mark Moxon's Travel Writing

India: Beer, What Beer?

The view south along the cliff at Varkala
The cliff-top at Varkala is a prefect spot for a beer... but watch out for the cops

Not every restaurant in Varkala has a licence to sell alcohol, but that doesn't seem to discourage them from doing so, and it's one of Varkala's more amusing traits. 'We also have beer, yes,' is a common enough introduction to the menu, at least at those restaurants whose menus completely fail to mention alcohol. At restaurants such as this, the waiter is only too happy to bring you a bottle of slightly chilled Kingfisher, though depending on how jittery the restaurant owner is feeling, it might either be served in a glass, or if there's been some recent interest from the authorities in the illicit selling of alcohol, you might get a large ceramic mug with a big handle that's large enough to hold half a bottle and a generous head.