Market Vibes: The Cocktail Inspired by London’s Food Markets
Grey Goose Vodka | Celeriac | Mandarin | Honey Melon | Sage
Market Vibes cocktail started with a feeling rather than a recipe. Most of our cocktails start somewhere other than behind the bar.
It might be a classic dish, an iconic drink, a moment that stays with you, or simply the challenge of making something work as a drink that hasn’t really been done before.
The inspiration for our signature cocktail “Market Vibes” came from the early morning food markets. Stalls opening, traders shouting out “fresh celery, £1 a batch” and that mix of smells of fresh fruit and vegetables in the air.
We wanted to turn that feeling into a cocktail. And we wanted some of that market experience to stay with you while you drank it.
Building the Glass Before the Drink. How the Market Vibes Cocktail Came Together.
That’s where the oversized, rounded glass came from. Something you could hold almost like picking up a big watermelon.
Then came the drink itself.
Celeriac. Mandarin. Honey Melon. Sage.
The challenge was finding the balance. We wanted the celeriac to give it that fresh, savoury, earthy side without overpowering the drink. Mandarin and melon brought in the fruit, while sage helped connect everything.
Getting it right took weeks of tasting. Some versions worked. Some didn’t.
The Balloon Was Never Part of the Plan
Originally, Market Vibes was supposed to be finished with a helium foam. The idea was to create something light and airy above the drink, helping carry that fresh aroma around the glass.
The problem was consistency. We struggled to get the foam to hold reliably, and supply issues made it difficult to keep using it on a busy menu.
So we went back to the drawing board.
Then our head bartender suggested adding a helium balloon instead. Which at first got some sceptical reactions.
It just sounded fun.
So we tried it.
And immediately it felt right. The oversized glass, the fresh fruit and vegetable flavours, and a gold balloon floating above it. It was playful, slightly ridiculous, and much more Kuch Kuch.
What Happened Next
Then something happened we hadn’t expected.
Sales tripled.
The drink itself hadn’t suddenly changed. What changed was that people noticed it.
The balloon became the most recognisable part of the drink, despite never being in the original concept. It turned Market Vibes into something people pointed at across the bar, photographed, and ordered because they’d seen someone else holding one.
A cocktail can taste incredible and still go unnoticed. Sometimes the thing that makes people reach for it has nothing to do with what’s in the glass.
That’s probably a better reflection of how cocktails really develop. You start with an idea. You try it. Some parts don’t work. You change them. And sometimes the thing someone suggests because “this could be fun” ends up completing the whole drink.
That’s Market Vibes
North End Road Market. Celeriac and melon. Weeks of trial and error. A helium foam that wouldn’t behave.
And a gold balloon that tripled sales.
Market Vibes is on the menu now at Kuch Kuch, St Julian’s, Malta. Come find it.
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