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London has some of the best bars in the world. The capital¡¯s bartenders are increasingly using innovative ingredients, local produce and a sustainable approach when crafting their menus, while the old school hotel haunts are still mixing classics with aplomb. There¡¯s a spate of forward-thinking wine bars showcasing natural wine and craft breweries serving artisan pints. So whether you want a cosy cocktail bar, a progressive wine bar or just an under-the-radar place for a quiet drink, there are plenty of places to raise a glass or two. Here are our favourite bars in London right now, in no particular order.
1. Red Room
Behind a velvet curtain in the depths of The Connaught sits Red Room ¨C a wine bar serving up red-themed artworks, an impressive wine list and inventive cocktails.
Red Room is the first bar to open at The Connaught in over 10 years, a move made even more exciting when you consider that the hotel¡¯s main bar has been named the best bar in Europe twice as well as winning the World¡¯s Best Bar 2021.
Bryan O¡¯Sullivan ¨C whose past projects include The Painter¡¯s Room at Claridge¡¯s and The Berkeley Bar ¨C is the man behind the striking interiors. He aimed to create a space that feels like you¡¯re relaxing in the living room of an art collector; with plump sofas, curved walls and a soft colour palette of pastel pinks, creamy neutrals and greens lending the perfect canvas to the pieces on display.
As for the art, you¡¯ll find an all-female lineup ¨C Louise Bourgeois¡¯ ¡®I Am Rouge¡¯ sits proudly above the marble fireplace, alongside works from Jenny Holzer, Trina McKillen and young Vietnamese artist Ti-a Thuy Nguyen.
DRINKS
Wine, of course, is the focus here, with glasses of some of the world¡¯s best bottles available to try ¨C made easier thanks to a snazzy Coravin system that preserves bottles for longer to allow servings by the glass.
The team knows a thing or two about the tipples on offer, and are more than happy to help navigate the list. This isn¡¯t a place where a glass is plonked in front of you ¨C rather, glasses are decanted and served from custom made marble trolleys.
Six wine-themed cocktails ¨C designed by Director of Mixology Agostino Perrone ¨C serve as an extension of the red-hued works adorning the walls. ¡®White¡¯ ¨C one of Red Room¡¯s signatures ¨C will be a hit with Martini fans, with hints of lemon and a smooth, clean finish. ¡®Rose¡¯ is the bar¡¯s take on a Negroni ¨C mellow, berry-infused vodka replaces the gin and a sprig of Amaranthus sitting neatly inside the ice cube adds a fragrant hit while you sip.
FOOD
It¡¯s not about nibbling on salad leaves while you¡¯re sipping on the strong stuff, which makes Red Room¡¯s menu a delight. Comfort food disguised as elegant bar snacks includes Ratte potatoes smothered in a creamy, truffle mayo, salmon sashimi on top of sticky rice, and tangy, slightly spicy Gochujang chicken oysters we¡¯d happily go back for.
VERDICT
You don¡¯t need to be an art or wine buff to appreciate this stylish space. This is a hidden treasure we highly recommend keeping up your sleeve to impress your most discerning pals. Sarah Allard
Address: Red Room at The Connaught, Carlos Place, London W1K 2AL
Website: the-connaught.co.uk
2. La Goccia, Covent Garden
In the heart of Covent Garden, this cosy drinking den is the latest venture from the Boglione family, founders of Petersham Nurseries. Enter through a red velvet curtain for interiors inspired by the horticulture roots of the family. Francesco Boglione¡¯s art collection of contemporary botanical paintings lines the walls, the sleek bar is made up of hundreds of hand-dipped bronze leaves, and there are dried flower displays and foliage on almost every surface. Take a seat on a leopard-print bar stool with gnarled metal legs inspired by tree branches, or in an alcove lined with velvet sofas and distressed leather chairs.
DRINKS
Printed menus hand-tied with string contain carefully crafted cocktails (alcoholic and non-alcoholic) as well as plenty of wines and beer. It’s the cocktails that steal the show ¡ª ingredients change depending on the season, and the mixologists use lots of fresh spices, fruits and edible flowers. The Apple Star was our favourite: a refreshing, sweet-but-sour short drink containing JJ Whitley Gin, apple cordial, lime and Amaretto. Those with a sweet tooth should order the Dark Chocolate Martini which doubles up as a pudding, a mix of Vestal Vodka, oats, dark chocolate and hazelnut. Or, if you prefer a classic cocktail, chat to the bartender for your favourite tipple.
FOOD
The bar menu is an ode to the adjoining Petersham Nurseries restaurant. There are plenty of Italian small plates using the ingredients sourced from the family farm in East Devon. Make sure to order the coccoli, fluffy balls of dough to dip in taleggio cream or gorgonzola dolce. We also loved La Goccia¡¯s signature fried chicken, served with a dipping pot of creamy lemon sauce.
VERDICT
A great spot to know about in central London where you can slip away from the crowds. Sophie Knight
Address: La Goccia, 1 Floral Street, London WC2E 9FB
Website: lagoccia.co.uk
3. Booking Office 1869, King’s Cross
Now here¡¯s one of London¡¯s truly great spaces. Once the ¨C you¡¯ve guessed it ¨C ticket hall for the original St Pancras train station, this was first unveiled as a bar in 2011, part of Harry Handelsman¡¯s hugely ambitious (and very welcome: it might have been demolished) transformation of George Gilbert Scott¡¯s red-brick Victorian masterpiece into the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel. The gothic revival architecture reels and rolls all around, with cathedral-sized windows, corniced ceilings, brick arches and enough oak panelling to supply a decade of BBC period dramas. But once you¡¯d ogled the surroundings, it never really engaged you as a bar ¨C it felt a little transient, as if trying to be all things to all people. So, a decade after the Booking Office¡¯s rebirth, Handelsman invited French-Mexican designer Hugo Toro to redress the interiors as a Victorian-style Winter Garden. The result is incredibly lush, almost an ecosystem of a space, midway between 19th-century London and tropical Havana, with a little contemporary chutzpah. There are giraffe-high palm trees, banquettes covered in a lovely mottled blue-and-crimson material, a new fabric ceiling, clusters of white 3D-printed lamps blooming like snowdrops and two showcase pendant lights each made of 267 brass leaves. It¡¯s more intimate and glowing than before, more romantic ¨C?perhaps the perfect spot to rendezvous before eloping to Paris on the Eurostar outside ¨C?and has one of the best cocktail lists around.
DRINKS
Cocktails in 2022 are all about the classics ¨C with smart little tweaks, of course, and some theatre. At the Booking Office, which is now one of the best bars in Kings Cross (and there¡¯s stiff competition) that means a pre-mixed House Martini, infused with beeswax and served on ice in its own little pharmacy-like bottle, while Victorian-inspired signature serves include a Victoria Sour (pisco, long pepper spice and plum syrup) and Ol¡¯ Signalman (pecan-infused bourbon, Cocchi Rosa, coconut bitters), the latter finished off tableside by a waiter armed with a little blowtorch. The food has also been wonderfully ramped up, with snacks such as fried chicken served with a yogurt dip, or bresaola and celeriac remoulade or oysters from the raw bar ¨C yes, there¡¯s now a raw bar, what would the Victorians have made of that? ¨C?or make an occasion of it and settle down to the slow-roasted lamb shoulder.
VERDICT?
At last, the Booking Office bar is a destination in its own right. However long you dawdle, you can sit here knowing there¡¯s nothing quite like this anywhere else.
Address: Booking Office 1869, Euston Road, London NW1 2AR?
Website: booking-office.co.uk
4. Le Magritte, The Beaumont, Mayfair
We live in exciting times. And right now, London¡¯s hotel scene is very exciting; in fact, not since the time when the Spice Girls filmed Wannabe at the St Pancras Renaissance have things been this exciting. During and after lockdown, hotels have been dusting off the family heirlooms, playing musical chairs, reshuffling the pack, with Claridge¡¯s digging deep into its basement and opening a new bar; ditto the Connaught. At the Beaumont, famously built in an Art Deco car park and opened in 2014 ¨C though you¡¯d be forgiven for thinking it¡¯s been around since the days when Evelyn Waugh screeched around Mayfair in a Model T Ford ¨C where was once Le Magritte bar is now Gatsby¡¯s Room, where serves are mainly of the infused-leaf variety. So this is a new Magritte, a clubbable, polished nook of a bar with alabaster columns, cherrywood panels and a lovely, leather-edged granite counter, over which bartenders polish glasses and time slows down. Outside is a new terrace overlooking Brown Hart Gardens, while a 1950s painting by the eponymous artist hangs in pride of place ¨C a man in a bowler hat facing backwards with a crescent moon just above him.?
DRINKS
It may be named after the surrealist painter but the mood on the menu is class Twenties cocktails rather than anything avant-garde ¨C no black umbrellas on Pina Coladas here. We suggest you pull up a seat at the bar and order a swift Martinez ¨C made with a vintage-but-new DR Harris pick-me tonic ¨C while you peruse the menu. The menu is by Antonino Lo Iacono, fresh from Mark¡¯s Club, who has plundered the historic cocktail books for serves such as the Bohemian 75, adding absinthe of course, Paper Plane and a Refashioned Old-Fashioned, and adding PX sherry to the usual suspects. Plenty of spirits by the glass, and Guscombe alongside the French sparklers.??
FOOD
Save some space as you¡¯ll doubtless want to carry on to the newly revamped Colony Grill restaurant a few yards through the lobby, but there are excellent oysters on the half shell, along with kale crisps, French toast and bacon, and corndogs with a dash of stout mustard ¨C just the sort of London-New York we appreciate.?
VERDICT
Bond seems to have quite enough places in town suitable for a Vesper Martini, but we think he¡¯d appreciate this one too. Rick Jordan
Address: Le Magritte at The Beaumont, 8 Balderton Street, Brown Hart Gardens, London W1K 6TF
Website: thebeaumont.com
5. The Painter’s Room, Claridge’s, Mayfair
Turn left through the lobby, turn right when you meet the rocking zebra then turn left when you see Kirsten Scott Thomas. The directions will make sense when you visit Claridge¡¯s elegant new drinking den, anyway.? It¡¯s an Art Deco lozenge of a space, carved out between the ballroom and the Talking Heads gallery of portraits (hence Kirsten¡¯s appearance) and means you can now bar-hop your way around the Mayfair hotel, from its original drinking hole to the Fumoir and then here. The Painter’s is a lovely place to while away an hour or so, the pale pink onyx of the counter as luminous as Venus in her scallop shell, with cornetto wall lights and the metal Paris Metro-like skylight above holding an intricately rolled Deco chandelier. It was was designed by Irish-born Bryan O¡¯Sullivan ¨C a name to watch; other commissions include the Berkeley Bar and The Park Hotel in Kenmare, along with new bedrooms upstairs at this hotel ¨C ?who referenced archive photos of a Thirties Claridge¡¯s bar of the same name for inspiration. He collaborated with artist Annie Morris, whose stack sculptures can currently be seen at Yorkshire Sculpture Park but here has doodled animals on the white wall in light grey and created a stained-glass window in wrapping-paper-bright colours. There¡¯s something of the Matisse Chapel about this space, but also something a little Accidentally Wes Anderson (although is anything accidental these days?). Easy to imagine Jean Harlow draped in white mink here, blowing smoke rings from a cigarette holder and waiting for her close-up.???
DRINKS
Brought over by bar staff in blue painters¡¯ smocks, while French electro-pop such as Kid Loco spins on the playlist, the menu is divided into four chapters ¨C Light, Interpretations, Complex and Clean. Clean is zero alcohol, which Gen X-ers may want to totally ignore, while others may be intrigued by the May As Well Be a Negroni,? which conjures a convincing Campari-style bitterness by mixing Aecorn Bitter, rooibos and balsamic vinegar. There¡¯s a lightness of touch, an absence of showy-offness, throughout the menu, which is devised by Nathan McCarley O¡¯Neil, who arrived here via Dandelyan and New York¡¯s Nomad bar ¨C it¡¯s strewn with herbs, elderflower and chamomile, along with French and Italian vermouths and a Proven?al peach liqueur called Rinquinquin, which appears in Homage (on Light), a nicely dry, aperitif-styled drink with Campari, topped with a glug of Billecart-Salmon. Magistretti, from the same page, tastes almost healthy, with tarragon and grapefruit alongside gin and Cocchi. Two real highlights, though, were the twisted Old Fashioned (Interpretations), a gilded variation that draws in brown butter, quince and tonka to a mix of two whiskies, and the fragrant Saint Remy (Complex), a Martini-style serve with quince again, almond blossom and vodka, served with a cherry. Gusborne holds its own amid a French crowd on the sparkling wines list, while cider¡¯s ever-growing sophistication is marked with a hip Derbyshire fermentation from Vicious Circle. ?
FOOD
The short menu of European-inspired bites is devised to match the drinks, from scampi to beetroot tartare. The serrano and cheese croquettes ooze once bitten ¨C best to discreetly wolf them down in one behind a napkin ¨C while the croque monsieur, sprinkled with black truffle, is quite the prettiest croque monsieur we¡¯ve seen, cut in four and resembling a savoury Battenberg Cake. Or retrace your steps and hope for a table at Davies and Brook, Daniel Humm¡¯s humdinger of a Michelin-starred restaurant across the lobby.?
VERDICT
Not avant-garde but perfectly impressionist ¨C this is the prettiest ¡®secret¡¯ bar in Mayfair, one to set alongside other little London gems such as Bar Termini in Soho and The Connaught¡¯s Champagne Bar. Rick Jordan
Address: Claridge’s, Brook Street, London W1K 4HR
Website: claridges.co.uk
6. Cave Cuvee, Bethnal Green?
Brodie Meah and Max Venning are rare examples of restaurateurs who really hit their stride during the pandemic. Before 2020, the story of their mini empire was successful, but following a fairly standard path. The two Mancunians opened Top Cuv¨¦e, a Finsbury Park wine bar, in 2019. When it was forced to close during lockdown, the boys pivoted and took the business online, launching nationwide delivery of their funky, all-natural wine list under the clever moniker Shop Cuv¨¦e. Business boomed, as locked-down would-be boozers tried to recreate the feeling of visiting an east London bar, in their own kitchens. Now, Meah and Venning have opened a Bethnal Green bottle shop – a souped-up offy upstairs selling the brand¡¯s trademark organic drinks, and a tiny, Paris-inspired bar downstairs for sampling wines in-house, with a banging playlist and disco ball.
DRINKS
The team have a rotating selection of bottles open and available to order by the glass – you could scan the QR code to see what¡¯s on the menu when you visit, but we recommend chatting to the staff to get their recommendations, or just placing faith in their exemplary knowledge and letting them bring you a couple of glasses blind. We tried a Pinot Blanc with a hit of green apple and an unusual Pinot Noir from Andreas Bender that was served chilled. Move on to cocktails to round off the evening ¨C the Margarita is glass-clear and silky smooth, while the Old Fashioned is slightly smoky and dangerously drinkable.
FOOD
There¡¯s a short but streamlined menu of snacks -?chunks of squidgy bread smothered in salty butter, melty rillettes de canard, green beans braised in rich tomato sauce and sprinkled with feta, and thick coins of saucisson were the standout orders. The Happy Endings ice cream sandwich was our surprise don¡¯t-miss dish of the night – wrapped in colourful paper, it¡¯s a nostalgic sweet treat that shouldn¡¯t go with alcohol, but really does.
VERDICT
A fun spot, where learning about natural wines is a joy, not a chore. Sarah James
Address: Cave Cuv¨¦e, 250a Bethnal Green Road, London E2 0AA
Website: shopcuvee.com
7. Bar Crispin, Soho
A funky natural-wine bar with a serious snack list in a prime spot in central London
When Dominic Hamdy and Oliver Hiam (also behind Lundenwic on Aldwych) opened Crispin, an all-day eatery serving speciality coffee and pastries from The Dusty Knuckle in the morning and wines and seasonal plates in the evening, it was an instant hit. Then lockdown came, and the team quickly started selling natural wines via the Crispin Wine Club. Now they¡¯ve brought their Spitalfields vibe and knowledge of interesting, fresh and funky bottles from old-world and small indie producers to Kingly Street. Inspired by Eighties Soho, the team collaborated with interior designer Jermaine Gallacher (whose South London studio also encompasses the very hip Lant Street Wine Bar) to shape a distinctly retro space. There’s a chunky silver-zinc bar, jewel-toned triangle mirrors and fun zig-zag designs, plus a chilled playlist from DJs Peaches, Eliza Rose and Flo Dill.
DRINKS
Crispin’s head sommelier Stefano Cazzato (previously at Hakkasan) and in-house wine expert Alex Price (formerly of Annabel¡¯s and Beaverbrook) have curated a list of 150 vintages. Daily wines by the glass are listed on the blackboard, so take a glance at the range of skin contacts, reds, whites and fizz specials, or speak to Alex and see what she recommends. We suggest kicking off with something bubbly ¨C Tillingham Col¡¯19 from East Sussex or a Pet Nat from Pened¨¨s in Spain, both summery and dry ¨C and sample a skin-contact variety, where the grape skin remains in contact with the juice during the maceration period. We liked the Frei K?rper Kultur Weiss 2018, which crosses German and Burgundy varieties for a tropical and zesty mix. If you¡¯ve never tried a chilled red, do so here and ask Alex to pick one that pairs well with the small plates (more on that later). This is a place for natural wine, but they also make a mean Negroni and salty Vesper. Note: Alex will host monthly events at Bar Crispin such as natural-wine tastings and wine-and-food pairings downstairs in the private-dining Green Room.
FOOD
Head chef Brendan Lee, who recently returned to London after stints across the pond at Michelin-starred Al¡¯s Place in San Francisco and Emmer & Rye in Austin, leads the kitchen. He has created an innovative seasonal menu that pairs perfectly with the drinks list. Start with sourdough from Hackney¡¯s E5 Bakehouse smothered in brown butter ¨C it makes an epic combo with thin slices of Trealy Farm Charcuterie coppa. Follow up with creamy burrata and crunchy fennel doused in Chateau La Coste olive oil, anchovy and potato focaccia with a zingy green sauce or fish from The Sea The Sea that comes with brown butter, capers and lemon. Pudding doesn¡¯t seem like an obvious choice, but the black-garlic ice cream with tuile is a surprising hit.
VERDICT
Cool, fresh and a proper place to kick it with some friends over a glass of Pet Nat, delicious snacks and some banging tunes. Katharine Sohn
Address: Bar Crispin, 19 Kingly Street, Carnaby, London W1B 5PY
Website: barcrispin.com
8. Atrium Bar, Nomad London, Covent Garden
A sexy, confident arrival for a show-stopping hit of New York pizzazz
There aren¡¯t that many bars with their own cocktail books. The Savoy has one, of course, written in 1930 and awash with flips and rickeys and slings of all shades; so has the Caf¨¦ Royal, published a few years later and championing novel creations such as the Old Fashioned. But a favourite recent one is The NoMad Cocktail Book, a green-tinged tome written by the hotel group¡¯s bar guru Leo Robitschek. When it opened in 2012, the NoMad New York¡¯s Elephant Bar quickly became one of those era-defining places that everyone wanted to be seen at ¨C had Instagram been the force it is now, the bar¡¯s Dirty Martinis would have gone viral. So there¡¯s been a helluva lot of excitement over the arrival of NoMad London, right opposite the Royal Opera House.
It¡¯s a properly New York-style hotel in the heart of the city, with a sense of theatre, and the bars to match. The pubby, leather-clad Side Hustle has its own street entrance and works as a standalone space for tacos, beers and cocktails that lean heavily into Mexican spirits, just the place for an after-work pick-me-up ¨C or sharing the infamous two-foot-tall punch jars. And drinks are served amid the bookcases of The Library off the lobby. The Atrium bar, though, is tucked away below the spiral staircase, a curvaceous Deco-glam creation with pink tasselled bar stools, which looks out onto the restaurant and its three-storey atrium. Of course, many people will stop by here on their way to their tables, but this is a destination in its own right.
DRINKS
The Atrium¡¯s list has several favourite NoMad cocktails, tried and tested over the years ¨C the Walter Gibson twists the classic with Viognier and pear eau de vie, and pickled vegetables on the side; Hot Lips is a Margarita-style kiss of tequila and mezcal with jalape?o. But there are several classic names here too ¨C that Dirty Martini is a salty kick served from the bottle, with white balsamic and several vermouths in the mix; the Espresso Martini adds whey and aquavit to cold-brew caffeine ¨C and bespoke creations too. We had the tall Dolittle, a fruity summer concoction of vodka and sherry, and the Gentleman¡¯s Exchange, a bold, Manhattan-esque drink with rye, vermouth, Suze and amaro with a Rubik¡¯s Cube-sized hunk of ice, that transported us to Broadway. Look out for the beer cocktails, too, which bar director Pietro Collina ¨C who contributed many recipes to Robitschek¡¯s book ¨C has developed with King¡¯s Cross brewery Two Tribes. The bar works closely with the restaurant over ingredients ¨C partly to avoid food waste, partly for a little synchronicity. Collina says he wants this bar to rock some New York attitude: the sort of place you walk in by yourself, pull up a bar stool and make new friends by the end of the evening.
FOOD
There¡¯s a short bar menu with crispy-skinned fried chicken and pea hummus and flatbreads among other bites, as well as the NoMad hotdog, a wondrous beast in a toasted brioche bun. If you like, you can order anything from the restaurant menu here ¨C diver-scallops bouillabaisse, perhaps, or wild-garlic rigatoni.
VERDICT
When New York NoMad¡¯s bar opened in 2012, London was still playing catch-up with its cocktail scene, but now the two cities are evenly matched. Here¡¯s an evocative snapshot of both worlds. Rick Jordan
Address: Atrium Bar, NoMad London, 28 Bow Street, London WC2E 7AW
Website: thenomadhotel.com
9. Scarfes Bar, Rosewood London, Covent Garden
A smart, seductive and, crucially, cosy draw for the cosmopolitan crowd
Honouring the British political cartoonist Gerald Scarfe, whose designs line the walls and cocktail menu, this central bar is the Rosewood¡¯s bona fide anchor in the city ¨C a reason to visit for those not hunkering down in one of its marble-clad rooms. It’s sexy. Moody Victorian parlour meets gentlemen¡¯s club, with a fresh lacquered lick of modern cool. A dim amber glow envelops dark wood, antique hardbacks and deep velvet chairs, as well as the glamorous, animated guests at the bar, Martini glass in one hand, gesticulating with the other to a jazz soundtrack ¨C just like Scarfe¡¯s own caricatures.
DRINKS
As the meeting point of painting and potions, the cocktail menu riffs on the globally recognised Enneagram personality test, in the form of a moveable board: 18 different drinks have been skilfully created and paired up to match the two poles of each individual¡¯s personality. What may sound complex in fact removes the agony of indecision too often caused by extensive menus. I reluctantly accepted The Individualist character level (self-absorbed, expressive, temperamental ¨C key travel writer credentials), and the Grey Goose with fermented green pepper and hay-vermouth concoction hit the spot, perhaps exposing me further should this taste and character-trait nexus prove legitimate. As with star signs and horoscopes, intrigue always triumphs over suspicion. The reassuring Meditator can look forward to a Copalli rum cocktail with italicus guanabana, matcha and aloe vera, and the workaholic Achiever to Roku with fermented lychee and linden-honey citra hops. Those uneasy with this level of personality scrutiny on a Thursday evening can choose from a compact but comfortingly traditional wine list featuring Burgundys, Malbecs and Riojas, as well as a dizzying array of aperitifs, vodkas, gins and whiskys, all of which flank the glamorously lit bar and confirm Scarfes¡¯ status as a serious drinking hole.
FOOD
Elevated iterations of classic small plates ¨C spicy fried chicken, polenta fritters with caponata topping and avocado and salsa taco bites ¨C position Scarfes as an all-night affair, not simply a pre-dinner warm-up, or a refined ¡®one more drink¡¯ spot. Mop up those Enneagram cocktails with rosemary and Parmesan or tomato and cheese flatbreads which fill the drawing room-style space with irresistibly fragrant wafts of the Mediterranean.
VERDICT
Classic, suave and seriously playful, Scarfes Bar has established itself as a London institution for thirsty, polished punters ¨C better still, despite the convincing gents¡¯ club act, it doesn¡¯t take itself too seriously. Rosalyn Wikeley
Address: Scarfes Bar, Rosewood London, 252 High Holborn, London WC1V 7EN
Website: scarfesbar.com
10. Spiritland, King’s Cross
A super-cool caf¨¦ and bar driving London¡¯s music scene forwards
After years of ambitious regeneration, King¡¯s Cross, and specifically Coal Drops Yard, is London¡¯s buzziest creative hub ¨C work on Google¡¯s HQ is in full swing, and Facebook are said to be eyeing up a nearby plot too. Spiritland captures the zeitgeist perfectly: part of a new breed of ¡®listening caf¨¦s¡¯ (a concept imported from Japan’s jazz kissatens ¨C tea-rooms boasting state-of-the-art audio equipment), it¡¯s raising the bar for London¡¯s most committed music fans. The idea is to put music on a pedestal – to provide a comfortable space for people to listen to top-quality music, without needing to step foot into a sticky-floored super-club. By day, it¡¯s a casual caf¨¦, workspace and recording studio; by night a bar, restaurant and venue for label launches and DJ residencies. You can even take a piece of Spiritland home – vinyl, headphones and audio equipment lining the back of the bar are all up for sale. Each night, a different DJ takes to the decks of its world-class sound system and towering speakers (the whole set-up clocks in at just under half a million pounds), while guests sink into wonderfully retro green felt chairs to enjoy what the bar’s founders describe as a ¡®deep listening experience¡¯. And although things do get darker and louder at night, this is categorically not a club: there¡¯s no dancefloor, and thanks to the table service policy, there¡¯s no jostling for space at the bar either.
DRINKS
Once the daytime flat white and cold-pressed green juice orders subside, a smart after-work clientele sip on creative cocktails like the Red Clay – a long drink of spicy mezcal muddled with cassis, ginger and lime, or the sticky-sweet Man Child made with vodka, Chianti, cherry, vanilla and lemon. There¡¯s a nod to Spiritland¡¯s Japanese heritage with a sizeable sake list, and hipsters are kept happy with craft beers sourced everywhere from Huddersfield to Byron Bay. The wine list is heavily European-focussed, with wines from Slovenia, Hungary and England included ¨C and glasses start at a very affordable ¡ê4.50.
FOOD
By day, freelancers and tech bods are fuelled by millennial-friendly avocado and sourdough, freekeh salads and salt beef miso mustard sandwiches. In the evenings, drinkers graze on small plates of creamy burrata with sorrel and truffle honey, anchovies with lemony butter beans and plates of Italian meats and cheeses served with warm flatbread. For pudding, there¡¯s a deliciously dense chocolate brownie or strawberries with a huge dollop of clotted cream and black pepper syrup.
VERDICT
This may be a happy-making place for music lovers, but you don¡¯t have to be a die-hard audiophile to enjoy it. Come for the food, the drink and the incredibly laid-back, unpretentious vibe; but with one of the world¡¯s best sound systems providing the backing track, you may well discover a newfound appreciation for music. Teddy Wolstenholme
Address: Spiritland, 9-10 Stable Street, King¡¯s Cross, London N1C 4AB
Website: spiritland.com
The best live music bars in London
11. Pamela, Dalston?
Oyster-shucking beach babe in Dalston
For anyone who’s ever dreamed of a bar inspired by Nineties icon Pamela Anderson (we know you’re out there), the wait is over. Launched by a gang of six founders whose combined experience covers some of Dalston’s most infamous after-dark haunts ¨C Alibi, Birthdays, Rita’s ¨C Pamela opened last May and is carving a very specific niche on the upper reaches of Kingsland Road. Yet while the Baywatch star is namechecked on the menu and festooned across the wall, Pamela the bar has its own, easy-going personality thanks to the surf-rock playlists, engaging staff, outdoor seats and recent addition of Decatur’s soul-food kitchen.
DRINKS
The characterful menu showcases the team’s in-house infusions. Negroni fans should try the Mitch Buchannon (¡ê8.50), a blend of mint-tinged brandy, Campari and citrus, while in-the-know locals demand ‘the green one’ ¨C aka the vivid Des Barres (¡ê8.50) ¨C made with jalapeno-spiked vodka, kiwi juice and coconut ice cubes. Elsewhere, picklebacks, snakebite-and-blacks and Pammy limoncellos stand out among more standard choices.
FOOD
Recently graduating from pop-up kitchen to permanent residence, Decatur’s Louisiana-influenced soul food is a major feather in Pamela’s swim cap. The charred okra (¡ê6.50), chicken wings (¡ê7) and hearty, Cajun-spiced crawfish ¨¦touf¨¦e (¡ê12.50) are worthy reasons to stop by ¨C although its must-try signature is undoubtedly the melt-in-the-mouth chargrilled oysters (six for ¡ê12), glistening in garlic butter and fiery Crystal sauce. Ben Olsen
Address: Pamela, 428 Kingsland Road, London E8
Website: pamelabar.com
12. Crossroads, Camden
An innovative, zero-waste drinking den in Camden
As London¡¯s hospitality industry slowed to a stop during lockdown, husband-and-wife team Bart and Monika Miedeksza put their heads together to create something different. Having worked for years at venues such as Dalston¡¯s High Water, Typing Room and Vagabond Wines, the pair wanted to match their experience with a passion for sustainability and community-led initiatives. A few months and a serious refurb project later, the aptly named
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