The bar is known as after 60s photographer Terence Donovan, whose black-and-white pictures adorns the area. The cocktails are impressed by iconic figures linked to Brown’s, from Oscar Wilde to Oliver Reed, and are co-created by powerhouse bartender Salvatore Calabrese (whose personal signature drinks, just like the vanilla- and chilli-spiked Spicy Fifty, are additionally on the listing).
Not Shaken, Not Stirred is the scrumptious love youngster of a martini and an espresso martini – Ciroc vodka redistilled with Lucano espresso cordial, plus espresso caviar. It’s clear and crystalline with a warming, spicy undertone. One other hit, Learn Between the Traces, provides an quaint some buttery, saline oomph with salted-butter-washed Dewar’s whisky.
Lighter cocktails embody the Honey Bear, refreshing and tart with Campari and rhubarb cordial, plus Normandy cider, including fruity funkiness. Non-alcs additionally impress – attempt the spritz-like Virgin Falls, crisp but creamy and spicy.
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Widespread Decency, Covent Backyard
NoMad, London’s subterranean bar – full with its personal entrance – has a pleasingly plush lounge aesthetic, with gentle carpets, well-upholstered chairs and heavy brocade curtains. It’s a comfy setting for an revolutionary menu that showcases completely different seasonal components – typically wacky and at all times scrumptious.
Core components embody cucumber, quince, butternut squash and coconut, every with two completely different drinks, one conventional and the opposite extra boundary-pushing. There’s additionally a listing of premium cocktails made with top-end and classic spirits. Bar snacks are refined but hearty – we tried beneficiant platters of silky charcuterie and rooster croquettes with black garlic aïoli.
Followers of savoury cocktails ought to attempt the Céline Dijon – Michter’s bourbon paired, daringly, with mushroom and pickled mustard broth, amongst different components. It’s seductively earthy, with the umami mushroom softened by the sleek, caramel-toned bourbon. The Sichuan Gibson, a superb twist on the traditional, is a silky, spicy affair, with Sichuan oil including a lip-tingling kick to the drink. We haven’t had a martini fairly prefer it.
If that each one sounds a bit difficult, retreat to calmer waters with the margarita-style Cool as a Cuke (during which fermented cucumber provides cooling notes to tequila), or the intense and fruity Style The Rainbow, with pear, quince and fino sherry playfully served in a flashing disco glass.
Velvet, London SW1
The Corinthia’s opulent new bar, Velvet, is as cosy and lavishly swagged because the identify suggests. Hidden behind thick velvet curtains that give it a secluded really feel, with softly flattering lighting and sofas and chairs in wealthy, jewel-like shades of pink and blue, it’s an intimate, plush showcase for cocktails courtesy of award-winning drinks maestro, Salvatore Calabrese.
Drinks have twin influences – the roaring 20s and trendy mixology – alongside a few of Salvatore’s signature drinks and a pleasingly prolonged martini menu. The latter is well-worth exploring: attempt the savoury Salty Martini with Tanqueray No.10, fino sherry and caper brine, and the unique Sesamini with Nikka Coffey gin washed in sesame oil, crème de banana and dry vermouth – nutty and tropical.
The bar has a profitable means with daring flavours. A truffle sazerac with truffled Remy Martin VSOP and Bulleit Bourbon is masterfully balanced, with simply the correct amount of earthy, umami kick. A Salvatore traditional, the Spicy Fifty, with Stolichnaya Vanilla, elderflower, chilli and lime juice, is delicate and complicated, layered with spicy, floral and citrus notes.
Beaufort Bar at The Savoy
Tucked away deep behind The Savoy, you’ll discover the hidden gem that’s the Beaufort Bar. The vibe inside is darkish and moody with dim lighting, black partitions and opulent gold highlights for an intimate really feel, however there’s additionally a surprisingly trendy DJ and upbeat playlist because the evening goes on. Early within the night you’ll discover a pre-theatre crowd, plus resort company and post-business assembly teams.
Lounge on the comfortable sofas and padded chairs with low tables. Take your decide from the complicated signature cocktails on the menu with lengthy components lists, or the knowledgeable bar employees could make you the classics.
A easy gin bitter has been upgraded to the complicated Seasonal Bitter with a powerful 9 components, together with port, pisco and sloe gin, topped with a pale vanilla foam. For an extended drink, attempt the Good Fortune – a fruity mix of St Germain, grapefruit juice, glowing wine and extra. We had been additionally tempted by the Croissantini, made with ‘croissant vodka’ – followers of a powerful drink ought to give it a attempt. There’s additionally a choice of sustainable cocktails and alcohol-free choices.
It’s price listening to the bar snacks on provide, too: there’s bumps of caviar and platters of oysters for final decadence, but it surely was the plate of moreish sticky gochujang fried rooster topped with pickled ginger that we’d fortunately return to have a second time.
Sweeties, King’s Cross
Step into the Customary resort’s modern pink tablet raise and zoom as much as the tenth ground for this luxe bar that mixes retro interiors with playful, off-beat cocktails and unrivalled views of King’s Cross and St Pancras.
In line with its house, a restored Seventies Brutalist workplace block, Sweeties takes its cue from the identical decade, with opulent interiors together with velvet sofas, mirrored tables, gold accents, wooden panelling and patterned carpets.
The cocktail menu options ‘feel-good components and mood-enhancing mixes’ designed to be energising and uplifting. We’re unsure if we felt these results however regardless the drinks are excellent. Choose Me Up – made with eight adaptogenic (components that assist the physique take care of stress) mushrooms, vodka, rum, caramel and burnt butter drank like an elevated espresso martini, layered and earthy, with rounded depth. Roots Manuva – riesling vermouth, golden beet caramel, turmeric, ginseng, ginger, orange and mead – is vibrant, honeyed and contemporary, with a vegetal edge.
No Whey Jose, blanco tequila with strawberry, pink rice, rose and a salted scorching coconut foam, was the pleasant cocktail equal of a Campino strawberry sweet. Purple Rain – Johnny Walker whisky, amazake, salted plum, cherry bark and blossom wine – was like an additional fruity quaint, bursting with berry flavours, smoky and subtly savoury.
Seed Library, London E1
Ryan Chetiyawardana’s newest enterprise is a slinky consuming den within the basement of the One Hundred Shoreditch resort.
Whereas his flagship bar – Lyaness at Sea Containers in Southbank – showcases a high-concept method to mixology, Seed Library is intentionally extra informal and low key. Stroll-ins are inspired and the area, with its sultry lighting, wood-panelled partitions, pink velvet chairs and heat palette, feels retro and barely louche, but very welcoming.
Anticipate elevated riffs on cocktail classics. Sansho Leaf Martini with Belvedere vodka, Cocchi dry vermouth and inexperienced sansho oil is clear and delicate, and subtly savoury. A Coriander Seed Gimlet is gorgeously executed, clear and citrussy with a spine of light, warming spice. Summer season Whisky Sourz, with Dewar’s 12-year-old scotch, Fierfield Birch botanical Irish whiskey, woodruff, meadowsweet and lemon is complicated and layered, with herbaceous and cereal notes. Galangal Pencillin swaps the standard peated whisky for tequila and mezcal, and provides fragrant galangal for a vibrant, smoky cocktail.
Bar snacks are winningly hearty, and moreish – anticipate the likes of deep-fried rooster hearts, beef brief rib croquettes and potato smileys.
Connaught Bar, The Connaught Resort, Mayfair
Low-lit, slinky, plush luxurious is the secret at this acclaimed resort bar, whose tastefully decadent surrounds – metallic accents, mirrors, a mutedly wealthy palate and loads of seating to sink into – is matched by impeccable, meticulously attentive service and much more spectacular cocktails. So spectacular, actually, that it was voted World’s Finest Bar in 2021.
For those who solely order one drink let it’s the martini – made at a trolley by your desk with theatrical, knowledgeable aplomb (watching them pour the martini in a excessive, silvery stream into your glass is a sight to behold). Tanqueray No Ten is the really useful serve, together with a mix of vermouths and your alternative of home made bitters (starting from tonka bean and lavender to cardamom, on our go to). The tip result’s spot on, silky textured and really beneficiant in dimension – don’t drink one on an empty abdomen.
Dukes Bar, Mayfair
This bar is likely to be world-famous but it surely nonetheless appears like one in every of London’s finest stored secrets and techniques, discreetly tucked away in a quiet Mayfair cul-de-sac. Inside, uncover a lushly outfitted parlour that feels little modified because the resort first opened its doorways in 1908, with vintage portraits on the partitions, plump armchairs, courtly white-jacketed waiters and a comfy wood-panelled bar.
Martinis are the secret right here. Waiters will carry a trolley to your desk stocked with ice-cold bottles of gin, vodka and decanters of vermouth and bitters, and assemble your drink with streamlined effectivity. For those who ever tire of overly elaborate mixology and cocktails then a Dukes Bar martini is a scrumptious palate cleanser: clear, crystalline and, it must be stated, huge – the 2 martini most on the bar is a clever one.
Artesian, The Langham, Marylebone
With its opulent environment – hovering ceilings, baroque chandeliers, a gilded bar and scalloped purple sofas – and equally illustrious heritage (it’s received a number of World’s Finest Bar gongs), this decadent resort bar, minutes from Oxford Circus, is a should go to.
The menu on our final journey paid tribute to retro drinks, with modern, minimalist takes on camp classics. A Woo Woo is a pleasingly silky, gentle affair, with peachy fruitiness and complexity from vermouth and Chivas Regal. The flirty, ditzy cosmopolitan is reimagined as a punchy brief drink, with sultry earthy notes from Cynar, rounded fruitiness and a spicy kick due to rye whisky.
The American Bar at The Savoy, Mayfair
Voted the World’s Finest Bar in 2017 – due to spot-on cocktails and lashings of Artwork Deco glamour, The American Bar’s iconic standing has lengthy been established.
Regardless of its status, it’s not a bar that’s out to intimidate – whereas the modern, Twenties-style cream fittings are sensible, and the useful, white-jacketed waiters impress, the vibe is quietly tasteful, low-slung leather-based chairs are comfy, the tinkle of jazz piano and the sound of cocktail shakers your solely soundtrack for the night.
The most recent cocktail menu, Re:Invented, is self-explanatory, providing sensible and guaranteed spins on traditional drinks. The Hanky Panky Highball, with gin, white rum, candy vermouth, Cynar and tonic, is freshly tart and herbaceous, whereas To the Moon & Again, with Bowmore 15-year-old whisky, oloroso sherry, chilli, inexperienced apple and soda is full-bodied and smoky but lengthy and refreshing – a next-level whisky soda. These prepared to attempt one thing completely different ought to make a beeline for the Savoy Bells, a posh marriage of blanco tequila with white port and a pink wine float that’s shiny with herbaceous agave flavour, silky with a sweetly fruity edge.
The Coral Room, Bloomsbury
This luxe Bloomsbury resort bar, tucked away on a quiet aspect road in a busy space of central London, combines daring interiors with an intriguing wine listing.
Saturated coral partitions, big white murano glass chandeliers and a sweeping, marble-topped artwork deco-style bar, super-sized pot crops in every single place and low, plushly upholstered chairs and sofas set a hanging tone on the bar, matched by an in depth listing of English glowing wines, curated by grasp of wine Anne McHale, with choices by the bottle and a small, ever-changing listing of wines by the glass.
The Zetter Townhouse, Marylebone and Clerkenwell
Each the bars on the branches of this London resort (Wilhelmina’s Lounge in Clerkenwell, Seymour’s Parlour in Marylebone) are harking back to an eccentric Edwardian sitting room – cosy, luxurious consuming den with earthy pink partitions, richly patterned rugs on picket flooring, a profusion of gilt-framed photos and portraits, velvet sofas, carved picket chairs and oriental vases.
Pilgrm, Paddington
A unusual, design-led, 73-bedroom resort with lounge-bar and café that’s introduced a high quality Victorian constructing in London’s Paddington again to life.
This boutique resort on a fairly Victorian terraced road in Paddington has a hidden secret on the prime of its unique mahogany staircase. A retro-chic lounge, scattered with coral and olive velvet chairs, and marble tables, is the proper hideaway for pre-batched cocktails from prime London bars equivalent to Bar Termini and Three Sheets. Doorways open onto a sun-soaked terrace, the place you’ll be able to sit beneath straw parasols and benefit from the bustle of Paddington from a distance.
Lyaness, Sea Containers Resort, Southwark
When drinks maestro Ryan Chetiyawardana’s lavishly garlanded Dandelyan (together with World’s Finest Bar in 2018) closed earlier this yr at Sea Containers London it was swiftly changed by his subsequent incarnation – Lyaness.
The sweeping inexperienced marble bar and modern mid-century aesthetic stays at Lyaness, however this time the color palette is lighter (however nonetheless statement-making), with sky-hued partitions, soft-grey sofas and electric-blue banquettes, plus a number of opulent gold accents.
Whereas Dandelyan’s thematically complicated menus lined matters equivalent to botany, sustainability and agriculture, Lyaness is extra pared again, with a cocktail menu constructed round key components. If this sounds easy then relaxation assured there’s loads of Ryan’s characteristically intricate drinks wizardry happening behind the scenes, with every ‘ingredient’ the top results of varied intelligent processes and strategies.
The Version, Fitzrovia
A slick resort within the coronary heart of Fitzrovia with 173 bedrooms and a classy restaurant, Berners Tavern. There are two bars to select from: The Foyer comes kitted out with a snooker desk and tufted sofas, whereas The Punch Room is an intimate area impressed by Nineteenth-century non-public golf equipment. The signature gin-infused Version home punch is a should.
Fitz’s, Russell Sq.
Authentic stained glass home windows, a glittering disco ball, scalloped velvet sofas and modern art work carry collectively the outdated and new on this luxurious consuming den on the Kimpton Fitzroy London.
Its newest menu, The Principle of Color, is a high-concept affair that explores how colors can affect moods, feelings and selections. The bar has created 14 completely different cocktails impressed by a Seventeenth-century nonetheless life flower portray by Flemish artist Nicolaes van Verendael. On the menu, every drink is matched with a special therapy of the art work, and company are invited to pick out their drink primarily based on which picture is most interesting.
Chrome Yellow is a gorgeously shiny and tropical affair. With clarified banana, Mount Homosexual XO rum, cognac, pimento bitters and a ardour fruit float, it’s impressively balanced, delivering daring flavours whereas remaining gentle and silky. On the extra sultry finish of the spectrum, Rothko’s Abyss options Toki whisky, Mancino rosso amaranto vermouth, espresso beans, vanilla and Campari. Intense and full-bodied, it’s excellent for followers of boulevardiers and negronis.
