The Balcony at The Hippodrome

Night owls might take a gamble on the stand-alone Tom Dixon-designed cocktail bar in what was once the dress circle at The Hippodrome theatre, since drinks are served here 24/7 (apart from Christmas Day). An £8.50 punt on a Rat Pack Manhattan, tiki bar margarita or Queen’s Jubilee sangria pays off, and the cocktail list has ambitions –with a sprinkle of Tony Conigliaro magic planned. All-day eats include croques, club sandwiches, hot dogs, steamed Asian dumplings (good), a trio of beef sliders (average) and £7.50 dinky Scotch eggs (more like rubber balls) The whole package comes with funky disco beats, great people-watching, a cloistered outdoor smoking terrace and – this being a mini-Vegas – countless ways to blow a wad apart from Cuban cigars, Glenfiddich 30-year-old (£40), 2002 Cristal (£840) and Beluga caviar (£500 per 50g serving).