Covent Garden Cocktail Club

The original London Cocktail Club has decamped to Fitzrovia, but its sibling continues to preach the gospel in this rather shabby basement off Leicester Square. Kitted out like a neo-Edwardian parlour, this bar’s drinks are much better than the downbeat location might suggest. The menu may advertise a ‘load of old cobblers’, but the result is a parade of well-executed heritage libations & vintage sips along the lines of martinez, old fashioned & Clover Club. Modern London is represented by Dick Bradsell’s espresso martini (£7.50) & bramble, while donkey punch (a Bacardi, pineapple, grenadine & ginger beer mule) is a house special. Inventive, livewire staff will happily design a bespoke drink based on your preferences (a spiced, cloudy apple martini, perhaps), & there are sensibly priced wines & lagers, in case cocktails aren’t your bag.