London Cocktail Club

Blown from roughly the same mould as LCC on Goodge Street, this allcomers’ ‘club’/dive bar sports lurid tattoo art, a nu-Edwardian back bar, & potable mixes such as Nelson’s blood, grog pot or el Drake (a rum, lime & cachaça julep). Generously poured cocktails (some in enamelled tin mugs) average £8 for the likes of ‘hello treacle’ (whisky, ginger wine, golden syrup, bitters & lemon) & ‘stone fruit sour’. Purists may pinpoint a need for some fine-tuning, while others will dismiss any shortcomings as typical of the genial owner’s laid-back approach & embrace the place for what it is – a fun port of call in an area not over-blessed with gin joints capable of knocking out a terrific Earl Grey ‘marteani’. Canapés & more substantial bar food provide the ballast for a boisterous crowd clamouring over an ear-splitting rock soundtrack.