This tiny cocktail bar has a motto, which actually reads more like admissions criteria: “Great Cocktails, No Wallies.” As a Time Out reader, you’ll obviously pass the test – which just as well, considering they can only squeeze around 50 people into the place at any given time and it’s standing-room only. As a result, you’d best advised to book (well) ahead. Even then, you’ll need to be eagle-eyed to spot the flight of stairs, just off Hoxton Square, that leads to the subterranean spot. Once you’ve managed to bag a seat, you’ll be rewarded with world-class cocktails in a refreshingly no-frills environment of exposed brickwork and tastefully muted colours. Great cocktails, no messin’, you might say.
Order this:
When so many cocktail bars in and around Shoreditch are focused on passing trade rather than regulars in the know, sensational mixes such as the super-sharp Pisco Highball really cut through the noise.
What’s nearby?
You’re less than 10 minutes away from the Kingsland Road Vietnamese restaurant scene, so for a low-key, high-quality night, head to Time Out faves Sông Quê or Viet Grill before a Happiness Forgets cocktail (or three) to cap it off.
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