The best bars for a date in London

No jokes about that street address, please. What better than a secretive tryst at 'The bar with no name'? 69 Colebrooke Row oozes jazz-age style and the cocktails are seriously impressive, all ingredients to help Cupid strike in this backstreet bar in Angel. 

Name a more romantic dungeon in London. We’ll wait. Gordon’s was established in 1890, but the exposed brickwork, flickering candlelight and fixtures and fittings in the low basement vaults make it feel older still. Drink ports, sherries and Madeiras that fit nicely with the resolutely uncomplicated buffet-style cheeseboards on offer and fall in love (with the bar, at least). 

This is what wine bars should be; candle-lit, extremely cute and so cosy you’d be perfectly happing sleeping there overnight if you were accidently locked in. Opened by Michael Sager of Sager + Wilde in a former stables right by the roundabout in Vicky Park, Bruno boasts big French farmhouse energy. Walls are whitewashed (and lined with wine) and little wooden tables are perfect for a natural wine-powered date.

A gorgeous bar, inside and out, get along to Bloomsbury Club Bar for cosy encounters. Indoors is a plush, wood-clad den with live jazz the backdrop to you putting on the moves. Or take things to the terrace – a twinkly, vine-clad space.

The French are meant to have written the book on love, so how about a trip to Brasserie Zédel's Bar Américain. Prices are reasonable, art deco decor sets a sophisticated tone and a short, simple list of classic cocktails means you can get straight down to business.

London pubs don't get much cosier than the French House. Try and secure the secret corner tucked away at the back of the small Soho room - perfect for a tryst over a couple of glasses of vino.

This hideaway den in Soho is said to stand on the site where infamous 1960s politico John Profumo would bring his date Christine Keeler. Under its current guise as Disrepute, plush, crushed velvet furniture and plenty of booths for slinking into provide the setting for dates with a little less scandal, we hope.

Trying to woo a metalhead? You won't do better than a night in the perfectly divey Blondies. A petite rock'n'roll haven on the Lower Clapton Road, here you can sink house made margaritas while gazing into your lover's eyes and then smooching to the sweet sounds of Thin Lizzy. 

Sometimes, simply batting your eyelashes isn’t enough. Show off your other batting skills at Doodle Bar on one of their many ping pong tables. You can also arm yourself with chalk and take to blackboards that cover the walls. Sketches of love hearts may be a bit keen, though.

Okay, it’s another French bar, but this is a stripped-back hangout with a hip edge, slick service and drinks to add some sparkle to date night. And fancy cocktails paired with croque monsieurs are also a match made in heaven.

Flickering candlelight, steamed-up windows and tiny tables fit for two; date night comes to Dalston. Cocktails here are nothing short of a revelation, and the young crowd are low-key and cool. Three Sheets best suits drinking after dark, but you could just as easily swing by during the day for light, bright cups of coffee.

Not your quintessential romantic bar, this one. It looks every bit a down-and-out dive bar. Inside though, it might be just the thing to impress the discerning hipster in your life. Featuring hip hop on the stereo, a smartly modish setting, vintage French posters on the wall and some of the best cocktails to be found in Bethnal Green’s booze scene.

This sharply turned-out bar is on the first floor of a pub and is dressed as a gorgeous salon of pastel pink and baby blue. Plush, velvet furniture definitely assists those looking to cosy up, while a stylish screen sections off half the room for more intimate gatherings. If the romance proves to be overkill, make a move to the downstairs pub for posh grub and pints instead.

The bright and beautiful Italiano setting up above is a low-pressure hangout where you can enjoy oysters and aperitivi without looking like a try-hard. Should it be going well, take date night downstairs to the moodily lit cocktail lounge and whisky bar below. It's a smouldering spot.

Who doesn't love a cheeky Tiki date? Inject some silliness into your night with piña colada cocktails and a modern take on Polynesian drinking. This Notting Hill favourite has been around since 2003 – a long-term relationship if ever there was one. 

A super-sophisticated basement bar on Throgmorton Street, in the City. DW&P is all about quality over quantity - it's seating only, and we recommend you book. This moody, stylish spot is all about cocktails, but they also serve decent craft beer, Champagne and a short selection of wines from the old world and new.