Euan Ferguson - Drink London (New Edition)

Click on the bar or pub name to go to the entry in the book. To be taken to a map you can click on the postcode with your internet-enabled device.

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What makes a great bar or pub? Personal service, fancy fixtures and furnishings, cutting-edge cocktails? Or a familiar welcome, well-cellared ales, a real fire? Somewhere to set the pulse racing or somewhere quiet to escape to? Theres really no straight answer.

With more than 7,000 licensed premises in London, no ones going to go thirsty, but the choice can be bewildering. Given too that theyre all spread over an area of 600 square miles, it makes the simple act of going for a drink rather complicated. But heres your guide, no matter what the occasion: a date that needs impressing, a party of pals who need entertaining, an out-of-towner who needs a tour of the citys ancient or eccentric watering holes, or simply an afternoon that needs whiling away in peace and quiet. And theres no not bad or itll do from the thousands of contenders in every corner of the capital, these are the 100 best, each one unique, memorable or simply unrivalled at what they do.

Think of this book as a helpful, knowledgeable (and sociable) friend, someone who always knows the perfect setting to answer that age-old question: shall we go for a drink?

London is the undisputed cocktail capital of the world. Its stars behind the bar never stand still, continually innovating and challenging perceptions of what its possible to do with a shelf of spirits, a shaker and a few ice cubes. Places like Worship Street Whistling Shop, 69 Colebrooke Row and Nightjar incorporate all sorts of homemade and high-tech ingredients in their original creations, but its not all about molecular mixology and the appliance of science. Some say the peak of the bartenders skill is the classic cocktail Sazeracs, Manhattans, Daquiris and in London theyre made better than anywhere else. Dont forget either about the many five-star hotel bars in the city. Its a common misconception that you have to be either rich or a guest (or both) to drink in the likes of the Savoy, the Connaught or the Goring, but for the price of a cocktail anyone can be treated like royalty for an hour or so. Its an experience to be tried at least once.

LONDON COCKTAIL CLUB

Drink... in a high-spirited saturnalia of cocktail celebration.

Some bars are about exclusivity, refinement, multisensory creations which push the boundaries of mixology. But not London Cocktail Club. Its a place to simply forget the cruel world outside, letting your hair down and have a whole load of fun.The decors loud, the musics loud, the crowds loud and the cocktails arent shy either. A comprehensive list covers everything from a Cuba Libre to the more out-there Bacon, Egg & Fries Martini: a real liquid lunch. A great place to lose an evening.

ESSENTIAL ORDER The pudding-like Rhubarb and Custard Flip comes with a little tub of Ambrosia.

61 Goodge Street, Fitzrovia, W1T 1TL.

020 7580 1960

www.londoncocktailclub.co.uk

Goodge Street tube. Branches at Shaftesbury Avenue, Shoreditch, Oxford Circus, Covent Garden.

EXPERIMENTAL COCKTAIL CLUB

Drink... vintage spirits that are probably older than you.

Scents of barbecued duck and aniseed turn the heads of Chinatown tourists, but those in the know head straight to a scuffed and anonymous door at No 13a. It leads into one of the most secretive of Londons bars, a dimly lit den of cocktail extravagance. A bit of sweet-talk directed the doormans way is sometimes required if youve not booked, but a treat awaits once inside the drinks are among the most distinguished in the city. Further excitement: theres a cabinet of vintage spirits, including 1950s Martell XO and twentieth-century gins. Experimental Cocktail Club is hard to find, hard to get into, even harder to leave.

ESSENTIAL ORDER A Vintage Purgatory (1951 Old Overholt rye, 1950s Benedictine, 1970s chartreuse).

13a Gerrard Street, Chinatown, W1D 5PS.

www.chinatownecc.com

Piccadilly Circus tube.