- london
Three weeks ago, I had the luck to attend the CLASS Bar Awards in London. Launched in 2003 by CLASS, the magazine of reference of the UK bar industry, the annual event gathers the most prominent figures of the country’s bar scene to celebrate the talents “that set the standard for hospitality and innovation across the UK”. The voting process The CLASS Bar Awards winners are elected either following the industry vote of the CLASS Collective, a group of over 70 industry experts from top bars across the UK, or after analysis of the submitted entries by a panel of
Named after Rome’s main railway station, Bar Termini is an oasis of calm, a little slice of Italy, in London’s ever busy Soho neighborhood. It is both a daytime stop for a coffee – Italian quality coffee – and an evening halt for a nice cocktail pre or after dinner. The bar is rather discreet with its Venetian blinds almost hiding it from passers-by. Inside, the atmosphere is cozy and laid-back with seven small tables and a few seats at the bar. The luggage racks on the brick wall give the atmosphere of a station bar. Vintage style posters on
I couldn’t go to London over Christmas and not visit Coupette. Its head bartender, Franck Dedieu, won the Bacardi Legacy competition in 2015 and is good friends with some of my bartender friends in Geneva. Two good reasons to visit him in his new venue to sample some of his creations! Also, the bar manager, Chris Moore, used to be head bartender at the Savoy’s Beaufort Bar. When I mentioned I wanted to visit Coupette while having drinks at the Beaufort, his former colleagues encouraged me to go. Discreet address for a golden bar Located in Bethnal Green, Coupette is
Imagine entering a whisky shop, perusing at the many bottles of your favourite spirit on the shelves, admiring the old bookcase at the back of the shop and suddenly disappearing from the other customers’ view to end up in a place of wondrous potions (aka cocktails). No, this is not the synopsis of Harry Potter and the Vanishing Liqueur Cabinet (sorry!). It is however what you can expect for real if you wander in London in search of The Vault at Milroy’s of Soho… When I arrived in London for the Christmas holiday, I had a whole list of bars
Sounding like a lock combination, Three Six Six are the magic numbers that will grant you access to two houses of splendid drinks. Three Six Six is indeed the name of not one but two bars established in 2013 by two Mexican brothers, Eduardo and Andres de la Mora, in south west London with locations in Earlsfield (on 366 Garratt Lane, hence the bars’ name) and in Battersea (126 St John’s Hill). I first visited 366 Battersea in March and had wanted to return ever since (for some reason, end of the year tiredness maybe, I told the bartenders I’d
The Zetter Townhouse in Marylebone, just north of Hyde Park’s north eastern corner, is the Zetter Group’s second townhouse after a first address in Clerkenwell. Like the first one, it also has a cocktail lounge: Seymour’s Parlour. The bar Push the front door of the Georgian townhouse located on no 28-30 Seymour Street and you’ll step right into Seymour’s Parlour. It is divided in two parts by the narrow path that leads towards the hotel reception. On your left is your typical parlour, complete with a chimney. On your right is the lounge with the bar. Darkly lit with deep red
On Friday I participated in The Art of Blending, a 1 hour scotch blending masterclass at Chivas Regal’s pop up bar The Blend at the Truman Brewery in London. After quickly sipping a welcome cocktail at the bar, I followed the rest of the participants in the back room, especially designed for classes and private events. After a quick word about the production process of whisky, we were lead through a short tasting of different types of single malts (Speyside, Highland, Lowlands and Islay) and a grain whisky. It was then time for us to play master blenders and make
About a year ago, a bartender friend of mine told me about the European Bartender School, also known as EBS, a group of bartending schools around the world. A few days later it was announced that Marian Beke, at the time bar manager at Nightjar in London, had joined EBS’ education board. That got me thinking and, when my plans to go to New York for a publishing course fell through, I decided to sign up for EBS 4-week international bartender course. After contemplating several destinations, including New York, Sydney and Phuket (I really think EBS should reconsider their name),
London is home to many gin distilleries but only one is located in the City: the well-named City of London Distillery (COLD for short). Opened in December 2012 the distillery has a range of 5 different gins: London Dry, Old Tom, Sloe Gin, as well as the special Christopher Wren Gin and Square Mile Gin. Since October 2015, they’re all bottled into bottles shaped after the dome of the City’s landmark: St Paul’s Cathedral. (Since I visited the distillery a few months before, the bottles you can see on my pictures are in the old shape). The general production reaches
Art and alcohol is a well-known association. The consumption of spirits often provides the inspiration for song lyrics or looses painters’ fingers on the canvas. It is also often depicted or sung about. The Clarendon Cocktail Cellar, housed within the Artist Residence boutique hotel in residential Pimlico, takes a twist on classic cocktails with house-made tinctures and infused spirits and new names inspired by famous works of art. The menu is an assortment of coasters with the cocktail’s name and composition on one side and a reproduction of the corresponding painting on the other side. “A Sunday Afternoon on the
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