Brixton Village #4: The Joint

You sit outside The Joint, because this tiny little BBQ joint cannot hold any more than their kitchen! Tables and chairs are "upcycled" plastic crates and there is space for about...20 people. 

Service is very efficient and very friendly with great advice through the short menu and a smile.

You basically choose whether you want a bun or a wrap, whether you want that stuffed with BBQ pulled pork or BBQ chicken and what slaw you want with that then await your mighty sized order. Starters are available in the form of wings or ribs for voracious appetites. 

Starting with spicy wings, not knowing how filling the main would be, they were deliciously flavoured but not quite crispy as I enjoy. Very nicely sized though (take note Wishbone!) and lucky there was tasty mint infused water though as the chili crept through. Then onto the main event, a tasty brioche type bun stuffed to the gunnels with  pork (why bother with chicken?!) and a fresh coleslaw with crisp lettuce.

It was all delicious, and everyone else around us seemed delighted at finding themselves at The Joint too. I would highly recommend this little place, bravo guys! 

Brixton Village #3: Wishbone and Franco Manca

Wishbone, Brixton

On finding myself in Brixton – quelle surprise! – with 45 mins to eat and get back to The Ritzy and no preference on what type of food, we decided to try Wishbone since we both agreed it was unfair to avoid a restaurant on someone else’s bad review.

We sat just outside and managed to order from the friendly staff just a minute before the kitchen 

Wet wipes (& dirty cutlery)

closed. We were going more for a “snack” so opted to share the Buffalo wings (with blue cheese sauce) and the “spicy hash brown mess”. The cocktails looked tempting – and similar in lay out to Seven just across the way – but we held off with 3 hours of viewing ahead so no comment there. (It did take 10 minutes to get cokes but with apologies).

So the food. The four wings were spicy. Really spicy. Like REALLY painfully spicy. And I like spice. I described the blue cheese sauce – to my cheese loving accomplice – as not for amateurs. He did not believe me and soon declared it “too blue”. The wings were one big leg which you had to stickily, difficultly, messily tear apart into three if you did not want wing over your face. The hash browns were…hash browns, with jalapenos, and spicy sauce. They were spicy. REALLY spicy.

Wings left, hash browns right

To be honest I ate quickly not only to get to the cinema but to get through the pain and mess. They may have wet wipes on the tables but I think, like a lot of the Meat Liquor franchise, this is a bit overdone. I will not return but am not heartbroken either as I have been told local fav “Wings and Tings” is the place to head and with more to explore I will continue my quest!

As an aside, got Franco Manca take-out pizza finally too. Under cooked dough, £1.95 for a scattering a mushrooms (and that is being generous to them) and surly staff. Not sure this is one to hit again but considering the queues may give it ago, perhaps its Northcote Road outlet.

City of London Distillery Bar, Blackfriars: 20/20

Location: 22 - 24 Bride's Lane, London, EC4Y 8DT

Website: www.cityoflondondistillery.com 

Visit: Any evening of the working week

To Note: Definitely a week night place so impress your work mates 

Scores
Ambiance 5/5
Design 5/5
Drinks 5/5
Staff 5/5 

Part of me feels guilty that I have not reviewed COLD (City of London Distillery) before, but the other part is glad I waited to see how it has evolved ; and that is from a large space filled with ex-pub furniture to a home from home.

There is a lot of PR out there about how COLD developed so I will keep it short but Jamie Baxter – previously of Chase Distillery – set up small vodka and gin still in this basement bar with owner Jonathon just a couple of hundred yards from Blackfriars Bridge down a small side street and both distils and offers tours here. And from that has developed COLD bar, taken over by the inimitable London Bar Consultants and sporting 130 gins with various tonics, garnishes and classic cocktails.

But you want to know what you get here. Well dark green walls lend a warm feeling to this bar and although it is a very large space, there are intimate cubbies with couches at the back, large tables suited to groups that the City will inevitably attract and best of all, plenty of seats at the bar. On top of that every time I have walked through the door it has felt like a bar-hug. (Yes, it is becoming difficult to visit without bumping into someone I know!)

The drinks are presented in this lovely menu (see pic!) and break the gins into regional, style but frankly the staff are SO well trained here just ask them, they all have knowledge and different preferences or go for a flight. The cocktails are beautiful and The Ford is still my favourite adapted from the late 1800’s and showing the cocktail pedigree of the team behind the menu – Lewis and Nate.

But if it wasn’t for the fact that COLD bar hugs you, if it wasn’t for the brilliant drinks (and very generous platters of food) I would still come here for the service. The team has been together from the start and it shows. There is great banter, camaraderie and all underlined with total friendliness to customers. Nate often runs classes there and will show various gins against their own gin, Alfie wears a permanent smile and is a sponge for gin knowledge and Leon – just down from Manchester – is another welcome addition to a strong team with several cocktail competition wins already under his belt.

So all that is left to say is, what are you waiting for?! And for once this space is large enough that you do not need to worry about telling your friends, a nice benefit amongst London’s ever increasing tiny basement joints. Oh and if you are looking for a private party venue…look no further. Superb. 

A Trip to Barcelona... Dry Martini and Eclipse (15.5/20)

Dry Martini

Location: Aribau 162, Barcelona 08036

Website: www.javierdelasmuelas.com/eng/dry/barcelona/dry-martini

Visit: Thursday evening

To Note: The restaurant may look quiet but the bar is always buzzing

Scores
Ambiance: 3/5
Design: 5/5
Drinks: 3.5/5
Staff: 4/5

On asking a friend based in Barcelona for recommendations I got a 6 page document and luckily hit upon the Dry Martini bar on a wander home one evening. We looked dubiously through the empty restaurant but on turning the corner we found the bar entrance and pitched up at one end of the long mahogany bar. The walls were lined with old spirits and bottles and there were cabinets like chemistry labs stating “the evolution of the martini”. Staff were pristine in white coats and bow ties.

They do not have a menu, however our charming bar tender simply asked what spirits and flavours we liked, long or short, and got to work. My companion had a long ginger and whisky drink and my gin fizz was fine, a little diluted perhaps. The downside of having no menu = no prices. But we were pleasantly surprised to see the drinks came in at less than €10 each.

The crowd seemed to be a mixture of locals, ex pats and a few tourists but there was a constant hum and overall a bar you could happy wile away a few hours if you are looking for a quieter evening.

Eclipse at W Hotel

Location: Placa de la Rosa del Vents, Barcelona 08039

Website: www.w-barcelona.com/eclipse-bar

Visit: Friday evening

To Note: Get there before 7.30 or book ahead, the evenings kick off about 11pm

Scores
Ambiance: 3/5
Design: 5/5
Drinks: 3.5/5
Staff: 4/5

Set in the windsurf sail styled building at the end of the harbour and up 26 floors, the Eclipse is

accessed by its own lift from the lobby of W Hotel. We arrived at 7pm as it opened so grabbed a window seat and watched over the next hour as the sun set and the view changed till the lights inside reflected attractively on the windows. Eventually we could no longer see the private beach and pool directly below the bar but watched as the lights of Barcelona lit up everything from the Park Guell to the lighthouse, all contained within the mountains.

The crowd had a fair few tourists, this is after all set in a hotel, but also some glamorous locals and most importantly friendly staff who were stopped every few minutes to take photos! Even if you do not get a window seat, others may prefer to take a sofa that runs down the middle to look out over the harbour from a comfier position.

Cocktails were about €12 - €15 as expected in a bar like this, and you have to pay for water too! However I was impressed by my tequila and wasabi creation even though the barman insisted that mine was the passion fruit one. We swapped after he had left. My companion’s drink – with the passion fruit – missed the mark a little tasting sweet and fruity and not much else.

An hour later we headed for dinner (up another tower down the road) but if money was no object I would happily spend an evening in W, especially as I heard the lift hostess answer that things got pretty buzzy around 11pm… 

A trip to Bristol and two gems… Hyde and Co (20/20) and The Woods (19/20)

Let’s start at Hyde and Co, the top of a steep hill for ladies in heels!

Location: 2 The Basement, Berkley Cresecent

Website: www.hydeandcobristol.net

Visit: Various mid-week evenings

To Note: It is “speakeasy” but following the address is easy and buzz to be let in

Scores
Ambiance: 5/5
Design: 5/5
Drinks: 5/5
Staff: 5/5
Extra LBS star: I’ll stick to top marks

The entrance

Now as I was writing up the scores I found I really could not fault this bar. And that is even taking into account how everyone I’d met told me how great the bar scene in Bristol is.

Once inside (a buzzer outside flashes the bar lights so you will not be disturbed once in) the space is nicely designed to feel like you can curl up in a corner for a tete-a-tete or pull up a chair at the bar and enjoy the skills of the bar staff. Lighting is subtle and comfy couches sit alongside low antique tables and large mottled mirrors; You know the style. The music is jazzy 20’s style but I would describe Bristol as “speak easy” by necessity. It is the spaces that offer themselves to this concept rather than bar owners going out to create a speakeasy. If that makes sense…

Spey Honey

The bar manager Mark is an absolute star handling drink orders with panache, never breaking off a conversation and he treated me to a tasty nip of aged Tapasita tequila, friend for life! The menu is intriguing enough to have a read rather than going off-piste and I would seriously recommend the Spey Honey made with Glenrothes whisky and plum liqueur – a favourite ingredient of mine. And whilst Mark makes the drinks the floor staff flit from table to table ensuring you have enough water, drinks and are generally content. Which everyone is.

So, one not to miss and onto…

The Woods

Location: 1 Park Street Avenue

Website: www.thewoodsnbar.co.uk  

Visit: Various mid-week evenings

To Note:  Another steep hill ladies but not so long!

Scores
Ambiance: 4/5
Design: 5/5
Drinks: 5/5
Staff: 5/5

I think if I get to revisit The Woods in summer, this will easily be a 20/20 with a courtyard to enjoy the warmer weather in. As is, this reminds me somewhat of Milk Thistle in Bristol (sister to Hyde&Co) with a grand country house style, dark green walls, the bar on the ground floor and a wooden balcony above overlooking this ground floor room and its walls lined with some interested skulls.  Similarly the seating is either leather couches or pull up a high stool at the bar. (I was also told that this venue really picks up later on with the ground floor packing out for dancing).

Their cocktail menus tend to go walk about so best just to have a chat with the very competent staff, and come armed with sweet/sour, long/short and a base spirit; let them do the rest. And if your base spirit is whisky or bourbon all the better because with over 100 you are spoilt for choice. I tried an oooold Bruichladdich as a special treat then their recommended – current – favourite bourbon, Rock Hill Farm

Staff were very happy to chat between making drinks whilst also being aware of other customers, the music etc, basically a well-run joint. So why the point off? As I mentioned I was not here at the right time, and a group of friends, half of whom were doing shots of Patron Café in the corner, seemed a little odd for a Wednesday 9pm. 

Another one to hit for a boogie once you have had your quiet chat at Hyde & Co.

Overall, Bristol has a lot to offer with Milk Thistle, Goldbrick House and Hausbar all pushing boundaries and great restaurants (try Cherry Duck) helping too

New Bar Opening: Mizuwari, Soho

Location: 16 Old Compton Street, W1D 4TL

Website: www.bincho.co.uk/whisky-joint 

To Visit: Open as restaurant, every day between 5pm and close. No bookings

To Note: Walk past the charcoal grill and its delicious smells towards the back then down the stairs

Mizuwari, which translates as “mixed with water”, has officially opened its doors; or at least the stairs that lead down from the back of Japanese grill restaurant Bincho Yakitori. Situated beside LAB on Old Compton Street, you need to walk to through the restaurant to the stairs to find this “1950’s Japan” inspired whisky joint. The room can hold about 40 people and is kitted out with low wooden tables and stools to match the wooden screens on the walls, set off by large swords as decoration.

This is the work of Suntory, and shows off their three expressions Yamazaki, Hakushu and Hibiki. And this is all they will be serving. But if you think that whisky is not “your thing” think again as their list of cocktails is very impressive from a simple twist of elder-flower and soda to a tea-ceremony type drink with wasabi paste. And if you are whisky-mad and this is your “died and gone to heaven” place, why not consider their bottle keep service? Buy your bottle now and it will be waiting for you with your name on each time you return. Just try not to over-do it with the most expensive option at over £500 a bottle! They also have decanters of water purified to an ancient recipe with high grade Japanese charcoal, the same as used upstairs, to water down some of those high abvs.

So if you are a fan of whisky, if you are a fan of cocktails or even if you are just a fan of some innovative (in London) Japanese cooking don’t forget the newest hidden drinking den. 

(Pictures courtesy of 360 Communications, the brill PR team behind Suntory UK)

No 3 Gin : The Making Of (For Gin Geeks!)

So these are the botanicals for No 3 Gin; the 3 fruits are juniper (ok, its a cone!) grapefruit peel and orange peel then the 3 spices are cardamom, coriander seed and angelica root

They go into the still, like this

The copper helmet gets bolted on

Fred, a one man show, hand crafts the gin, attaching the swans neck here

The condenser 

And all for this...No 3 Gin. The final word in a dry martini.