All posts filed under: London

A Cocktail Party in the City

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What Cocktails in the City, where twenty of London’s most innovative cocktail bars throw a three day cocktail party! Where One Mayfair Experience I’ve heard amazing things about Cocktails in the city from people who went to their summer event last year. From what I’ve gathered, the idea is to round up as many of London’s top cocktail mixologists under one roof so that people like you and me can enjoy maximal amount of cocktails for minimal effort. What’s not to love about that? After a pretty long week at work and a sneaky lunch time google image search of the rather fancy One Mayfair where the event was being held, Joe and I were ready to go. The venue, formerly St Mark’s Church and now a Grade I listed building, was an impressive setting for some of the best cocktail makers in London, including Reverend JW Simpson, The Alchemist and City Social, who were joined this year by some equally innovative bars from Amsterdam and Paris. Split over four floors, the heated and fur …

Rev JW Simpson Spirited Sermons: Best of British Gin

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What A night of gin tasting and cocktail making with Tarquin’s gin of North Cornwall Where Reverend JW Simpson, 32 Goodge Street, W1T 2QJ Experience Tonight was a special night because it was the first time I had seen Sarah (Food for Think leader) since she left us for a much sunnier Australian climate, almost a year and a half ago! And what better way to celebrate her returning exactly the same shade of pale as when she left, than by drinking loads of straight Cornish gin. We got to Rev JW Simpson, a super stylish basement bar on Goodge Street (and one of my favourites), at around 7pm and were greeted by very affable staff who seated us in a cosy corner and walked us through the itinerary for the evening. Southwestern distillery, made famous by Tarquin’s gin and pastis, had pitched up to allow a group of gin enthusiasts to indulge in an array of cocktails, attempt some mixology and learn about the history of what is undoubtedly one of the more intriguing alcohol …

The Art of Japanese Whisky with Suntory Whisky

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What A night of Japanese whisky tasting and ice carving Where The Hollywood Arms in Chelsea Experience  The prospect of trying some Japanese whiskies on top of learning some traditional ice carving skills was too much for me to pass over. What a party trick! I imagined that this would be an absolute game changer for my social life. We turned up at the Hollywood Arms a bit late as I’d had to take Joe to the pub next door for some warm up drinks. He hates whisky so needed a few beers before he could even consider drinking it straight. He was purely in it for the ice carving and, I suspect, has dreams of us going pro. The tasting was held in the upstairs room, where our host was ready and waiting with a couple of high balls and a Power Point. Just my kind of thing. Our charming teacher explained, and demonstrated with pictures, how, in 1923, the founder of the Suntory distillery began his journey to create a Japanese whisky that, …

Diciannove

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What Italian Restaurant and Wine Bar near Blackfriars. Experience Diciannove is an Italian restaurant situated on the ground floor of the Crowne Plaza hotel in Blackfriars. Formerly known as Refetorrio, the restaurant has reopened with a refurb and the addition of a new deli and so I went along to try it out. This was my first time eating around Blackfriars and I have to say that I was slightly dubious about what I could expect from a hotel restaurant. Unsurprisingly, the place has a very international feel and was littered with business suits and hotel guests but we were settled in to our own cosy corner by the lovely waitress and left to look over the extensive all-Italian wine menu. This made us feel right at home. During the evening there is a 3-course menu and our selections included the spaghettini all’ astice (fresh lobster, Pigato thyme and fresh tomato), filatto di manzo (beef fillet, potatoes tortino, sautéed leeks and veal sauce) and mozzarella di bufala (Buffalo mozzarella, roasted balsamic beetroot, mixed leaves and beetroot …

Number 90 Bar & Kitchen Birthday Weekender

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What Number 90 Bar & Kitchen, the stunning canal-side venue in Hackney Wick, is throwing a huge four-day long party from 17th-20th March, to celebrate turning the ripe old age of two. The weekend will feature DJs, bands, performers, live art installations, food stalls and innovative cocktails. Where Number 90 Bar & Kitchen 90 Main Yard Wallis Road HACKNEY WICK E9 5LN Experience I spent two fun-filled years in Hackney Wick so Number 90 Bar & Kitchen features in some great memories sipping beer on the patio, watching boats float down the canal. Number 90 is now two years old – how time flies – so I went down on Thursday to help kick off the birthday celebrations. I was a little early so I popped in to have a look around before my friend arrived. I was very excited to take a sneak peek of the newly refurbished terrace. It has been extended along the canal with wood decking and now houses sun loungers, a DJ booth and its very own outdoor bar. Roll …