Wednesday 12 August 2015 12:15 am

The Botanist Broadgate Circle has much to offer, day or night

Broadgate is getting a makeover with new offices that meet the demands of today's businesses and, at the hub of the development, its open spaces are being revitalised too. The Broadgate Circle, already famous as the City's winter ice skating hub, has been reshaped with more space and more room for bars, restaurants and shops.

Among the new arrivals is The Botanist. Much more than your usual, this cool new venue serves all day from cooked breakfasts and coffee through lunch, to a long cool glass of Symonds Founder’s Reserve cider after work, dinner and even a cocktail or two as you dance the evening away.

The Botanist knows its eggs (Source: The Botanist)

The menus cover breakfast, a “bottomless” brunch and an a la carte mix including fish, steaks and even a water buffalo burger.

Delivered by the team behind the successful Botanist in Sloane Square, this City addition has a look all of its own – much more timber panelling than the Art Deco chrome of its Sloaney sibling.

Not that The Botanist’s interior is in any way conservative. Whether you are eating or not, there's a feast for the eyes in the form of all manner of taxidermy. Above the bar hangs a stuffed crocodile, while a lifelike swan appears to be coming into land on the stairs to the basement Soda Room.

Elsewhere, stuffed fish and mounted butterflies adorn the walls, in their glass cases. Teamed with the dark wood around the main bar are gleaming copper tanks containing lager, while shiny pipes appear to be arriving from all points, delivering refreshing drafts.

When the sun comes out, get there early for a seat outside, overlooking the improved Broadgate Circle – a great place for people watching and enjoying a glass of Symonds Founder’s Reserve cider.

And if you’re running early for the late train home from Liverpool Street, The Botanist is simply the best place near the station to pass the time.

If you’ve missed that train, then the Soda Room beckons with cocktails and dancing until 2am, before setting off to find a taxi home. Open from Wednesday to Sunday, it is available for private parties earlier in the week, a role in which it’s sure to find plenty of takers.

Still enjoying the novelty that comes from a recent opening, The Botanist is sure to become a regular haunt for those that work around Broadgate, or seek a break on their journey home.

In the area

(Source: Jugged Hare)

Jugged Hare, EC1Y 9NS

Traditional style pub opposite the Barbican cinema, a historic counterpoint to its modern surroundings. An open kitchen lets customers see the chefs at work.