GOING OUT
The Hawksmoor empire has opened their third and beefiest establishment in Guildhall and its separate 50-seater bar helps reinforce the group’s penchant for cocktails as well as steak.
Pall Mall just got a bit posher with the addition of The Balcon and its new St James’s Bar. Drawing inspiration from Coco Chanel’s 1920s Paris apartment it features a gold studded ceiling, shagreen topped tables, mahogany leather, blue mohair banquettes and an amethyst-topped bar. It’s eponymous champagne balcony overlooks the brasserie, framed by two spiral staircases and is complemented by a “Champagne Angel”, to offer you sparkling advice on its extensive range of fizz.
Just down the road Rockwell at the Trafalgar Hotel has celebrated its tenth birthday with a makeover and a sleek, understated new design featuring dark woods, soft lighting and black velvet chairs. Its menu has also undergone a nip and tuck and features health conscious cocktails that are categorised by calorie-content, ranging from the most abstemious (low-calorie, non-alcoholic) “Saintly” to the most indulgent (but still nutritious) “Wickedly Good”.
A discreet new bar is set to subtly take Soho by storm in a growingly trendy area near Bocca di Lupo and Spuntino. The Archer Street Bar is set over two floors of shabby chic, distressed elegance and offers a cocktail bar and lounge environment with unique live entertainment. Talented bar staff break into song and dance throughout the evening but what could be gimmicky instead adds to the exuberant atmosphere of this high-end but laid-back establishment which also brings the first Billecart-Salmon Champagne bar to London. They mix serious cocktails too and the downstairs booths and alcoves make this an ideal new place for groups to party till late.
Finally, a shiny new lounge bar, Palm Beach Bar & Kitchen has recently launched on Berkeley Street and as well as offering a smoking terrace and DJs Thursdays and Fridays, and most importantly, it’s open 24/7, and licensed until 5am.
Tim Badham is the founder of Innerplace, London’s leading entertainment concierge, experts in access to exclusive members clubs, bars, restaurants and VIP events. www.innerplace.co.uk. @InnerplaceLDN