The Cocktail Trading Co. | Shoreditch — Restaurant in London

It seems London's been having a love affair with anything that's not at street level - from the likes of The Shard, Sky Garden and Tower 42 towering above the city to places like WC, a wine and cheese bar that's popped up in former facilities underground. Whilst this is nothing new, I think a few places are stepping up their game. Take The Cocktail Trading Co, for example. A downstairs speakeasy, yes. Like all the others out there? No.

We stepped inside on a Wednesday night with an hour to kill before a dinner reservation (that's another story). Most of the tables were already busy save for a spare couple that were booked out - but the friendly waiter said we were free to perch until their real owners arrived and happily for us, they never did. This gave us the perfect opportunity to check out the decadent decor - framed caricatures of familiar faces along one wall, a curio of objects along the other and an upright piano by the bar for those who fancy tickling the ivories.

Turning our thoughts to the booze, we were quick to choose. I went for the Urn-aged Corpse Reviver No 2 which came served on a grassy tray complete with grabbing zombie hands and a thirst for more. Mixing Egyptian embalming gin, fortified honey wine, mandarin liqueur, lemon juice and absinthe this was a dream - not too fruity, not too sweet, not too sour but with enough depth, smokiness and warmth to have me hoping for a refill.

S went for the No 42 (also called the Welcome to Kentucky, have a nice day) which blows any previous efforts at presentation straight out of the water. A Chinese takeaway box is filled to the brim with Jim Beam, ginger and plum infusion, yuzu juice and matcha tea then topped with crunchy noodle bites and edible flowers. This is cocktail genius - and well suited to the bar's self-proclaimed productivity.

The waiters were not only attentive but genuinely some of the friendliest I've ever been served by - a real testament to a bar that's smack bang in the middle of the most stressful shopping streets in London.

We would gladly have stayed for more (especially as the drinks are an unbelievable £9 each) but had to move on to catch dinner, but we'll...

Speakeasy bar full of…kids? My longtime favourite place for cocktails! The staff is very friendly, the Cocktails are impeccable, lovely atmosphere. Until my last visit though. It was quite odd to come enjoy cozy drink, get loosen up, unwind from all the life troubles to my fav place and find myself sitting surrounded by children of all ages. Especially I liked the moment some kid started to use his flash light directed in visitors face’s because “it’s soooo dark here!!” This looks lace is so great it deserves to thrive! And I think it comes with protecting its ambience and atmosphere. Btw, I love kids and all, but there’s time and place for that. Also, I’d recommend to configure lights in a way people don’t use bloody flashlights 🙏 or maybe give people who can’t see help with menu?

Cheers, Yours truly

UPD: Wow! Such a looong reply back from the owner! As for 3* stars, that’s honest, right? My experience of 70 pounds bill was “unruly little ones” and flashlights in my face. And it’s a bit sad that you say “it’s out of our control”. It shouldn’t be like that when owning a place, you guys can manage most of things that come your way. Parents can be asked to calm the kids down (if you don’t want to say “we are 18+ place sorry folks”) and flashlights can be solved by more candles etc. So yes, thriving is about getting responsibility and not just caring about average...

This could well be my new favourite spot in Shoreditch! From the fabulous flintlock pistols on the door, to the bowler hat-wearing T-Rex skull on the bar, this place packs a ton of old world charm into a small space. My partner and I enjoyed a lovely early evening here, trying numerous options off the menu as well as a few off-menu requests, all of which were brilliant. After a recent trip to New Orleans we were keen for some classic hurricane cocktails, which the bartenders whipped up in authentic style, just one sip transporting us right back to the Mississippi! Seriously, they were as good as the best Louisiana can offer.

In fact, we loved the bar so much that we returned later in the evening with friends for another round.

The cocktails on the menu all have really creative presentations; clearly the staff take great pride in their art and it’s just such a pleasure to find a place like this where so much love and attention goes into the drinks. One of the cocktails even came in a cardboard Chinese takeout carton, topped with crispy noodles. When the staff are having so much fun with the drinks, how can you not have fun as a punter?

We go to Shoreditch fairly often and from now on I suspect we will always be stopping in here.

Oh and I love the Chemical Brothers reference on the...