I had an image of a night spent at Lost Society, sipping cocktails daintily in the opulent, chandelier decked and gold gilt framed interiors of the restaurant bar. Instead, I was lead on a journey through classic cocktails to a decadent 3-course meal, before ending up watching an outrageous cabaret act filled with ukelele smashing, man straddling and drunken burlesque performers. But I'll get to all that later.
The Venue
If a friend suggested spending your Friday evening in a 16th century barn, you'd probably make your excuses and politely decline. However, you'd be missing out. Lost Society has been scrubbed up to now exude opulence and a unique kind of rakish charm. Dine in their stunning red and black Oriental Boudoir or their exuberant Mezzanine overlooking the main bar, before heading to one of their three bars. There's the Gentleman's Library Bar complete with sparkling chandelier and bookcase, the elegant Black and White Bar or their cosy garden bar.
Original beams in The Crystal Ballroom are one of the only hints at Lost Society's past life.
The Ambience and Clientele
On entering Lost Society, we were directed into the Crystal Ballroom where the two amusing chaps and the beautiful hostess, Miss Bounty Hunter, that make up live music cabaret act, Bouncy's Boudoir, were performing. I won't give away all of the details of the raucous show that followed, partly because I wouldn't want to ruin any surprises and partly because we like to keep this PG-rated.
The young and fun clientele of Lost Society mostly lapped up the stunning burlesque performances. However, there were a few raised eyebrows at the more lewd segments of the performance. Prudish, this show is not! You can be sure that with Lost Society's eclectic entertainment policy, their next event will also be equally as fun and ballsy. As the show finished, the music was pumped up to max volume and the dance floor filled.
The venue's Garden Bar is a cosy haven offering a breather from the party atmosphere inside.
The Food and Drinks
Although, they have a small menu of gin cocktails, they were still on to a few winners including the Most Unusual Sour which was a refreshing mix of gin sour with added extra egg white, elderflower and cucumber. Carrying on the sour theme, I also opted for an equally tasty Raspberry Amaretto Sour which had the perfect ratio of sweet to sour.
Lost Society specialises in modern European food and with their innovative spirit, the menu is ever-changing. For starters, I opted for scallops wrapped in prosciutto which were beautifully seared, tender and sweet. Moving on to my main of duck breast with red cabbage and sweet potato which was a lovely combination of flavours and textures arranged rather minimally and artfully on the wooden board. Luckily enough, I still had room to squeeze in a little bit of honey and whisky cake to finish!
Lost Society boasts a small but perfectly formed menu of quirky cocktails.
Summary
With its decadent furnishings, bold entertainment and innovative menus, Lost Society appears to be a bar that's not really 'lost' at all. Instead, it's got a very solid vision of exactly what it is. And, that's one fun-time, slightly cheeky restaurant bar with super friendly staff and great food that I'll definitely be heading back to!
