1 week ago, there began a cocktail revolution behind a tatty, unmarked door in the heart of London's Chinatown, Soho. This revolution is called the Experimental Cocktail Club, bringing its highly successful brand from Paris to London. What's behind this door? Should I open it? Can you open it? All questions that sprang to mind as I stared face to face with this shabby portal.
Pull the door towards you and enter in. You ascend a carpeted staircase and greeted at the top by a plethora of lit candles on the window-sill dripping their artistic wax all down the wall. Open another door and you have arrived. A decadent, sumptuous interior takes you back to vintage days in Paris with touches of other global inspirations, including a gold-laden chinatown tapestry; an homage to its London surroundings. The cielings are mirrored and the room is intimate. Lowly lit with designer small couches and armchairs, all made exclusively for the Experimental Cocktail Club. The music has a vintage feel and there is a real buzz in the air of conversation and joviality. A waiter (dressed in waistcoat, vintage bowtie/tie and arm cuff) will meet you at the door and take you in and treat you like a french king or queen for the rest of the evening. Their passion, knowledge and enthusiasm, for the theatre of this place and the cocktails, is infectious.
The bar has the feeling of a top Hotel bar, ala the Savoy or even like being on a french Orient Express. The cocktail list, while not expansive was created by a top mixologist who was given free reign to create what he wanted. They have the touch of the past with a modern twist. I loved my Old Cuban infused with ginger, lime and champagne - opulent and delicious! They even have spirits from the 60s if you want a truly vintage drink (although these can top £200!). The downstairs is quite "bijou", while upstairs with its carved, one off ceiling has more space to lounge - especially with its designer conversation chairs that create a sense of fun and interaction. The bar upsatairs even has a piano built into it, taking inspiration from a famous french waiter who used to play the piano while mixing cocktails.
While the ambience is clearly one of sophstication, the fun and frivolous spirit is also there to see. General Manager, Vincent, wants the atmosphere to be one of a "jolie mess" - basically a fun craziness. "I want people to come and let their hair down, do crazy things, do what they want; anything goes here." While I'm sure he doesn't mean dancing around on the tables and chanting England football songs, Vincent clearly wants to create a luxe drinking hole where adults can come and play and have fun.
This is mirrored in the opening times, as the Experimental Cocktail Club is open from 6pm-3am Mon-Sat and Vincent assured me that it will be Sundays too soon. You can also come and enjoy a cheese board or charcuterie; so the perfect place to come after work and stay all night! DJs play a lot of the nights and you can expect vintage rock, hip-hop, funk - nothing commercial and probably tracks you would never have heard before. Do make sure you book before you go though as the sofas and designer chairs are a lot more comfortable than the small pouffés or standing.
The Experimental Cocktail Club is a special special place. An opulent, frivolous, sophisticated, playful, french vintage drinking establishment. A place full of dichotomies brilliantly crashing up against one another. This is a must go to bar in Soho and like no other in the area. And don't forget, what goes on behind the unmarked door, stays behind the unmarked door (thus my video review was quite rightly prohibited!) Fantastique!
