Deck of Secrets' Best London Bars
Pocket Guide to 52 of the Best Cocktail and Champagne Bars in London
Sep 14, 2008
A new London bar for every week of the year? That's what the Deck of Secrets collection of London style bars offers in an oh-so-simple format. Bar Secrets: London is a small flip-top box of 52 cards, each one describing one of the finest bars in London, from the latest Champagne Bar at the Eurostar terminal at St Pancras station, to old favorites like Trader Vic's, and cool and sexy drinking retreats like the Salon Bar at star chef Joel Robuchon's.
Bar Secrets is fun, and definitely has its finger on the best bars in London. You can fit it into your pocket or purse, and it adds a couple of joker cards too. One of these you can scribble your name on, and the other your phone number, and hand it to someone you might meet in a bar. You can tick from a range of options like "List me in your address book under interested" or "Take me to your place". It's an amusing but casual way to pass your details to someone you like the look of.
Each card has a clear map on the back showing where the bar's located, the nearest tube stations, and the bar's website. On the other side is a good-sized photo to help get a feel for the place, the address, phone number, days (but not times) it's open, and a review of about 100 words (the length of the previous paragraph).
Trader Vic's
The review of Trader Vic's, for example, tells you just who Trader Vic was – Victor Bergeron, who claimed to have produced the world's first Mai Tai, the signature drink at this Trader Vic's outpost in the basement of the London Hilton Hotel: "this garishly cool, 70's style retro bar with its high-camp décor is perennially popular with City boys and girls looking for a 'beach bar' atmosphere."
Pick a card, any card, and a random bar crawl across London could be arranged. The Cuckoo Club is "another sexy night time haunt complete with members' policy but open to the public if reservations are made prior to visiting." Useful information.
The deck of cards comes in alphabetical order, making it easy to find the one you want – but harder after a few Mai Tais. It would also help to have an overall map so you can find a nearby bar, one within crawling distance of where you happen to be. But adding a big map defeats the point of having the cards in their cool little flip-top box, and besides, it could add to the fun of finding a bar – or picking one at random and leaping into a taxi, saying "Take me to Harvey Nichols!"
The Fifth Floor Bar at Harvey Nichols is one of the 52 finest London bars rated by Deck of Secrets: "spectacular cocktails...service is impeccable." The Champagne Bar at St Pancras? "The service is charm personified... be prepared to stand at the bar."
Savvy Detail
The reviews are the kind that have the type of savvy detail which lets you know someone's had the difficult task of actually drinking in all these places, rather than doing a quick cut and paste job from the bars' own websites. Fancy a job like that? One of the bonus cards in the Deck of Secrets carries their Frequently Asked Questions, one of which is: "Can I have your job?" The answer?
"Congratulations for asking the most frequently asked question. Check www.deckofsecrets.com to see if we need contributors near you."
Practical Information
The London Bar Secrets guide costs $9.95 and can be ordered online at www.deckofsecrets.com.
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