Behind an anonymous, distressed door, lurking deep among Chinatown’s wonky wonton dens, lies a cool new speakeasy. For cookies fortunate enough to ascend its steep stairs, 2011 will be an auspicious year. Sweet or sour, drinks impress at the Experimental Cocktail Club. With a trio of quoted Parisian liquid lounges that includes Prescription in St. Germain to their credit, ECC’s owners decided to play les rosbifs at their own game: head honcho Pierre-Charles confiding in me, in a moment of uncharacteristically Gallic modesty, that London’s cocktail culture is streets ahead of the Parisian competition. Really? What rarified quaffs ECC’s friendly froggie ‘tenders pour would be perles before cochons in the majority of this city’s drinking troughs. House ‘experiments’, such as Autumn in Normandy (Dupont VSOP Calvados, cinnamon syrup, lemon juice and dry cider) and the twisted Sazerac-esque Ragtime, are blue chip investment at £10. So too, recipes accredited to hip North American bars. Try East Village New York hot spot Mayuhel’s tequila, mezcal, sherry and chilli blast ,Stone Raft, or order Havana: a sexy, smoky, cigar-infused bourbon deep throat thrill courtesy of Vancouver’s l’Abattoir, it's the ultimate way to get elegantly slaughtered at this art-deco-inspired, six-til-late-late duplex with its ambience feutrée and unpretentious boho early-adopters. We’re talking Milk and Honey minus the membership fee. ‘Vive la France!’ 13 A Gerrard St W1 7434 3559
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