St Moritz Club hums and rattles in the depths of a Wardour Street basement, a submarine of kitsch beneath Soho's concrete waves.

The Venue
The quasi-famous St Moritz Club has been an underrated Soho venue for years, enticing people through whisperings and word of mouth whilst retaining some sense of aloofness. The club’s doorway cuts into brick beneath its grand badge and the rope and chain outside lend it press. This is no anonymous basement bar. The club below ground combines the exotic with English, distancing itself from the more considered decors of surrounding Soho.

The namesake of the Swiss winter resort, St Moritz Club plays with its holiday ties. The brash lights dazzle against the oaky fixtures, shining beams of leisure and good times. The bar begins at the foot of the stairs, the familiarity of brass bars, and dark, sticky wood compliments the more modern features. Orange and yellows parody the faux exoticism of the St Moritz resort’s own bars and clubs, warming the dark with tubes of neon. There is plenty of seating; a separated section contains runs of tables and chairs giving this subterrane venue a logistical conformity that is perfectly juxtaposed by the dance cave. A canteen for liquid diners.

The dance hall is almost a cave. It is sunk deeper into the walls, with the low ceiling sloping down to the floor at one end, setting the stage for the live bands that line up against it.

The Atmosphere
There is a sense of exclusivity here, without the pretense of a place trying to obtain such status. St Moritz Club is what you know, not who you know. The people are as mixed and diverse as the bar’s own appearance. It’s not all good, however, the clientele are young and it's possible to find yourself suffocated in corners by gaggles of teens, seemingly shipped out to a temporary youth club for the rich.

The bar is all talk, but the dance hall's low ceiling invites the adventurous and tempts the shy. A sensual claustrophobia spreads and squashing and shortness of breath ensues, but the need to explore the dirty dancing reigns you in and the room is a pure velvet underground. The live bands are at the core of this frenzy, heating up the cave. It’s cramped and clingy, but never uncomfortable.

The Music
St Moritz hosts Gaz's Rockin' Blues - London's longest running one nighter and a way to enjoy the musical integrity and diversity that still stands London out as the greatest city in the world. Rock ‘n’ roll, Rockabilly, Calypso, G-Funk, Psycho Billy, Pop, Ska - the list could go on. This club has an enterprising oeuvre of live acts, and continues to entertain and encourage the new.

The Drink
Drinking happens in St Moritz Club. Oh, it definitely goes on, but the age and type of customer means that on top of wine, beer and spirit based fun; the drink most likely to be ordered is by the bottle is Champagne. But it's the St Moritz. They're on holiday!

The Last Word
The St Moritz is rocker – come down and be tempted by its secreted away world of unabashed exoticism.

venue information venue map view london review user reviews (11)