In a society where bigger is better and OTT glamour is en vogue, it’s sometimes nice to scale it all back and enjoy pure understated elegance. Step forward the ‘bar with no name’, known only by its address – 69 Colebrooke Row.

The Venue
69 Colebrooke Row is the very definition of ‘blink and you’ll miss it’. Tucked down a quiet street, far from the main hubbub of Islington, you’ll find a simple dark wooden door with a subtle, understated sign simply declaring its name. This isn’t the kind of place you accidentally stumble across – you have to seek it out. Inside, it’s like stepping back to the 1920's prohibition era with an elegant speakeasy style. Make no mistake, this place is small – tiny, in fact – with a diminutive bar and a few wooden tables spanned by a mix of sofa-style seating and red leather-topped chairs, with additional – and popular – high stools at the bar, all finished off nicely with elegant dark wood that covers most of the surfaces. The floor is covered in black and white tiles and a few feature lights hang overhead, although the lighting is usually dimmed and atmospheric. They have, however, managed to somehow squeeze in a piano!

The Atmosphere
First off, if you’re thinking of visiting 69 Colebrooke Row at the weekend then book ahead as the small size of the bar and its sheer popularity mean it fills up quickly and once you’re in, you tend to settle down for the duration. The crowd is laid-back, often as stylish as the bar itself, and this helps to perpetuate the sophisticated ambience of the bar. If you can, book one of the very popular bar stools – they may not be quite as comfortable as the sofa seating but watching the expert barmen working their magic and talking to them about cocktails is worth it. And they are very willing to talk to you about cocktails and answer any of your questions about mixology – these guys really know their stuff. This is a bar that has won – and continues to win – awards for genius mixology, and it’s easy to see why. The bar has also become very well known for its cocktail masterclasses, which show you how to recreate the 69 Colebrooke Row experience in your own home. Although they’re priced at £40, they do also host some free events as well.

The Drink
It may be a well-designed bar with a great atmosphere, but it’s the cocktails that really win 69 Colebrooke Row its five stars. All cocktails are £8.50 and it takes mixology back to basics, where the drinks are immaculately mixed and built around the flavour of the alcohol, instead of hiding it behind lots of syrups and sickly sweet fruit juices. And it’s no wonder, the bar is owned by Tony Conigliaro, who helped to pioneer molecular mixology – he even has his own ‘cocktail lab’ on site. A good example of this principle is the bellini, which is usually available on the menu but the exact ingredients change with the season. The raspberry and rosehip bellini is a summertime drink, which offers a subtle sweetness that highlights the delicate flavour of the good quality prosecco rather than bogging it down with overly sweet syrups. If you want to really experience the expertise of the bar staff then its worth trying their Dirty Martini, comprising olive water, Beefeater gin and Martini extra dry. The perfectly mixed drink, although very alcoholic with a big kick, it is so clean and so perfectly balanced that it slips down easily and really shows what a martini should be. However, the real highlight of the menu is their Bloody Mary, which utilises some unusual ingredients like a horseradish vodka, homemade pepper sauce, pepper distillate, celery salt and lemon juice, taking all the basics of your standard Bloody Mary and raising them a few notches. The result? Probably the best Bloody Mary you’ll have ever tasted.

The Last Word
69 Colebrooke Row takes cocktail bars to the next level – and it does so without a hefty price tag.

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