Cocktails, good food and a positive atmosphere, all wrapped up inside an attractive venue: Firefly is one of the reasons Balham is gaining a reputation as a provider of good nights out.

The Venue
Small, red and lively, Firefly Balham is located on a rather dark street just after the tube station: look carefully or you’ll miss it.

The bar, located just past the entrance, is small but fierce, able to produce cocktails in minutes. The front of Firefly is furnished with lounge seats with low tables, round stools and one couch taking up an entire wall, whilst at the back there is a small dining area. The walls are made up of bricks and cool prints, warming up the atmosphere. If you so wish, you can drink your cocktail on the few outdoor seats on the pavement outside.

The Atmosphere
Firefly is popular with groups of all sizes, mostly composed of people in their thirties and forties. The bar is conversation prone despite the enjoyable pop music playing in the background throughout the night.

At first sight, Firefly Balham looks to be trying to imitate Central London venues; however, upon closer inspection it’s evident that it just wants to provide the buzz of Zone One combined with the laid back Balham attitude.

The Food
Firefly is mainly a cocktail bar but you can also enjoy a full meal here. They offer meat or vegetable platters to share (£9) and elaborate bar snacks (£4.50) like hummus, roasted vegetable and feta quesadilla, but if real hunger has taken hold have a look at the starters (£4-£9) and mains (£8-£12.50). The Sake cured salmon gravalax, avocado, wasabi aloi, tomato and tortilla salad is a great way to start your meal and the steamed Scottish mussels in white wine and parsley broth is perfect to continue with the marine theme.

Other mains of note are the trio of wild mushroom and butternut squash tagliatelle with lemon cream sauce, red curry with brown rice, or the lighter halloumi salad. If you’re still not tempted, they also provide Sunday Roasts and brunch.

The Drink
Cocktails (£6.50-£7) are the obvious bestseller: you can choose between a long list of classics or Firefly signatures, like Berried Alive (raspberry vodka, passion fruit liqueur, raspberry, blackberry, orange juice). The fairly long wine list is not disappointing either with well described bottles cheaply priced at £13-£25 (small glasses are £4-£6 and large ones £5-£8). A couple of Italian wines steal the scene: the white Pinot Grigio Colpo di Fortuna and the red Syrah Roccalanna Casa Vinicola Botte come straight from Sicily.

If you really can’t do without your fix of beer then you can choose from the uncommon Waisteiner, Thwaites Bomber or Savanna.

The Last Word
If the sophistication of the best Soho venues is what you're looking for, Balham may not live up to your standard. However, if good drinks and food are more important, Firefly provides it in a nice, relaxed atmosphere.

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