Turning cocktail-making into a science, the Worship Street Whistling Shop is an underground drinking den evoking the spirit of Victorian gin palaces and, in doing so, they’ve created the sort of clandestine space that wouldn’t look out of place in the next Sherlock Holmes movie.

The Venue
The latest venture from the people behind the highly-rated Marylebone speakeasy Purl, Worship Street Whistling Shop can be identified via its modestly marked door just a couple of minutes from the Queen of Hoxton in the grey area between the City and East London. Navigate your way downwards and you’ll emerge into a fairly spacious cellar, with exposed brickwork, wooden snug-style dividers, a gold embossed metal ceiling and the centrepiece: a Victorian street lantern.

The dimly-lit scene is further illuminated by an ochre glow from candles that are dotted around the space and in one half (there are two interconnected rooms), there’s a kitchen service point visible at the far end, an area with a mad scientist’s laboratory kit for concocting their own liquid alchemy and a private cabin called The Dram, which has frosted windows, a bath tub, hay scattered around underfoot, wooden benches either side and cabinets full of vintage gins for those who book it to get blotto on.

The Atmosphere
Couples gaze into each other’s eyes in the shadowy corners and groups take advantage of the long communal benches and the sturdy Chesterfield couches. New venues often take a little bit of time to get into their stride but there’s a good buzz about this place already, with in-the-know creatives and savvy Londoners all in attendance. Music drifts from the music du jour for this sort of place, retro French accordion sounds, to more contemporary flavours.

The Food
Lunch includes such oddities as mock turtle soup with ‘magic mushrooms’, a dish that another Victorian revivalist Heston Blumenthal has long been an advocate of. Thankfully, for those with delicate constitutions, steaks, fish and chips and pies are also on offer. Several sharing platters are also available, including a smoked meat version which has finely sliced duck, chicken, Monmouthshire ham and a dense cut of pork cheek. A little pile of tart onion and gherkin is paired with it as is toasted sourdough bread and olive oil. At £17.50, it feels a bit overpriced and the delicate meat is a fiddly thing to manoeuvre, especially in the half-light.

The Drink
This is the Worship Street Whistling Stop’s biggest selling point and, if you take your imbibing incredibly seriously, you’ll be in your element. There’s even a glossary – yes, really - at the back of the menu to explain the geeky scientific terminology. Brews like the Radiation Aged cocktail (£12), a powerful mix of Diplomatico rum, Campari, Dubbonnet and Absinthe, is given a unique twist in the form of their in-house chip pan bitters and grenadine syrup. Served straight in a small martini couple this has a lot of complex flavours that complement each other and it grows on you with each sip. Better still is the Panacea (£9), a frothy-topped sour drink containing Compass Box whisky, honey and lavender shrub, lots of lemon juice and a sprinkling of sage.

Not everyone’s on the cocktails here, though, and there’s a cracking best of British angle on the grain – Meantime and Sharp’s– and the grape – Chapel Down and Nyetimber.

The Last Word
Worship Street Whistling Shop is reviving the spirit, ahem, of Victorian times. There’s no denying their commitment to the craft, and for an experience that can’t be found elsewhere, it’s well worth sampling whether you’re a cocktail connoisseur or not.

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