Ninetyeight Bar & Lounge

2 Reviews on “Ninetyeight Bar & Lounge”

• Alice Gee

  A very pretty, chilled cocktail bar, with a slightly feminine vibe. Not packed on a Thursday night in Shoreditch, being somewhat hard to find down some delicate spiral stairs. Lots of little adjoining rooms each with different atmosphere, decor and sometimes different music. Music was at a volume where you could still carry a conversation. I loved the little room at the back where all the furniture (Louis XV chairs) was wrapped up in white hospital gauze, Christos style. The room where a walnut grand piano served as a large communal table was quite cool too. Complimentary popcorn was served in dainty china tea cups. Oodles of style. Decor changes frequently, I’m told.My only objection was having to watch an older couple necking passionately at the bar. Given their age, it could have only been adultery. That said, it is a perfect location for a date.

  August 8, 2015, 1:06 am

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• Gingle Lists Everything

  We ended up here the first time by accident. I had secured a free place at a Bombay Sapphire-sponsored event round the corner but by the time we arrived they were full. To make up for this they gave us two tokens and told us we could redeem them at a place called 98 Bar and Lounge around the corner on Curtain Road, for two gin and tonics. So we duly did this, almost missing the awning which is the only sign that this bar exists. It is sub-ground level so you need to keep your eyes peeled, otherwise it is very easy to miss. We went down the little ornate iron staircase (slightly treacherous when wet, or youre drunk, or these two should happen to coincide) and entered. The staff had not yet been made aware of the deal that we were trying to avail ourselves of, and looked a little puzzled when we handed over our tokens, but some phone calls were made and they happily made us the free drink wed been given. The place wasnt busy by any means, it was a Wednesday night I think, but it got busier as other people who had turned up too late to get in at the other place also made their way around. We managed to get a seat on one of the loveseats in the corner to sip our drink. I loved the place. I think it can best be described as fabulous. It is one of the quirkier bars Ive been to. It is simultaneously luxuriously and decadently kitted out, but also kooky and kitsch. There is a grandeur within the ornate furniture, the lampshades of pillowy white feathers, the baby grand piano that makes you feel youve stepped into a rich eccentrics parlour. A viscounts estate with a 20s twist. But the sweets in jars and little rubber ducks that festoon the walls make you also feel like youve stepped into a childs fantasy playroom. Its an odd combination but, to my mind, totally works.We stayed for only one drink, a drink not of 98 Bar and Lounges creation. Therefore I did not feel I had truly experienced what the bar was all about. I could not cross it off the List.But we went back and did sample a 98 Bar and Lounge concoction. It was London Cocktail Week and bars all over London were offering a signature cocktail, or one created especially for the occasion, for 4 to wristband holders. We were such wristband holders, and 98 was one such bar. So we popped in for a drink before we headed to Beard to Tail for our dinner (they are opposite each other). The cocktail on offer was called the Gentlemans Jamjar. It was an apricot-inspired drink, with real chunks of apricot in it, it had a whiskey base I believe and was topped off with nutmeg. That nutmeg made all the difference, elevating it from just a nice fruity cocktail to something different. Really scrummy. And then, a huge bowl of warm, salted popcorn was brought over. Yes, we were eating dinner directly afterwards, but we still polished it off. I thought it was a lovely little extra touch. Normally they dont open on Mondays, but, they told us, they had opened because of Cocktail Week, however, we were the only ones in the entire place! Admittedly, it was early, and I hope that when the Cocktail Week bus made its way to Shoreditch it brought with it some more customers. I do get the feeling that this is one of the lesser known bars in Shoreditch – it certainly doesnt shout out its presence, but it is a gem and I will definitely be going back again. jaminaward.wixsite.com

  October 10, 2014, 4:50 pm

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