Bermondsey Arts Club

9 Reviews on “Bermondsey Arts Club”

• Dave Mason

  BAC is amazing! Great cocktails. Great ambiance. If you’re a negroni fan, be sure and try their barrel aged old negroni.It’s got a classy meets underground/local vibe. It’s a great place for a date or party or just a cocktail after work. I would definitely recommend checking it out.

  May 28, 2015, 7:43 am

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• Little Brown Book

  Bermondsey Arts Club, and by far one of my favourite finds in London of late. Think underground art deco, jazzy tunes and spectacular cocktails.Thanks once again to Matt for opening my eyes to this wonderment. Our first little jaunt presented us with the exciting opportunity to taste the winter cocktail menu. (I say ‘first’ because we went back within a week since it was THAT good)!Remember that this iron ex-public toilety entrance on Tower Bridge Road is exactly what to keep your eyes peeled for but then your lips sealed. BAC is a great secret to have under your belt!Let me first introduce you to the Hit and Mist – whisky bitters, treacle syrup, and an appley hickory smoke presented in a magical steamy jar.Three Wise was a combination of port, gin, sugar and (drumroll) gold/ frankincense/ myrrh bitters, served in a sake box with extra smokey whisps.It’s not all about the show however (although that is undeniably excellent). Each of the magical mixers at the bar (Adam, Milo and Jake) have hand crafted each of their cocktails with a personality and twist that shows both in the taste and the presentation.Levels. It’s all about the levels! Milo’s combination of fashion and cocktail arrived in the form of his Coupe des Garcons, wrapped in a black tie napkin jacket with a distinctly Comme de Garcon scent. Funny that, since he’d added a spritz of the cologne to the napkin, so when you sip the Calvados, Ramazzotti, Port and Peychauds bitters, it all swirls together in a fascinatingly subtle combination. you’ve really got to try it yourself!Another mind boggling combination, this time from Adam was the inspired Phra Phum which combined House Thai Gin (a crazy mix of ginger, chilli, garlic and spring onion), lemon, sugar, egg white and house soy bitters. Put that in your pipe and smoke it! I guess liquid stir fry doesn’t sound all that appealing but I was on it like a gin and tonic!With all the fabulously imaginative cocktails priced below 10, live jazz nights on a Wednesday and three delightful barmen making equally delightful concoctions, you’re onto a winner if you pull up a seat at the bar at Bermondsey Arts Club. (Come and say hi, there’s a strong chance I’ll be there)! littlebrownbooks.blogspot.com

  April 30, 2015, 4:55 pm

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• Anuradha Bhatnagar

  fantastic drinks, great ambience, friendly staff, pretty original concept. and being able to walk in on a friday night sans reservations? priceless. will save the one point for when i check out the live jazz…

  April 19, 2015, 6:27 pm

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• Social Concierge

  The VibeFrom the street, for all intents and purposes, this is a public toilet. The only thing to give the game away is a rather muscly bouncer standing at the entrance looking rather conspicuous and just a little bit intimidating. After one final check of Google Maps, approach and youll find a menu attached to the railings adorned with the insignia BAC welcome to Bermondsey Arts Club.This cool den of debauchery is one of many to take advantage of the attractive Victorian railings and fine marble clad cubicle separators from the lavs of yore (they dont build em like they use to!). Descend the steps, pull back the curtained entrance and boy what a scene: a marble topped bar straight ahead, art-deco glass ceiling above and chequered black and white tiling below. Its got The Great Gatsby written all over it. On Wednesdays, youll find an intimate jazz duo nestled in the corner of the room serenading smooth looking couples and a cluster of Americans looking to fulfil their speakeasy needs.The OrderOlives are offered as a mere pleasantry, youre here for the hooch and quite right too. A cocktail joint at its purist, youll find one damn good Old Negroni served in a small brown bottle after being barrel-aged in American oak. The Bermondsey Gardens (St Germain, Beefeater, lime, apple, cucumber and mint) is served tall and decorated with sprigs of fresh mint and large slices of cucumber. If youve got a sweet tooth, definitely go for the Fairglass (Makers Mark whiskey, guava molasses and vanilla marshmallow syrup) which comes garnished with two caramelised marshmallows pure alcoholic joy!The GameGrab a drink around the corner in Bermondsey Square to ease yourself into the date before descending underground once at Bermondsey the cocktails take a little bit of prep so its a good idea to turn up a little tipsy to keep the convo rolling. Reserve a corner table for 8:30 as this place fills fast after 8. Make it a mid-week treat so that youre able to catch the jazz and appreciate the ambiance in full swing. This is a place to nestle down for the night and work your way through a magnificent cocktail list. Supplied with cool 1920s jazz and surroundings to match, youll be snogging in this luxury lav in no time.The FaultsIts a classic and intimate space, so make sure you can pack the swagger to pull it off.Sex Factor3. The gin is cold, the jazz is hot. socialconcierge.co.uk

  March 17, 2015, 3:57 pm

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• Bar Journeyman

  The last stop on the bermondsey trail. After visiting a great selection of bars through bermondsey we finally found BAC. What a hidden gem! Housed in a former victorian loo this little speakeasy made our night. It was very busy but i suppose that is to be expected with such a mischievously creative list and the obvious 2am closing. Even though it was busy there was enough room to move and after perching at the bar we were sat at the first free table. So to the drinks. Well in a nutshell one its a alcoholic ’99’ ice cream another is Christmas in a glass both very very good. The bartender who I think was the manager (only one wearing black) also took the time to run through the idea of each drink with a quick background of its ingredients. He also let us in on a few of the items for their upcoming experimental winter list (in his words ‘winter collection’). Exciting doesnt cover it, we will return.

  February 12, 2015, 6:18 pm

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• Manuela Fumarola

  My friends visited me from Italy so I thought that having a drink in Bermondsey Street would have been nice. Unfortunately, it was quite late, so we did not manage to be accepted in any place. Nevertheless, the bodyguard at the door of a pub told us to go to this Bermondsey Arts Club, pretty close, which stays open until late. He gave us advance notice about the place but it was not enough, apparently.Very weird location. Indeed, it is an old public toilet, then it is really small, disorganised and very noisy. You have to wait for a bit to get in, as the capacity of the bar is limited. Despite the fact that we waited for ten/fifteen minutes, when we went in, we did not find any empty table. We had to sit with other people, it was really crowded and we were not able to talk.The situation did not even put me in the mood to drink something, I just wanted to leave. My friends thought it was an original idea, so we did not have such an horrible time but I would not go again.

  January 25, 2015, 2:48 am

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• Matt The List

  Bermondsey Arts Club is a fantastic little cocktail bar with big ideas, currently flying under the radar and under the road in a art deco-style former public toilet on Tower Bridge Road. I’d be quite happy for it to stay hidden so that I could always get my seats at the bar, but this new menu really is worth shouting about.The twelve new drinks have been devised in equal parts by bar manager Adam Nordone and two more wise men, Milo & Jake. Not messing around, we started with Milo’s Coupe des Garcons which arrived dressed in black tie (or a napkin, use your imagination) and smelling of Commes de Garcons. Miraculously, the perfumed glass influences but doesn’t affect the palate, and the boozy combo of Calvados, Ramazzotti, Port and Peychauds Bitters powers through at the end – quite a creationElsewhere on his list is the playful, rum-laced Jerk My Swag served with a cocktail umbrella, D.D.D. aka Dead Drowned Duck, and the maritime Poseidon’s Reserve complete with oyster leaf akvavit, umeshu and mysterious Ocean’s Mist. Milo means business.- Coupe des Garcons – Fine Calvados, Ramazzotti, Port, Peychauds Bitters, Comme des Garcons Perfumed Glass- Jerk My Swag – Jerk Spiced Rum, Pimento Dram, Cola Reduction, Pineapple, Voodoo Bitters- D.D.D. – Duck Drowned Cognac, Cointreau, Aperol, Orange Bitters- Poseidon’s Reserve – Oyster Leaf Akvavit, Umeshu, Pure Water, Ocean’s MistOn to Jake’s concoctions, the show-stopper is Three Wise – Taylors 10yr Port & Brokers Gin combine with sugar and festive gold, frankincense & myrrh bitters in a sake box garnished with an incense stick. Underneath all the show, it’s quite an easy drinker but more than just a gimmick.Also on his list : Both Darjeeling Un-Limited and Grappa’s Delight will appeal to Brits with their tea twists. Compass Box Asyla needs no tweaking but darjeeling infusion works well here along with a dash of Yellow Chartreuse which is set alight before being plunged in to Jake’s take on a whisky sour. With Grappa’s Delight, Jake hopes to bring some attention to underrated Grappa. Infusing it with Camomile and chucking in some Green Tea Ice Cream is a good place to start. I’ll be back for Tracing Pedro.- Three Wise – Taylors 10yr Port, Brokers Gin, Sugar, Gold/Frankincense/Myrrh Bitters- Darjeeling Un-Limited – Darjeeling infused Asyla, Yellow Chartreuse, Mandarin Preserve, Lemon, Egg White- Grappa’s Delight – Camomile Grappa, Cocchi Americano, Lemon, Honey, Green Tea Ice Cream- Tracing Pedro – Buffalo Trace Bourbon, Poire William, Pedro Ximenez, Muscavado, LimeLast but not least, Adam’s offerings. My eyes were drawn to Hit & Mist as soon as I opened the menu. Cider poached Apple Laphroaig? Treacle Syrup? Whisky Barrel Bitters? Apple Hickory Smoke? Yes to all of the above please. Smoked drinks often take it too far, but Laphroaig is already so deep in charcoal territory that if anything, the cider & sweet smoke helps to make it more accessible. Not one to miss. Oh and it’s all theatrical and misty – bonus.Phra Phum (meaning spirit house – not that kind) is an acquired taste (Ella acquired it instantly), a savoury Thai sour in a similar vein to the Vietnamese Pho Money Pho Problems at Peg & Patriot. Jupiter Rising is right up my street – all booze, no fuss, except that it’s served in an ice sphere of course. The inclusion of Branca Menta (a minty brother of Fernet Branca) might divide the room. No-one could take issue with A Little R&R with butter-washed raisin rum, cinnamon liqueur, lemon & cardamom bitters, unless you are one of those bizarre cardamom haters I guess.- Hit & Mist – Cider poached Apple Laphroaig, Treacle Syrup, Whisky Barrel Bitters, Apple Hickory Smoke- Phra Phum – House Thai Gin (Ginger, Chilli, Garlic, Spring Onion), Lemon, Sugar, Egg White, House Soy Bitters- Jupiter Rising – Brokers Gin, Branca Menta, Cocchi Torino served in an Ice Sphere- A Little R&R – Butter Washed Raisin Rum, Cinnamon Liqueur, Lemon, Cardamom BittersIt’s a cracking menu, and the prices are very competitive with drinks coming in under 10 – good value considering the premium ingredients being used, the effort going in to presentation and the quality of the cocktails. Add to that possibly London’s most entertaining bar team and superb service, and Bermondsey has got itself a rather special cocktail bar. Oh, and there’s live jazz on Wednesdays. Need I say any more?Just don’t take my seats at the bar.Bermondsey Arts Club is open 6pm-2am Tuesday-Saturday mattthelist.com

  November 29, 2014, 6:02 am

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