Sips and tips: London Cocktail Week’s summer showcase looks to boost battered bar scene
London Cocktail Week has been a staple of the capital’s drinking scene for years – but after a year of closures, lockdowns, and that ludicrous substantial meal rule, it’s needed more than ever.
That’s why organisers Siobhan Payne and Hannah Sharman-Cox have launched a warm-up – starting today – to showcase some of the bars that have been hit the hardest by ongoing restrictions.
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The London Cocktail Week Warm-Up is a one-off mini version of the main event, with 30 of the capital’s most well-hidden bars creating special £7 cocktails for festival-goers.
The bars have been picked because they have no outdoor space, meaning they have been closed the longest over the past year.
The bars include Bethnal Green’s Satan’s Whiskers and Coupette, Peckham’s Funkidory and Shoreditch’s Callooh Callay.
The fully-fledged London Cocktail Week will again be extended for a whole month this year, with festival goers able to sample cocktails from hundreds of bars across the capital for the entire month of October.
With wristbands covering both the summer warm-up and the autumn celebration, the festival is sure to be a vital lifeline for the hospitality industry.
Festival wristbands available here (£15)
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