Callooh Callay, Rivington Street, EC2A

When I met up with H on Tuesday she suggested going to this cool bar called Callooh Callay on Rivington Street, EC2A. Hilariously I hadn't heard of it- yet realised I walked past it (at least) twice a day when I worked on Charlotte Road which goes to show just how unobservant I can be. I didn't feel too bad though after finding out it doesn't open until 6pm... Callooh Callay is primarily a cocktail bar (which has quite an extensive magazine style menu of old, new and weird cocktails) and table service which was great- until we got the bill complete with a compulsory service charge. If I'd thought about it not only would I have gone to the bar myself, but why stop there when I could have used my bottle opener key ring to take the lid off my beer myself- for free!! Intriguingly they only had one beer available which was Viru brewed in Estonia (and really rather lovely). So taken was I with the shape of the bottle that I asked if I could keep it as it’s really cool and art deco-y, but I also felt like I needed to leave with something to compensate for the horrendous prices. To be fair though the staff were really nice and our bartender even taped it up for me.

Callooh Callay was really cool inside with a gramophone on the bar and lots of chandeliers and mis-fitting tables and chairs. It was really kooky and dimly lit and I can imagine it’d be a great place to go for a couple on a Thursday, Friday, Saturday night. My only criticism (other than the pricing) would be that it’s a tad small. What was really fun about it and the point of this post is that to get to the toilets you had to go through a wooden bookcase and inside the toilets every wall visible was decorated with old cassette tapes which I think is a cracking idea. All in all a good drinking hole if you’ve got a hot date or want to flash the cash, otherwise £4.30 for a beer and £7-£12 for a cocktail isn’t exactly going to give Wetherspoons any competition- and in a recession I know where you’ll be likely to find me!