A martini isn’t just a drink. Ever since a certain British spy heretically ordered his ‘shaken, not stirred’, it’s carried a weight of cultural signifiers. It’s also a ritual: a declaration that whatever comes next might be more interesting than whatever came before. The trick is finding somewhere that takes the ritual seriously – but doesn’t drain all the fun out of it.
The Martini Bar at Hawksmoor St Pancras strikes that balance beautifully. Set within the Neo-Gothic excess of the St Pancras London Hotel, off Euston Road, it offers the visual drama of a five-star hotel, with none of the stiffness.
Yes, this bar is spectacular: soaring ceilings, arches, stained glass, mosaic floors. So when the first glass arrives, it completes the picture perfectly. These cocktails are faultless. Hawksmoor says it’s ‘obsessed with serving the best and coldest martini in London’, and its house martini is served sub-zero and stripped to the essentials. It’s the sort of drink that reminds you why people argue about martinis in the first place.
It’s also the sort of place in which stopping at one martini feels like a complete failure of imagination. Try a “pink Gibson” (Boatyard vodka and a pink onion pickle) or a “Vesper’s Vesper” (Plymouth gin, Absolut Elyx and Sacred Amber vermouth). The “Ultimate Steakhouse Cocktails” include a punchy spicy margarita and a lemon drop sharpened with lemon curd and preserved citrus. Low- and no-alcohol options include a sour cherry “nogroni” and a jalapeño-spiked “After Burner”.
Bar snacks are designed for one-handed eating between sips – and are unapologetically Hawksmoor-ish: beef-dripping hash browns; oysters offered three ways, including Vietnamese-style; and Yorkshire sloppy joes, minced beef and horseradish piled into miniature Yorkshires.
The real kicker? The price. In a city where hotel bars charge £25-£30 for a martini, Hawksmoor’s cocktails are around £14-£16. The house martini is £12 – and £10 on Mondays in January. Luxury, it turns out, doesn’t have to hurt.
Incidentally, outside the bar and down the hall sits the Spice Girls’ famous Wannabe staircase. After a couple of martinis, you’ll feel that heading to the staircase to recreate the video, is the best idea ever. Zig-a-zig-ah.
To reserve your spot, head to thehawksmoor.com
Lysanne Currie is editor-in-chief of Meet the Leader. She also writes for Robb Report, Diplomat, Guardian, Influence, Tempus and Investor
