The Major of Scaredy Cat Town is a secret worth knowing… a mystery I should be keeping to myself, but I can’t resist telling you all about this thoroughly titillating and enticing cocktail bar.
Prohibition-esque cocktails bars in London are a craze akin to the wine bars of the past. Sugary concoctions lure boys and girls alike to dark dungeons all over London, and the more secretive the better. When I heard about the Breakfast Club’s hidden bar… concealed downstairs at the Spitalfields branch, I knew I had to check it out immediately. With my favourite cocktail gals in tow, I stepped into the quiet Breakfast Club full of anticipation.
Just like C.S Lewis’ ‘Lion, Witch and Wardrobe,’ what you’ll discover behind the mysterious door at the Spitalfields Breakfast Club is beyond your wildest imagination. Just ask to see the Major and you will be escorted through a Smeg Fridge(!) to a thrillingly cosy little bar serving up innovative cocktails and snacks. To prevent suspicion in the restaurant a separate exit door is used by guests leaving the bar… so no one will ever know where you’ve been.
I loved the whole experience though I must admit the drinks weren’t exemplary. Groups of friends huddle round dimly lit tables perching on stools and laughing apparently without a care in the world. We tried the most daring concoctions, a risk I would, in retrospect, not advise taking. They just all seemed to have a little too much of some weird ingredient, and become too bitter or too herby. Your best bet is to order a classic, or if you insist on trying something different (which I always do) opt for the Red Lady – a sweet, frothy and comforting drink served straight up with Bombay Sapphire Gin, Grand Marnier, lemon juice, raspberries and egg white.
Reluctantly we left the Major and went upstairs to the real world. Looking back at the solitary orange fridge it is impossible to imagine the fun and frolics that go on every night behind that unlikely doorway.