Business must be booming because The Cocktail Trading Company has expanded from a basement bar, inside Smithfield’s Ask For Janice, to a fully fledged flagship just off Brick Lane. Like the sign above the door suggests, cocktails are the game here, and they are some of the most inventive and insta-worthy drinks in town.
Classics like espresso martinis and gimlets get the CTC treatment, but it’s their own creations that are the standouts. The One In A Million, a chilli tequila, watermelon, rose, lime and rhubarb mix, complete with a lotto ticket that enters you into a monthly draw for a cocktail masterclasses, was a real hit, and it was very hard to stay away from the fragrant gin, fig-lime and champagne Bonsai Butterfly.
If you’re up to it, it’s well worth trying to work your way through the menu…Apairoteef, Eggsperimental Cocktail Cup and Instaspam are drinks just begging to be drunk. CTC is a proper drinking den and a great spot for date night.
68 Bethnal Green Road, London, E1 6GQ
www.thecocktailtradingco.co.uk