Welcome to frozen cocktail season
When the weather is hot, hot, hot, you need a drink that’s cold, cold, cold, and you can forget popping some ice cubes in a glass, the whole thing needs to be frozen. Yes we’re talking slushies people and not the bright blue ones from your youth – these are booze-spiked and strictly for big kids.
Frozen cocktails aren’t anything new – we’ve certainly been indulging in frozen margs and frozen daiquiris for a long time – but there do seem to be new slushies popping up every summer. Iced Aperol Spritzes and Palomas has been popular for the last few years, and who can forget the frosé craze? These are the best slushies in London this season, so get these noted down for when the temperatures rise.
Stone Fruit Slushies at Pastaio
Pastaio is teaming up with three recipe developers – Christina Soteriou, Claire Dinhunt and Alana Laverty – for its summer slushy series, which is showcasing Italian stone fruits. First up is Christina’s sumac and pomegranate stewed cherry slushy, with Claire’s apricot and tonka slushy hitting the menu in July and Alana’s peach, basil and balsamic frozen margarita following in August.
Menorcan Sea Salt & Lime Pomada Slushie at Juliet’s Quality Food
Juliet’s Quality Food is bringing a taste of the Balearics to Tooting with this take on a Menorcan gin serve. It’s a lemon and kalamansi slushie laced with mint, sugar, sea salt and East London Gin, and you’ll be drinking it on repeat.
Frozen Margaritas at Padre
You can’t have tacos without margaritas, and when the temps are rising (and the tacos are spicy), only a frozen marg. Enter Padre who’ll see you right on both fronts.
Rum Slushies at Sweet Dee’s Jerk
Cool off after some retail therapy by heading down to the Sweet Dee’s Jerk in Selfridges Food Hall, where you can get fruity slushies spiked with Wray & Nephew rum.
Frozen Margaritas at The Angel Inn
Sister pub to The Red Lion & Sun in Highgate, The Angel Inn has also installed a slush machine so that it can serve up the same frozen margs that became lockdown famous at the OG pub.
Champagne Pina Coladas at Coupette
If you like pina coladas and getting caught in the rain then you’re gonna love cooling off with this frozen luxe version, with two types of rum, pineapple liqueur, pineapple juice, coconut sorbet and champange, from Bethnal Green bar Coupette.
Smoking Goat
The food at Smoking Goat is properly spicy, so it’s a good job they’ve got not one but two slushies on the menu. There’s the daiquiri-inspired Fire Dance (with frozen vodka, raspberry and Thai basil) and the pina colada-esque All the Woo in the World (rum, pineapple and coconut milk).
