London's best secret bars (2024)

Psst! Over here! The Vault of Soho is a bar hidden behind an unassuming bookcase at the rear of Soho whisky specialist Milroy’s. Once you find your way through it and then down the stairs, you’ll find a dark, delectable little basem*nt where co*cktails are made from potent spirits – whisky included, naturally.

Happiness Forgets may be known the world over for its impeccable co*cktails and classy service, but you’ll need to be in the know to locate this hidden-away basem*nt dive. Once you’re in, staff go out of their way to make sure you’re happy. Decor is minimal, table lighting is from candles, no standing is allowed. One of the best bars in east London – or in all of London, for that matter.

Okay, okay, so this is one of London’s worst-kept bar secrets. But go along with it for a bona-fide ride. Cahoots is a vintage-tube-themed bar and you’re met at the door by an awkward ‘train guard’ actor in mockney character. He’ll escort you to the platform (you know, the bar) in time for co*cktail hour – just so long as you’ve booked far enough in advance.

Confession time: co*cktails are a bit good at the Rev’s place in Fitzrovia. This bar is hidden on the former site of a rectory, although once you get down the stained glass stairwell, there’s not much else holy about the place. It’s a cosy bar with lengthy – not to mention comfy – sofas in semi circles, ideal for group outings. Say a little prayer for a clear head the day after.

This dimly lit basem*nt bar beneath the Breakfast Club in Spitalfields is reminiscent of a ‘Twin Peaks’-style log cabin, with moose heads, mirror balls and retro wallpaper. How do you find it? Through the café’s fridge, of course. co*cktails, consisting of classics and house specials, are well crafted on the whole.

Tucked away in the basem*nt of One Hundred Shoreditch hotel, Seed Library serves up delicious creations of world renowned mixologist Ryan 'Mr Lyan' Chetiyawardana. Discreet and darkly lit, it's the ideal joint for a late night date, as vinyl-only DJs play seriously smooth groves to accompy your chive Daiquiri or corriander seed Gimlet. Don't ignore the snack menu either, with the indulgent likes of bacon jam on toast and smoked chicken nuggets on offer.

Hackney Road’s The Natural Philosopher has its residence in the converted storeroom of a Mac repair shop, and nothing much gives its presence away. An ageing rug on the floor, a grandfather clock and deep red walls give a retro feel that contrasts with thelaptop workshop upstairs. The bar is found lowered into a well in the ground, while a small room behind and below the bar makes for an intimate cubbyhole.

As a nod to its Prohibition-flavoured nickname (‘blind pig’ being US underworld slang for a good old-fashioned den of iniquity), look under the vintage ‘Optician’ sign for the blindfolded hog doorknocker. The decor is authentically retro but never schmaltzy with a mirrored ceiling, and copper-topped barmaking you feel like a wide-lapelled Al Capone when out for co*cktails.

It may look like an old run-down tailor’s, but this is a place for very serious drinking in the dark. After finding the DSC (not easy for first-timers), descend the steep stairs and watch your head so you don’t bump it on the low ceilings.Thiswood-heavy, dimly atmospheric east London ‘speakeasy’ does tailor-made co*cktails to a tee.

Once you find this hidden hangout, gawp at its jawdropping design that creates a look ofEastern smoking den-meets-Western hipster hangout.FindChinese vases and burning incense mixed with deep funky beats and retro armchairs.Much like neighbouring bar ECC, theentrance is concealed – look out for a jade door on Gerrard Street.

A Victorian basem*nt bar opposite some railway arches in London Bridge, Nine Lives is a hidden (tropically themed) gem well worth your attention. The co*cktails aredelicious, fruity and balanced but the hand-picked soundtrack deserves a mention too. These guys love their music, as evinced by their incredibly high definition quadraphonic audio sound system.

Kitsch, louche and very late-night, the Phoenix attracts a regular crowd of debauched Soho luvvies and miscreants to its famous basem*nt den (the former dressing rooms of the theatre above). Decked out in ancient publicity shots and gaudy amateur art,it is a reliably upbeat and lively space. Membership is required to gain entry after 9pm, so it remains a bit of an inside secret (wink wink, don’t tell them we told you).

Disrepute’s Kingly Court entrance is pretty discreet, and getting into this Soho members’ club makes you feel like you’reletting your date in on some sort of secret. The co*cktail list at this speakeasy-style bar is equally enigmatic, with a separate coded sheet in case you actually want to know what’s in your beverage. Otherwise, take a gamble and pick a tipple from thelyrical, lusty tales used to describe each drink.

Evans & Peel sure does make a big noise about being secretive, taking bookings for ‘cases’ on its website and introducing you to the venue by intercom interrogation. You’re then subjected to a meeting with a detective in their private office. How far you take this pantomime is up to you. The big reveal is worth it, though, a supernaturally dark speakeasy revealed by a trap door.

Experimental co*cktail Club isn’t the kind of place you’d expect to find in Chinatown. In fact, it’s not the kind of place you should expect to find full stop: don’t be surprised if you walk past the bar’s unassumingly battered door several times before realising it leads to this buzzing three-floor joint filled with trendy groups and dating couples absorbed in lively chatter.