Personally we found 69 Colebrooke Row a little too serious for our liking. However anything Tony Conigliaro puts his hand to is 100% worth checking out and his latest bar – Untitled – lives up to the hype.
Inspired by Andy Warhol’s iconic Silver Factory, the new space has been curated by Tony and his dedicated Drink Factory team along with a group of super talented friends and Hackney locals.
And it’s an impressive space. Once past the bouncer (we didn’t have a booking but managed to get in on a busy Friday night, no probs) we were seated around the large slab of communal concrete, sharing the space with people that looked as bemused as us. Our bartender asked us if we’d like a wish – the answer to that is always yes – and true to his word, he gave us one. Sort of. We don’t want to ruin the surprise but it set the scene for the bonkers menu that came next.
Ghost, Snow, Rice, Violin – no we didn’t have a clue either. Turns out all the cocktails are designed to evoke a memory through taste, smell and sight and most are vodka based to let the other ingredients shine through.
Don’t overthink it, they won’t be what you expect anyway. All drinks are served in their own unique vessels, including one with a penis etched onto the glass – we particularly enjoyed watching uncomfortable straight men getting surprised with this. We’d recommend starting with the pretty as a picture, delicate Waif, containing champagne, rhubarb and rose (above). After that, go crazy.
There’s also a dining area out the back that we’ll be coming back to try.
Whilst on paper it sounds pretentious and ridiculous – it’s just bloody great fun. Don’t fight it.
