You may have heard of Balls & Company, the restaurant founded by chef Bonny Porter, but did you know that tucked away below there was a cocktail bar to explore?
Recently revamped into a botanical drinking den, Company Below has a speakeasy vibe, the kind of place you want to remember when you have friends visiting and need somewhere cool to take them. The bar offers a mix of cocktails and bar snacks and with Porter at the helm, you know the food isn’t just going to be your usual offerings.
The new herbal cocktail list (don’t let the word herbal put you off!) offers a great choice of eclectic flavours, many of which use a range of in-house infused spirits and artisanal liqueurs. Particular favourites were the Eden’s Apple, a mix of white rum, honey, eucalyptus, lemon and apple cider shrub, and the Prime Target, gin, apricot liqueur, coconut water and falernum bitters. They were some of the best cocktails we’ve had in awhile – interesting but not compromising on flavour for show.
The bao buns are deep fried rather than steamed and are stuffed with short rib or tofu with a peanut chilli mayo. Even if you’re not a fan of tofu, we’d recommend ordering one of each. Polenta chips with rosemary salt and aioli were crisp and light, a grown up way to enjoy your chips! But for us, the one item that stood out was the Parmesan churros with labneh and thyme honey. We were informed the week before’s menu included Montgomery cheddar churros – if ever we needed a reason to return!
Take your friends to Company Below before word spreads too far and thank us later!
