No. 104 The Havana Cocktail Bar

Visited on 13/10/11. This place used to be a gay nightclub called ‘Connections’ and is situated below street level in an ancient cellar with a fantastic barrel vaulted brick ceiling. Maybe it’s a sign of age when you find the architecture of a bar more interesting than the other ‘attractions’ on offer, although there was certainly plenty of ahem, ‘talent’ present as well ! These days ‘the Havana’ is a formula cocktail bar serving, well, cocktails. Fortunately though, they also sell beer – but only in bottles. We’d done the cocktail thing at the last place, so ordered up a round of ‘Pacifico’, which to be honest, I’d never heard of. The barman informed us that it was the best beer they sold though – and it was also the cheapest (three English pounds per single bottle and it was the friggin’ cheapest !) It’s Mexican. It was alright. Fruit can be stuffed into the bottle neck to hide the lack of taste if required. To be honest, the atmosphere in here is alright as well. Unlike many similar places, you don’t get your brain mashed by pounding dance music and can actually have a conversation. Probably changes at the weekend like.