Previously a pop-up, Doña rules Stoke Newington from her pink palace.
How pink is Doña? Put it this way, if you walked in wearing Janelle Monae’s trousers from the ‘PYNK’ video, you’d fit right in. It really is that pink. In other brilliant news, it’s filled with mezcal-based cocktails and female-led live music, so you can start to see why we’re a little obsessed with this place – and with the news that this erstwhile pop-up is here to stay, it’s about time you paid it a visit. (Featured image: @dona_musicnmezcal)
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First, that eye-catching decor. Doña is artfully festooned with Mexican-inspired touches of glamour, sporting pink upholstery, soft, seductive lighting, and feathery pink frills around the bar. It’s extremely aesthetic, topped off with the odd cacti or bit of foliage for a space that has us really reconsidering the current decor of Secret London HQ.
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Naturally, this makes kicking back with a cocktail a delight, especially since the whole menu is infused with a smoky hit of mezcal. Doña’s dedication to mezcal is unyielding – even the animated heroine on their website is happily quaffing a glass – and when it produces cocktails like Molly (Quiquiriqui Mezcal, blackberry, lime, agave, and cider), you can easily see why.
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They’ll make you a cracking margarita, but if you’re looking to be led delightfully astray, opt for the Gaynor, made with ‘dangerous’ Don Mezcal, 30&40 Jus, chai, and black walnut.
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Doña go all-in for live music, too, with acts DJs and live bands popping by most nights for a laidback set. You’ll catch a whole range of acts flooding the basement – the majority of them female-led – but one event you shouldn’t miss is Wombxnity, billed as “a movement, music, and poetry jam dedicated to the divine feminine” that takes place roughly once a month. Brilliant even without the cocktails, it’s a must-visit with them.
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As late-night drinking spots go, Doña really is pink perfection!
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Also published on Medium.