Over on Denmark Street, a new cocktail bar and destination is trying to rekindle the area’s now long-gone mystical energy. Once a hot-bed of music and culture and revolution, the area has quagmired into a mish-mash of shops and restaurants that barely even nod to the street’s history. The few remaining guitar and music stores try valiantly to keep the spirit of Tin-Pan Alley alive, but many have already succumbed and shuttered their doors. But now a new venue seeks to awaken the area’s musical legacy -enter, Thirteen.
The latest venture from Chateau Denmark, Thirteen, is pure, unadulterated, gothic opulence. There’s a dark grandiosity to it all, with heavy fabrics draped across every surface and beaming golden light fixtures and bars that call to mind early Tim Burton. But you won’t be treated to bad luck here – instead, you’ll be treated to an all-day hangout that flows from day to night with “drinks, small plates and good times with a great beat.”
On the menu at Thirteen
Drinks take inspiration from the area’s “storied happenings” with signature cocktails such as Smoke On The Water (a Paloma riff with tequila and mezcal as well as Martini Bitter, Watermelon Liqueur, Guava, and Double Dutch Pink Grapefruit Soda) and Lady Stardust (their take on a Pornstar Martini with Grey Goose Vodka, Martini Vibrante Aperitivo, Cointreau, passion fruit, Lychee, and Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label Brut NV. The menu also includes plenty of classic cocktails, from the Margarita to the Cosmopolitan, the Corpse Reviver No.2 and plenty more.
Food comes in the form of small bites that range from edamame to gyoza, as well as a selection of sushi, maki, nigiri, and sashimi. If you can’t decide – opt for the sharing plates that serve up a variety of options from across the menu.
The secret basement bar
Downstairs, hidden away from the rest of the affair, is an intimate basement club billed solely “for those in the know”. Dial8, with its secret separate entrance and cosy size, is the ultimate place for private events and gatherings that ooze exclusivity. Outside of private hire, though, it’s a late-night club for low-lit dancing and cocktail swilling. With the goal of capturing the essence of legends that have touched Denmark Street in the past, from Chaplin to Marley, and Rotten, it’s rock n roll taken to the extremes of lavishness as opposed to the depths of grunge and dirt.
Across the two venues, Thirteen and dial8 promise a roster of fine DJ sets and live music, be they planned performances or spur of the moment, that capture the raucous energy of one of London’s best-known musical quarters. On any night you could get such varied entertainment as punk and surf music from a DJ, or a cabaret performance that stretches across multiple venues and rooms.
Whether you care for the musical inspiration that is the beating heart of the venue, or simply want a drink in a gorgeously unique setting, you’ll want to head to Thirteen on your next night out. In their own, rather enigmatic words, “Thirteen is exclusively for everyone, while our underground haunt dial8 is for everyone else.”