Sipping at 5CC...

Last week we brought you a London Cocktail Week post pin-pointing all the freakin' fabulous bars scattered across London that were offering up a one-off week-long delectable cocktail for just £4 a pop. The London mice didn't actually take advantage of this offer (I think we momentarily lost our minds for the week) but we did check out one of the participating bars ... 5CC after their kind PR agency invited us down for an evening of scrumptious finger food and mind-blowingly moreish cocktails....

5CC has actually been on my radar and hit list for some time now. This cocktail den is so well nestled below the Well & Bucket (a favourite haunt of mine on Bethnal Green Road) that one could be forgiven for it slipping through the net but once found, it's a keeper.

Neon-rays light the stairs to the basement hideaway, guiding you in off the street and down to the pièce de résistance. Candlelit and effortlessly cool with a grungy east london vibe - I knew instantly we were going to be very happy here!

Even the bar menu cries out cool and kooky - hand drawn illustrations pepper the pages transforming a plain menu into a mini storybook of cocktails so enticing we wanted to stay up well past our bedtime and taste-test everything...

Myslef, Mini and honorary London mouse V, ordered up a round of Rhubarb Daiquiri cocktails to get us started.

First thing to note is the mixologist knows his stuff. He personally delivered us the lovingly crafted concoctions explaining their ingredients and make up in wonderfully descriptive detail - it was clear he loved what he does through and through, or he might have just sampled one too many of his own creations - who knows, who cares - he was awesome! Our waitress, Nadia, also deserves a special mention. She went out of her way to make sure we had a blast and couldn't have been more attentive from start to finish. Together they ran the floor like a well-oiled machine. Check out our snap with Nadia...

We also trialled the 'Spector' - white rum, elderflower cordial, lemon juice, lychee juice and egg white, the 'Spiced Pear Martini' - vodka, pear, apple, spiced syrup and lime juice and a round of 'Porn Star Martinis' - delish, divine, devilishly deadly! 

Next up ... the grub! If the cocktails were anything to go by, we were in for a treat. With the help and guidance of waitress-extrondaire Nadia, we ordered up a couple of lobster rolls, crab and cheese fries, pulled pork sliders, peri peri chicken sliders, a crab, avocado and king prawn salad and a pint of prawns with aioli amazingness. Word of warning, we expected the portions to be on the small side like most London-based bars serve up ... not this one ... the portions are punchy - just how we like them! The food arrived and the chatter dried up in an instant while we devoured the spread laid before our eyes ... Verdict? Delectable down to the very last crumb!

We'll be back. Fact.

Well and Bucket - 5CC

143 Bethnal Green Rd 

London

E2 7DG

020 3664 6454