Last Night's Christmas Party at Archer Street...

Why haven't I come across this fantastic cocktail bar before? Down Archer Street in frankly a not quite so nice part of Soho, Archer Street the bar is a cut above in terms of service and atmosphere. Okay so it was December 22nd which was one of the last evenings for office outings but I can imagine that this is pretty much the same on a Friday night throughout the year.

There is an upstairs (where we sat) and a downstairs bar area which is slightly more laid-back with more private nooks and crannies. Upstairs the bar was humming but we had reserved a space for the Handpicked Media and Beautyandthedirt teams. The cocktail list is fine although not cheap - cocktails start at £10.50... but you do get a complementary cheeseboard with crackers which is a really nice touch and soaks up the alcohol. Shorts are around £8.50.

What makes this place stand out is the attentive service and the music. The DJ played at just the right level to not drown out conversation completely but enough to encourage a good old-fashioned sing along. Every so often a member of the waiting staff would be miked up and sing a number live - and they really were good! Obviously trained performers they worked the crowd and made for a fab party atmosphere.

I left early, around midnight so missed the evenings end when there was dancing on the tables with the staff (or so I'm told) - disgraceful!

All images from Squaremeal.