Speakeasy's originated during prohibition in the USA. They were illegal liquor purveyors that only became known by word of mouth and of course were under constant threat of being raided by the police.
Today a speakeasy is a small bar that is not signposted or advertised. Again knowledge of these secret bars are gained by word of mouth. These bars are not mainstream and pride themselves on serving select well made cocktails with premium ingredients.
The speakeasy we visited is in Ranelagh above a particular restaurant (contact me directly for the name!). To get to it we went up the back of the restaurant, through the staff area, out the fire door and up a small stairs. We then entered a teeny dimly lit bar. There are seats for about 20 max I'd say. We sat at the bar which is US style in dark wood with a lip to the edge to prevent drinks falling off.
For drinks we chose a bourbon based "Old Fashioned" for Ciaran and a fresh tasting "Falling Water" for myself (we loved the Frank Lloyd Wright reference but perhaps this wasn't deliberate as it wasn't mentioned on the menu).
Our drinks were expertly made by the bar tender a lovely friendly lady who explained that many of the cocktails have been created by Paul (the proprietor, I presume) who has trained her to make them using the exact method every time. She said consistency was very important - I can't agree more!
We loved the atmosphere and the great tasting drinks. We will be back!
Here's some pics of the bar and our drinks.
