Nightlife
Originally published on Monday, 4th February 2008
Eastbound
Shoreditch House. Like Kate Nash or Klaxons, it suddenly feels rather 07, doesn't it? And what seemed exciting back in drizzly July now elicits, like the mockney bag lady or foppish cheesy quavers, a bit of a what-evah.
So abandon the Bluewater of members' clubs once and for all (fancy a swim? Go to your local pool for chrissakes!) for something a little more boutique. Like, in fact, The East Room, a new venture from debonair Soho favourite Milk & Honey, which is now open.
They're calling it a 'new world wine room', which sounds a bit dry, but the whirring self-operated machine in the corner that dishes up 16 types of vino by the glass or tasting measure is anything but. Other than that, it's an understated warehouse conversion with lighting that, unlike the crepuscular gloom of M & H, exposes your fellow sybarites in all their well-heeled glory.
But the real edge is the food. Think Ottolenghi-style teetering banquets of perfect rare beef, luscious jumbo prawns, velvety gravadlax, a panoply of English cheeses, and baskets heaving with fresh bread.
Understated venue, classy tucker: it's great to be 08, yeah?
The East Room, Shoreditch - now open
2a Tabernacle Street, EC2A 4LU
