As someone who used to go to Circle many moons ago, I wasn't expecting much. My last visit to Circle was early '09 and I said I'd never set foot in that bar again. I've kept to my word for 7 years until tonight....
So I suggested a Patisserie Valerie catch up. My friend suggested trying Be At One and being a borderline alcoholic, I didn't take a lot of convincing, despite thinking it'd be Circle Mk2.
Well, I'm glad I tried it.
Til 7pm, it is 2-4-1 on the cocktails - you have to get two of the same one, not two different ones. If you download the app then there is a thing called Appy Hour so you should definitely do that.
I went for an English Fizz (gin based, quelle surprise) and my friend had a strawberry daiquiri. Both were good.
We were served by a very nice barman ( who had verrrry nice arms, btw) who told us a bit about the chain. All the staff were very friendly and both my friend and I agreed that one of the aspects we both liked was the friendliness of bar staff, it made us want to come back.
After the cocktails we had several glasses of prosecco; I find it hard to review a bar without sampling the prosecco. It was really good stuff and only £5 per glass.
It was quiet, albeit that we were there on a Wednesday. I think it suffers a bit from Circle having been there before but, as someone who went with preconceptions, I can say that the new is way better than the old. Even the loos are a massive improvement.
You can hire out certain parts of the bar for varying numbers - the small area opposite the bar holds around 20-30 and you only need £25 deposit. From talking to the guy with the nice arms, I think the old 'Inner Circle' area (for those that may remember) will become an extension of the bar.
Anyway shall leave my review there. Definitely think you should check it out. I'll definitely be back. read more