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Cosy Club is a small chain of restaurants in the UK, which have a strong independent, good local business feel to it, but considering they are yet to posses a Wikipedia page and only have 13 branches so far (with a 14th in Derby opening soon), I think it is a great place for my 800th review, as it shows my goal to support smaller businesses and get the word out there that they can be so much better than bigger chains, as I found out on my visit for my evening meal, before heading back on the train to Manchester, where I have previously visited Cosy Club before. I'm going to start by comparing this branch to Manchester, here it was only on one floor, which avoided having to mess around with stairs and a lift, and I was greeted and sat down straight away, and the staff seemed really nice, it also had a "Cosy" feel to it with the decor being much nicer and relaxed than a chain, with of course better staff. This Cosy Club is located on Bennets Hill in Birmingham, near enough next to a Wetherspoons pub and a shorts walk away from Second Cup and Birmingham New Street Station. I started off by ordering a Watermelon iced tea, albeit not stirred originally it was quite nice and did taste and look fresh, sadly my picture came out blurred! For the quantity, it was very expensive at £3.75, costing the same as a pint of cider which shown an early flaw, which also appeared to be the case in Manchester's branch. I was pleased with a good selection on the gluten free menu for Tapas, breakfasts (all day until 6pm) and mains, there was a nice selection of Tapas including a Spanish omelette for £4.99 each or 3 for £12.49 as I recall, or something similar to that but I opted for the 28 day aged 8oz steak for £14.95 I was served by a friendly waiter, who even brought me a small pot of the sauces to try because I had never tried them before, I really enjoyed the Green Peppercorn and the waiter even had a good sense of humor and made a joke about me "polishing it off", I added this to my meal for an extra £1.50 but it was worth it to go with he steak. My steak was £14.95, which considering most of the food tasted fresh was well worth it, as it came with a house salad which was actually quite nice with some form of dressing, I normally am quite picky with salads and they normally end up left on my plate, but I enjoyed this and unlike a long list of places, the salad was actually quite nice with good quality vegetables which were not as hard as a rock. My steak was also quite nice, it was a good portion size and did taste nice well-done, it was a very good piece, and did taste good quality, and there wasn't much fat on it as well, it was one of the nicer steaks I have had, with the Green Peppercorn sauce. The Triple cooked chips were also quite nice, with the nice sauce from where they had grilled the steak, although there were a few a little undercooked, but they were mostly quite nice and it was a great portion as well. I really like Cosy Club and the Birmingham branch is one of the better branches I have been too, the service is good, the food is good, the gluten free selection is good however the pricing on sometimes, although it is generally far could be looked at more, as well as advertising it isn't there, I only found out myself after searching on Yelp, and then couldn't even find where it was, as a non-local, but still this is a nice, cool place to go and the perfect place for review 800 as it is a small business that does things well! 4 stars.
Cosy Club, a small national chain operated by Loungers (who also operate Arco Lounge in Harborne), is a vibrant addition to Birmingham City Centre, with great food and attentive staff in a really neat setting. Decor: Upon entering I was immediately struck by tall ceilings and columns of the former Midland Bank, and how much of the building's interior has been preserved in its transition into a quirky, vintage-y bar and restaurant. Very fun to look around and see the mix of history and interior design. Food: get tapas! The portions are immensely satisfying (portions are larger than at Arco Lounge), and everything we ordered was delicious (6 to share amongst two people was plenty). The cider-braised chorizo, hummus, and sweet potato and basil falafels were all quite memorable and I'd recommend them highly. If you've got room for dessert and a sweet tooth, the treacle tart is delicious, and for each treacle tart a 50p donation goes to The Wooden Spoon Charity. Drink: I was a bit disappointed with the mojito (which run around £8). I found mine so heavy on the ice that it was barely drinkable. Otherwise everything quite good, nothing 'wowed' me though. I'd definitely come here for the food and ambiance over the mixed drinks.
I had been looking forward to the opening of the Cosy Club for some time before it was announced. It was such a shame the gorgeous bank building at the top of Bennetts Hill had stood empty for so long, so when I heard whispers of it being turned into something foodie or drinkie based (rather than offices or more flats) I was excited to see what would rise out of the ashes. When Cosy Club was announcing they were moving in, I have to say I was surprised. I wasn't familiar with the chain and hadn't visited any of the (now) well known lounges across the City, so it was with trepidation I trekked down there on a Thursday night for it's soft launch to see what it was all about. Firstly, as expected, the building is gorgeous. It looks good from the outside, but from the inside it's just stunning. Retaining many of the period features but still being complimented by modern touches, it's a real treat. It's big too! With a very large central bar, relaxed dining area behind, massive balcony and private boardroom upstairs and a relaxed bar as you walk in (as well as the hidden cafe area towards the back), it offers chilled out or posh areas to wine and dine with your friends or for a date. We grabbed a couple of pints of "loungers" ale and headed to the back cafe area to fully experience the venue. I imagine the ale is made especially for the venues (it's brewed by a Bristol brewing company, the home of the original lounges) and is very pleasant. They also have some local ales, a large cocktail list and premium and standard spirits on offer in the venue. We sampled a few different kinds of the tapas (houmous, breads, sweet potato and pulled pork were a few of the types bought out to us) and they were all pleasant and quite filling. They have a pretty good amount of vegetarian and meat options available on the menu and do special offers through the week on Tapas, burgers and other things. In terms of cost, it's probably a tad cheaper than some of the other venues in the area but on par with most. As it's located smack bang in the middle of the city, it's to be expected that you would pay around £4+ for a pint. Only time will tell if it stays as popular as it was on the opening week, but with Bodega down the road, Lost and Found over the road, Botanist on the next street down and the Old Joint Stock just further up; this area is now a great place to grab a pint and have a night out on the town.
It is so great to see this building being used again. It's obvious that it used to be an old bank, but the décor is fab - I especially loved the light fittings! We had a table of 9 and were sat in the corner, however we certainly weren't neglected by the staff- they were friendly and attentive. I had a lovely Beef noodle salad (although slightly too much chilli for me) followed by a delicious treacle tart and ice cream. The two courses and two pints of Estrella beer cost me £22, which wasn't too bad. The cocktails looked amazing, but we didn't stay for those as people wanted to move on -it was a hen do after all;) They do lots of 'meal deals' during the week and offer a fairly substantial vegan and also gluten free menus! Looking forward to going back again.
Went on a Sunday late afternoon for a quick drink because i was at the lost and found the night before and was so excited to head there after lots of people telling me how good it was. Decor is nice but nothing special, could have done a lot more with the amazing building they have. It's an old bank and a magnificent building, just a shame it doesn't match the granduer. I had a cocktail which seemed to have taken forever to make, good job we only had one cocktail and a pint. I wanted a gingerbread cocktail but they ran out of something to make that, so I went for a lemon drizzle cake cocktail. This was too sweet for me, the icing sugar rim pushed it over the edge. Maybe without it, it would have been sweet enough. But over all it was alright service is a little slow and it was a sunday evening which I'm guessing isn't a busy period. Had a look at the menu, would be nice to come back and sample some of their food. stay tuned for an update, I shall be returning i do hope they iron out their problems because this place has the potential to be very good indeed.
I decided to head down with my partner to Cosy Club this week after getting some vouchers at the opening night. On arrival we were warmly greeted by the staff and, as we were early, opted to have a drink first before heading to the table. One of the offers was 'buy two glasses of wine and get the bottle free', however, this only applies to house wine but we didn't mind so we grabbed a bottle of that and sat outside. The outside area is nice and around the corner from the main door. It doesn't exactly feel like you're in the City Centre even though it's right on the street! We then headed in to our table. It was nicely situated on the ground floor, with a good distance between the other tables so it didn't feel crowded. Another voucher I picked up was for 'buy a main and get a pudding for £1' - again a bargain so I had the beer-battered Pollock with chips and my partner had the Hero burger. However, he made this 'truly heroic' and had an extra 6oz burger with it! The food arrived promptly and I loved the fact that my mushy peas came in its own little pot and that I had enough tartar sauce, which I love! It was very nice and there were no bones in the fish and that's always a bonus! As we had the £1 pud option we went for the cheese board. It came with three generous portions of cheese, crackers, apple, celery and chutney. We soon polished it off but I always feel there could be crackers. The service was good and attentive. There were some issues with paying as the manager couldn't find the £1 pud option on the computer but it was soon found and we settled the bill. The prices are reasonable for the City, it's around £8-10 for a burger and the prices for mains range from £8-17. The more expensive mains tend to be steaks which one would expect. I really like this venue. It was easy to book a table and there was adequate seating available even if you wanted to pop in for a drink after work. The venue is beautifully decorated and given justice to what once was the Midland Bank.
A nice enough addition to Birmingham's bar scene. I love how they've brought a lovely old building back to life. The quirky pictures and furniture may not be to everyone's taste but I feel they've got a good mix between tradition and what is currently fashionable. For example, they had lights made based on the ones which were in the building when it was a bank. There's plenty of seats for those just wanting a drink or a snack, or you can wait at the front desk for table service. We chose to do this when we visited for dinner. It was a Thursday evening but it was pretty busy. I felt they needed an extra staff member in the dining area as the two women there were rushed off their feet. It doesn't help that they have to keep running downstairs to pick up the drinks orders. Despite this, service was very friendly throughout. We both ordered ciders specially made for Cosy Club and the Lounges brands which was a fun touch. We also both ordered the buttermilk fried chicken. It came with really good chunky chips and a decent chipotle mayo. The chicken was a bit dry and not as tasty as you can get elsewhere in the city. I've previously enjoyed the tapas dishes at Cosy Club so I'll definitely head back for a snack and a drink but probably not for dinner. The brunch menu looks great and I will be trying that at some point too.
Former Midlands Bank now bar/restaurant so similar in space to Old Joint Stock- but decor here much brighter, fresher, more contemporary. Didn't get to eat but cocktails v nice - Mandarin Margherita went down well (all 3 of them!) - we sat in the small room at the back- the cosy room I guess...colourful, relaxed atmosphere with a sense of bank history around you...Sir Edward Holden decor on the wall for example 'Sir Edward Hopkinson Holden, 1st Baronet (11 May 1848 - 23 July 1919) was a British banker and Liberal politician, most notable for his role in developing the Midland Bank into the largest bank in the world.' *wiki Good for large parties or find a space for intimacy too!
After a long day that included our flight from Atlanta, bus to Watford, train to Birmingham, and then settling in our Hotel, we just needed a walk and ended up at Brindley Place. We dipped into the Cosy Club for drinks and stayed for dinner. The service was lovely, and the food hit the spot. The drinks were great, the English Garden with gin, elderflower, cucumber, and apple was so refreshing without being too sweet. The Old fashioned was on-point! The burger was delicious, and the sweet potato fries with the hot English mustard were a treat. It's interesting that they serve the burger with dipping gravy; new to this American, but the ciabatta bun was slightly hard, so it made sense. The pasta was awesome! A perfect combination. In additional, the prices were quite reasonable. We would definitely return for drinks again, but there are so many places to check out. read more
This was a great find in the City. We were looking for Gluten free and this hit the spot. The Cauliflower small plate was so good, we even used the bread to soak up the extra source. The burrata and squash salad was super. Had an oat milk flat white as well. Caters great for all food types, gluten free, plant based and regular. The service was fabulous and the historic building and decor was awesome. read more
This is a small UK chain. This location is in an old bank building. I like to have fish finger sandwich when I come here. Now you might think, Matt G what is fish fingers? I didn't know fish had hands. But surprise, it's cut up fish sticks in a sandwich with lettuce, tartar sauce, capers. Comes with fries. The vegan burger was very good. Got a freebee of rosemary potatoes that were really good. read more
11 years ago
Cosy Club is a small chain of restaurants in the UK, which have a strong independent, good local business feel to it, but considering they are yet to posses a Wikipedia page and only have 13 branches so far (with a 14th in Derby opening soon), I think it is a great place for my 800th review, as it shows my goal to support smaller businesses and get the word out there that they can be so much better than bigger chains, as I found out on my visit for my evening meal, before heading back on the train to Manchester, where I have previously visited Cosy Club before. I'm going to start by comparing this branch to Manchester, here it was only on one floor, which avoided having to mess around with stairs and a lift, and I was greeted and sat down straight away, and the staff seemed really nice, it also had a "Cosy" feel to it with the decor being much nicer and relaxed than a chain, with of course better staff. This Cosy Club is located on Bennets Hill in Birmingham, near enough next to a Wetherspoons pub and a shorts walk away from Second Cup and Birmingham New Street Station. I started off by ordering a Watermelon iced tea, albeit not stirred originally it was quite nice and did taste and look fresh, sadly my picture came out blurred! For the quantity, it was very expensive at £3.75, costing the same as a pint of cider which shown an early flaw, which also appeared to be the case in Manchester's branch. I was pleased with a good selection on the gluten free menu for Tapas, breakfasts (all day until 6pm) and mains, there was a nice selection of Tapas including a Spanish omelette for £4.99 each or 3 for £12.49 as I recall, or something similar to that but I opted for the 28 day aged 8oz steak for £14.95 I was served by a friendly waiter, who even brought me a small pot of the sauces to try because I had never tried them before, I really enjoyed the Green Peppercorn and the waiter even had a good sense of humor and made a joke about me "polishing it off", I added this to my meal for an extra £1.50 but it was worth it to go with he steak. My steak was £14.95, which considering most of the food tasted fresh was well worth it, as it came with a house salad which was actually quite nice with some form of dressing, I normally am quite picky with salads and they normally end up left on my plate, but I enjoyed this and unlike a long list of places, the salad was actually quite nice with good quality vegetables which were not as hard as a rock. My steak was also quite nice, it was a good portion size and did taste nice well-done, it was a very good piece, and did taste good quality, and there wasn't much fat on it as well, it was one of the nicer steaks I have had, with the Green Peppercorn sauce. The Triple cooked chips were also quite nice, with the nice sauce from where they had grilled the steak, although there were a few a little undercooked, but they were mostly quite nice and it was a great portion as well. I really like Cosy Club and the Birmingham branch is one of the better branches I have been too, the service is good, the food is good, the gluten free selection is good however the pricing on sometimes, although it is generally far could be looked at more, as well as advertising it isn't there, I only found out myself after searching on Yelp, and then couldn't even find where it was, as a non-local, but still this is a nice, cool place to go and the perfect place for review 800 as it is a small business that does things well! 4 stars. read more
11 years ago
Cosy Club, a small national chain operated by Loungers (who also operate Arco Lounge in Harborne), is a vibrant addition to Birmingham City Centre, with great food and attentive staff in a really neat setting. Decor: Upon entering I was immediately struck by tall ceilings and columns of the former Midland Bank, and how much of the building's interior has been preserved in its transition into a quirky, vintage-y bar and restaurant. Very fun to look around and see the mix of history and interior design. Food: get tapas! The portions are immensely satisfying (portions are larger than at Arco Lounge), and everything we ordered was delicious (6 to share amongst two people was plenty). The cider-braised chorizo, hummus, and sweet potato and basil falafels were all quite memorable and I'd recommend them highly. If you've got room for dessert and a sweet tooth, the treacle tart is delicious, and for each treacle tart a 50p donation goes to The Wooden Spoon Charity. Drink: I was a bit disappointed with the mojito (which run around £8). I found mine so heavy on the ice that it was barely drinkable. Otherwise everything quite good, nothing 'wowed' me though. I'd definitely come here for the food and ambiance over the mixed drinks. read more
4 years ago
I had been looking forward to the opening of the Cosy Club for some time before it was announced. It was such a shame the gorgeous bank building at the top of Bennetts Hill had stood empty for so long, so when I heard whispers of it being turned into something foodie or drinkie based (rather than offices or more flats) I was excited to see what would rise out of the ashes. When Cosy Club was announcing they were moving in, I have to say I was surprised. I wasn't familiar with the chain and hadn't visited any of the (now) well known lounges across the City, so it was with trepidation I trekked down there on a Thursday night for it's soft launch to see what it was all about. Firstly, as expected, the building is gorgeous. It looks good from the outside, but from the inside it's just stunning. Retaining many of the period features but still being complimented by modern touches, it's a real treat. It's big too! With a very large central bar, relaxed dining area behind, massive balcony and private boardroom upstairs and a relaxed bar as you walk in (as well as the hidden cafe area towards the back), it offers chilled out or posh areas to wine and dine with your friends or for a date. We grabbed a couple of pints of "loungers" ale and headed to the back cafe area to fully experience the venue. I imagine the ale is made especially for the venues (it's brewed by a Bristol brewing company, the home of the original lounges) and is very pleasant. They also have some local ales, a large cocktail list and premium and standard spirits on offer in the venue. We sampled a few different kinds of the tapas (houmous, breads, sweet potato and pulled pork were a few of the types bought out to us) and they were all pleasant and quite filling. They have a pretty good amount of vegetarian and meat options available on the menu and do special offers through the week on Tapas, burgers and other things. In terms of cost, it's probably a tad cheaper than some of the other venues in the area but on par with most. As it's located smack bang in the middle of the city, it's to be expected that you would pay around £4+ for a pint. Only time will tell if it stays as popular as it was on the opening week, but with Bodega down the road, Lost and Found over the road, Botanist on the next street down and the Old Joint Stock just further up; this area is now a great place to grab a pint and have a night out on the town. read more
11 years ago
It is so great to see this building being used again. It's obvious that it used to be an old bank, but the décor is fab - I especially loved the light fittings! We had a table of 9 and were sat in the corner, however we certainly weren't neglected by the staff- they were friendly and attentive. I had a lovely Beef noodle salad (although slightly too much chilli for me) followed by a delicious treacle tart and ice cream. The two courses and two pints of Estrella beer cost me £22, which wasn't too bad. The cocktails looked amazing, but we didn't stay for those as people wanted to move on -it was a hen do after all;) They do lots of 'meal deals' during the week and offer a fairly substantial vegan and also gluten free menus! Looking forward to going back again. read more
Went on a Sunday late afternoon for a quick drink because i was at the lost and found the night before and was so excited to head there after lots of people telling me how good it was. Decor is nice but nothing special, could have done a lot more with the amazing building they have. It's an old bank and a magnificent building, just a shame it doesn't match the granduer. I had a cocktail which seemed to have taken forever to make, good job we only had one cocktail and a pint. I wanted a gingerbread cocktail but they ran out of something to make that, so I went for a lemon drizzle cake cocktail. This was too sweet for me, the icing sugar rim pushed it over the edge. Maybe without it, it would have been sweet enough. But over all it was alright service is a little slow and it was a sunday evening which I'm guessing isn't a busy period. Had a look at the menu, would be nice to come back and sample some of their food. stay tuned for an update, I shall be returning i do hope they iron out their problems because this place has the potential to be very good indeed. read more
I decided to head down with my partner to Cosy Club this week after getting some vouchers at the opening night. On arrival we were warmly greeted by the staff and, as we were early, opted to have a drink first before heading to the table. One of the offers was 'buy two glasses of wine and get the bottle free', however, this only applies to house wine but we didn't mind so we grabbed a bottle of that and sat outside. The outside area is nice and around the corner from the main door. It doesn't exactly feel like you're in the City Centre even though it's right on the street! We then headed in to our table. It was nicely situated on the ground floor, with a good distance between the other tables so it didn't feel crowded. Another voucher I picked up was for 'buy a main and get a pudding for £1' - again a bargain so I had the beer-battered Pollock with chips and my partner had the Hero burger. However, he made this 'truly heroic' and had an extra 6oz burger with it! The food arrived promptly and I loved the fact that my mushy peas came in its own little pot and that I had enough tartar sauce, which I love! It was very nice and there were no bones in the fish and that's always a bonus! As we had the £1 pud option we went for the cheese board. It came with three generous portions of cheese, crackers, apple, celery and chutney. We soon polished it off but I always feel there could be crackers. The service was good and attentive. There were some issues with paying as the manager couldn't find the £1 pud option on the computer but it was soon found and we settled the bill. The prices are reasonable for the City, it's around £8-10 for a burger and the prices for mains range from £8-17. The more expensive mains tend to be steaks which one would expect. I really like this venue. It was easy to book a table and there was adequate seating available even if you wanted to pop in for a drink after work. The venue is beautifully decorated and given justice to what once was the Midland Bank. read more
A nice enough addition to Birmingham's bar scene. I love how they've brought a lovely old building back to life. The quirky pictures and furniture may not be to everyone's taste but I feel they've got a good mix between tradition and what is currently fashionable. For example, they had lights made based on the ones which were in the building when it was a bank. There's plenty of seats for those just wanting a drink or a snack, or you can wait at the front desk for table service. We chose to do this when we visited for dinner. It was a Thursday evening but it was pretty busy. I felt they needed an extra staff member in the dining area as the two women there were rushed off their feet. It doesn't help that they have to keep running downstairs to pick up the drinks orders. Despite this, service was very friendly throughout. We both ordered ciders specially made for Cosy Club and the Lounges brands which was a fun touch. We also both ordered the buttermilk fried chicken. It came with really good chunky chips and a decent chipotle mayo. The chicken was a bit dry and not as tasty as you can get elsewhere in the city. I've previously enjoyed the tapas dishes at Cosy Club so I'll definitely head back for a snack and a drink but probably not for dinner. The brunch menu looks great and I will be trying that at some point too. read more
11 years ago
Former Midlands Bank now bar/restaurant so similar in space to Old Joint Stock- but decor here much brighter, fresher, more contemporary. Didn't get to eat but cocktails v nice - Mandarin Margherita went down well (all 3 of them!) - we sat in the small room at the back- the cosy room I guess...colourful, relaxed atmosphere with a sense of bank history around you...Sir Edward Holden decor on the wall for example 'Sir Edward Hopkinson Holden, 1st Baronet (11 May 1848 - 23 July 1919) was a British banker and Liberal politician, most notable for his role in developing the Midland Bank into the largest bank in the world.' *wiki Good for large parties or find a space for intimacy too! read more
11 years ago
Cosy Club! I've been to this place twice and it has moved up on my list since my first visit. This is a drinks only review as I haven't tried the food yet. I learned from reading other awesome yelp reviews that Cosy Club is located on the site of a former bank. The building is indeed grand. The high ceilings provide a feeling of openness, quite the opposite of some claustrophobic lounges. We sat in a room to the right of the bar. It was easy to find an open table, but we were here on a Wednesday evening. The room sure felt cosy (ha!), as if we were in someone's living room. A very rich someone. We quickly went over the menu and got to ordering. I am a cocktail queen so I had to try one of the many amazing sounding drinks. I do not think they offer happy hour here, but cocktails seemed average with most costing between £6.50-£7.50. My first drink was the cherry bakewell. I am not really a cherry fan so I don't know why I ordered this...but it blew my mind with its tasty goodness. It had a strong cherry flavor with hints of sweet caramel and almond. Ahhh so good. I couldn't put it down. And bam it was gone already. On to the next drink. Next up was lemon drizzle cake. Now I thought I would prefer this drink as I love cake and lemon. It was very tart, almost too tart. The glass was rimmed with sugar or something sweet to combat that. Again, I couldnt stop sipping. I wish it had sprinkles (jimmies) in it for pretty presentation purposes. Hey Cosy Club can you add that? Both drinks were unique to my taste buds. For anyone that likes their desserts in drink form you must try my two choices. I am already planning my next visit to this place. I want to people watch from the upper level and try out the menu. I hope it's as good as my cocktails were. I read Cosy Club is related to Loco Lounge in Kings Heath. The cocktails at Loco Lounge could not compete with the greatness of Cosy Club cocktails. Now if they would just add a happy hour... read more
11 years ago
So. This is my new favourite place in Birmingham. As almost everyone else has said its a huge building formally a bank. It's trying to be quintessentially English, right down to the telephone message you get when you call "do be dear and press option 2". For all the decor, the walls crowded with photos and to be honest the bar crowded by people it never appears stuffy and that could be down to its size. It boasts a sort of mezzanine come balcony for diners to overlook the sea of people below. If given the choice I would prefer to be sat up there, we were sat underneath and behind the bar which is definitely cosy but also somewhat dark and still noisy. But we were to blame, we had not booked before hand and there were no last minute cancellations. We only ended up here after plans else where fell through (never new the O bar; serving the dirty cow burger was a nightclub also) We ordered some drinks, old fashioned for myself to start and I had the cosy burger and my guest the Mac n cheese. She was steered to that from the veggie burger by our honest waiter and was not disappointed. In fact neither of us were. We were able to order further cocktails to our table and avoid the queue at the bar. I have tried an old fashioned in many places and this is by far my favourite, some of the other concoctions can be too sweet for me but if you want a long drink I recommend the old colonial ice tea. Next on the list is the Lost and Found next door. read more
Cosy Club, is the latest café/bar from the Loungers group to popup in Birmingham, following Arco Lounge in Harborne, Loco Lounge in Kings Heath, and Quinto Lounge and Verdo Lounge both in Sutton Coldfield. The Bristol based Loungers Group was formed in 2002 and since then they have managed to amass 56 'lounges' on their portfolio. Aside from the 'lounges', their new brand is 'Cosy Club', of which there are currently nine. This is a brand to watch, as before long there will probably be one in every city. Cosy Club describe their style as "gents club meets village hall meets cricket pavilion". In Birmingham Cosy Club occupies the former Midland Bank designed by Thomas Rickman in 1835. The building is grand with imposing pillars on the outside. On entering I was reminded of the Municipal Bank on Broad Street - a great building to look around if you get the chance. The high ceiling has had it's coving restored and is painted eggshell green, to give it a contemporary feel. From the ceiling, hang wonderful ornate lights, that look original, or at least in the style of. There's a large bar on the left, in what one assumes was the old bank service counter, with grand pillars reaching up to the high ceiling. In front of the bar large tables are coupled with brightly coloured furnishings that wouldn't look out of place in Central Perk. The staff uniform appears to be a mash-up of hipster vintage ware. I visited on a Saturday afternoon and was bowled over by the grandness of the building. Although, I must say that having a large open space such as this works well in the hushed tones of a bank, whereas when I entered the sound from those inside was amplified in the space, making a not-overly-busy bar very noisy with background chatter. I had a pint of Bristol Beer Factory 'Lounger's Cruiser' (an American Pale Ale on keg) and a glass of apple juice, which came to £5.20. Looking for a seat, we went upstairs only to be told that this section was reserved for dinners. Downstairs behind the bar, was reserved for seating also. There was only around seven large tables in-front of the bar, all of which were occupied. At the back was a smaller room with small tables for drinkers, all of these were taken too. I know we can't criticise a venue for having customers, but it appeared to me that around 60-70% of the tables were reserved for dinners at a time when those dinning only made up 5% of their customer base. This seems barmy to me, but seems to be a thing now. I would understand if it was a restaurant, but they call themselves a bar, so why reserve all of the tables for people eating and make the drinkers squeeze into one corner? I wouldn't mind standing for a drink, but I had my five-year-old daughter with me who was perturbed about why we couldn't just sit at one of the many empty tables. I was surprised that the staff weren't more courteous to the fact that I had a child with me. So she had to stand and drink her apple juice for a while until we eventually found a small, round, wooden table. There wasn't any seats at said table though, but I managed to get two brightly coloured pouf style things to sit, on from two separate tables. We were still put off by the noise of chatter that filled the space though. Before leaving I visited the gents, which like Arco Lounge in Harborne, is at the furthest point away possible, down a seemingly never ending corridor - ok I'm exaggerating a little. The toilet décor is nice, green walls, black & white check tiled floor, and soft lighting. Not sure about the Country Life magazine covers in frames though; I think they're meant to represent class, but to me they scream [insert expletive]. Upon entering the cubical it became immediately apparent that the lock doesn't work. Upon close inspection I realised that it was fixed to the door the wrong way around. A simple mistake, but one that shouldn't really happen. I didn't try the food but the menu seams to be fairly close to that in their Lounge bars. The architecture is fabulous, the décor is nice, the beer was good, the friendliness and welcome from the staff could be improved, I 'm not keen of the full separation of dinners and drinkers anywhere, less so when everyone is squashed in one corner of a relatively empty pub. I will return, but hope that improvements are made. As if they are, this has potential to be a top venue. read more
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More info about Cosy Club
33 Bennetts Hill
Birmingham B2 5SN
United Kingdom
City Core
Directions
0121 695 1131
Call Now
Visit Website
http://www.cosyclub.co.uk/birmingham
Hours
Food & Alcohol
Indoor Amenities
Outdoor Amenities
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