Red Light advertises its presence on Union Street by, well, a red light, emanating from a graffiti covered doorway. Pick up the payphone, press the button and… presto. Billing itself as a late-night drinking den with an air of 1950s panache, Red Light has a cocktail list that pairs customisable classics with new creations. True to its location, it’s about quality, not crowd-pleasing.
Once inside, it’s surprisingly spacious and understated. Leather wingback chairs, retro radio fronts and soft lamp-lighting hint at the bordello theme, as does the menu, divided rather bluntly into ‘foreplay’, ‘sex’ and ‘cigarette’. Priced £8-£10, there’s a sliding scale of cocktails, from sharp and acidic to sweet and syrupy.
Some of the drinks had us raising an eyebrow at the flavour, and we did find that Red Light’s short cocktails were far better than their long ones, but die-hard booze fanatics will certainly find something to interest them here.
A great, late-night hidey-hole, and an ideal place to escape the boisterous antics of Park Street.