Suitably scuzzy rocker’s paradise. The list of drinks (inc. some experimental concoctions) is dauntingly long, and food is cheap but basic. Regular live gigs.
Nothing says scuzzy quite like an underground rock bar with writing on the walls and free-flowing Jägermeister, but this is a tag that Carpe Diem wears with pride. Perfectly located as a feeder pub into the bigger, all-night venues, this gritty bar is the place many tap to get tanked before heading out on the town.
The whole place has the soaked-in beer smell of a gig venue that regularly invites moshing frenzies under its guise as a key venue for up-and-coming rock acts who want to see the whites of their fans’ eyes. The staff are laid-back and chatty, and not in the least bit impatient when a newcomer umms and aahs over the surprisingly diverse drinks list.
Carpe specialises in cheap drinks and elaborate-sounding, highly alcoholic cocktails. Alongside the usual cosmos, daiquiris and sex on the beaches, the bar has devised a menu of ‘experimental’ shots. Pickle juice and Jameson? A ‘cut grass’ flavoured drink? It’s not exactly The Alchemist, but it’s daredevil blends such as these that ensure the bar remains a week-long pull for clubbers or groups of friends who fancy a bite to eat and a game of snooker in a venue that plays good music.
The food menu is predictably unimaginative, featuring generous portions of onion rings, nachos, sandwiches, burgers, chicken and chips, baked potatoes and – surprisingly – a prawn cocktail. Like the drinks deals you can’t refuse (but probably should), Carpe offers meal deals, with the very reasonable two mains for £7 and the so-called ‘world famous mega burger challenge’. You guessed it: eat the gut-busting behemoth of four burgers, four strips of bacon and all the artery-trembling trimmings and you get your meal for free. Good job the LGI is just across the road then…
