Flute has absolutely no chill. Perched on the top of new-ish Soho hotel the Broadwick, this is a bar that will grab you off the dancefloor, tell you all of its most intimate secrets, maybe try and snog you, and then waltz back into the night, never to see you again. In other words, Flute is a good time - if a little intense. There is a wraparound rooftop balcony (see the Blue Posts like you’ve never seen it before!), which is all well and good, but the magic really happens inside this glammy 7th floor beauty. There are palms on the carpet like the decorators have been gifted offcuts from the Beverly Hills Hotel; there's animal-print upholstery on the cosy armchairs; a DJ booth that looks like the inside of a glitterball; naughty mirrored ceilings, and a weighty black onyx bar in the middle of it all. Extra? Extra extra.
Of course, such lavishness doesn’t come cheap. Cocktails are in the market of around £20 to £25, and the signature specials all come with loose links to Soho; Secrets of a Windmill Girl is a champagne, gin and rose cordial tipple that flashes its ankles at the historic burlesque club around the corner, while a sherry, Campari and melon liqueur offering is named in tribute to jazz bar Ronnie Scotts. As befitting of a bar named Flute, there is also a serious Champagne and sparkling menu, with glasses starting at £22. Want something to nibble on? There’s a Champagne and caviar bump deal for £35, but also a more substantial food offering that spans a range of salty global nibbles; tuna tostadas, ham croquettes, katsu pork toasted sandos and beef sliders.
Time Out tip
Can’t bear heights but still want to sample Flute’s sumptuous, heroically flamboyant style? Head for dinner at The Broadwick’s equally OTT basement restaurant, Dear Jackie, an ‘opulent member’s club meets cosy Sicilian bordello’.