The capital’s most talked about hotel has launched Sweeties, a new 10th floor cocktail bar and late-night spot.
The Standard, right across the street from St. Pancras train station, is the trendy place to stay and to eat and drink, and with the addition of Sweeties it cements its place as the place to see and be seen.
Sweeties menu is a mix naturally mood-boosting cocktails created by The Standard in collaboration with award-winning mixologists, Jack Sotti and Todd Austin, two very nice guys who know their stuff when making cocktails. The cocktail menu will be centred around a blend of feel-good ingredients and energising adaptogens and nootropics – including reishi, ashwagandha and holy basil – to allow guests to ease into the night.
On a recent visit I had the Pick Me Up, which is a blend of 8 adaptogenic mushrooms, brown vodka, buttery cacao and coffee. The buttery cacao made it go down nice and smooth. The Crystal Healing was extremely refreshing, and almost too beautiful to drink! It was a vivid blue cocktail made with spirulina, pepper dulse seaweed distillate, bergamot, and electrolyte-rich coconut ice.
Cocktails are also available in non-alcoholic versions such as the silky-smooth Holy Thursday featuring holy basil, green peppermint, white chocolate and mosaic hops, and the No Whey José with hot and cold strawberry, rose, red rice milk, and a salted coconut and lime leaf foam.
Sweetie’s will play host to an evolving line-up of international DJs playing expansive classic and contemporary sounds on its custom-made stack-style Funktion-One sound system. They will follow in the footsteps of a handful of artists including Honey Dijon, Arca, Robyn, Louie Vega, Benji B and Horse Meat Disco, who have all played the room’s bespoke sound system at private parties and give a flavour of the sounds to come – whether it be DJs spinning rare vinyl cuts to a sunset cocktail or losing yourself under the huge disco ball at 2am.
Sweetie’s sumptuous interiors, designed by long-time Standard collaborator Shawn Hausman, evoke an early 1970s Hollywood opulence. Ochre velvet sofas, ruched leather banquettes, mirrored tables, and a six-foot antique phallic sculpture set the tone for this intimate new destination: new wave glamour meets glorious misbehaviour.
Sweeties is open from 5pm on Wednesday to Saturday each week. The venue has room for 80 (seated) to 150 (standing). For more information, go to: www.standardhotels.com
By: Tim Baros