If you want to make your cocktail experience all the more rewarding, you can try and find a well-hidden speakeasy in the heart of London.

These bars once harbored the illicit drinkers of the prohibition, and they remain just as inconspicuous today. Climb through a wardrobe or through a fridge, and you might find a well-stocked bar...

Vibe’s Eleanor Halls tracked down five of the capital’s best

Happiness Forgets

Old Street, N1 6NU

Voted the 12th best bar in the world, this tiny pod of quiet music and low, heady murmurs is tucked away in the basement of Hoxton square. Nothing is off the menu; simply list your favourite ingredients to the bar tenders and they will baptize a new cocktail in your honour. You can’t book, and it gets packed very quickly, so be sure to get down there early for a seat.

Go to happinessforgets.com

Milk and Honey

Soho, W1F 7NU

After having squinted in the dark to spot the little sign, and rung the buzzer next to it, you can settle down incognito in one of the intimate booths spread across this dimly lit three-floor luxury cocktail bar. Non-members can book the basement bar until 11 pm, but become a member and you can roam free. Make sure you read the feisty set of House Rules on their website before you go however. A personal favourite: “If a man you don’t know speaks to you, please lift your chin slightly and ignore him”.

Go to mlkhny.com

The Mayor of Scaredycat Town

E1 7LS

Confuse your date by taking them to the Breakfast Club on Artillery lane after dinner. Without saying a word, walk over to the big industrial style fridge at the back, and with extreme nonchalance, open it. Feeling smug, ask for Henri, the Mayor of Scaredycat Town, and enter an exposed brick cocktail bar with great lighting and music. If your date isn’t impressed, then you did something seriously wrong earlier in the evening.

Go to themayorofscaredycattown.com

The Evans and Peel Detective Agency

Earl’s Court, SW5 9BA

Make sure you come prepared with a good case if you want to impress the man at the door and succeed in getting an ‘appointment’ with the detective. The air of secrecy is continued inside, as the menu asks that “you do not draw unwanted attention to our venue”. The inside is dark, lit with crackling orange bulbs. The drinks are adventurous, such as a fusion of earl grey tea, lavender and Tanqueray gin, and served in brown paper bags.

Go to evansandpeel.com

Callooh Callay

Shoreditch, EC2A 3AY

Step through the wardrobe in the backroom, and discover your own vodka infused Narnia. A quirky and intimate Victorian themed venue awaits, cluttered with mismatched furniture and tinkling tea lights. Perfect for a cozy cocktail, such as a delightful mix of vodka and rhubarb. And if one hidden bar isn’t enough, venture up the staircase at the back, and find yet another!

Go to calloohcallaybar.com