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db Drinks: Temple & Sons
db’s Lucy Shaw heads to Jason Atherton’s Victorian venture, Temple & Sons, for Martinis in tin cans and a fiery concoction laced with Coleman’s Mustard.
The concept: Having launched his first izakaya concept, Sosharu, in Clerkenwell last year, Jason Atherton is back with a new opening that winds the clock back to the 19th century. A stone’s throw from his Michelin-starred restaurant City Social in Tower 42, Temple & Sons is a split-level site featuring a grill on the first floor and a bar at ground level designed to look like a Victorian grocery.
The name tips its hat to the history of Tower 42, which was once the site of Palmerston House, named after former British Prime Minister Henry John Temple, Third Viscount Palmerston.
The décor: With a bell on the door, when you enter the bar it feels like you’ve stepped back in time. From its tiled floor and old fashioned till to its shelves stacked with sardine tins, packets of flour, old Cadbury’s tins and bottles of Oxford Sauce, great lengths have been taken to give guests the sense that they’ve been transported to another era.
The Martinny, served in a tin can
The cocktails: In keeping with the bar’s retro feel, cocktails use British staples like Gentleman’s Relish, Coleman’s Mustard, Lyle’s Golden Syrup and Lea & Perrins. Keeping things simple, there are eight drinks to choose from.
With an emphasis on fun, cocktails are served in quirky receptacles – the Martinny, a twist on a dirty Martini made with a Lea & Perrins distillate, comes in a tin can.
The dangerously drinkable Fondant Fancy, a devilishly delicious blend of vodka, amaretto, strawberry purée and golden syrup, arrives in a milk carton and tastes like a boozy version of a McDonald’s strawberry milkshake.
Signature sip: Not for the faint hearted, no visit to Temple & Sons would be complete without braving the Yellow Paint. Served in a Coleman’s Mustard jar, the fiery libation blends Sailor Jerry spiced rum, Colman’s mustard, elderflower and lemon.
On first sniff you’re whacked with the spice from the mustard, but the cocktail cleverly reveals itself in layers on the palate like a Willy Wonka trick, beginning with the mustard, then introducing the sweetness of the rum laced with tart citrus before the heat ramps up again on the finish.
The food: By no means an afterthought, bar bites play on the venue’s British theme via the likes of Old Spot pork belly brioche buns, oxtail soup, and chunky chips with Sarsons vinegar, while Atherton’s love of Asia is reflected in a prawn tempura slider with miso mayo and spicy slaw.
The mac daddy of the snacks is an earthy game and truffle sausage roll with creamy mash and HP gravy, but be warned – it’s big enough for two.
Who to know: Affable bar manager Alvaro, who hails from Galicia. You’ll find him working his magic behind the bar in a white t-shirt and a flat cap.
Don’t leave without: Checking out the quirky loos filled with old album covers, band posters and Hollywood vanity mirrors. On my visit, a Star Wars fan had scrawled: “No, I am your father”, across the mirror in red lipstick.
Temple & Sons, 22 Old Broad Street, London EC2N 1HQ; Tel: +44 (0)20 7877 7710