angel is always a favourite for a quiet dinner or a quick drink, as it’s conveniently located halfway between me and everyone else. so far though i hadn’t really come across my favourite bar there. sure, the cuban restaurants makes mean mojitos but they aren’t quite enough to compensate for the complete lack of atmosphere. last night though, m and i met for an early dinner, which turned into dinner and drinks as we hadn’t quite exhausted the gossip by the time the restaurant bill came.
so we walked over to oqo, which tempted us with elaborate drinks and interesting prices for early birds like us, 3.50 for selected (but still very intriguing) cocktails. the place ticked all the boxes in terms of atmosphere. nice, dim lighting, funky furniture, excellent music and an unusually friendly staff for a cocktail bar.
our drinks came fast and well presented. being experimental with my drinking i went for a jasmine and ginger caipirinha, while m had a love tap, some red and fruity concoction topped with champagne. they tasted just as good as they looked. sweet but not overly so, we could taste the alcohol in them but only to appreciate its quality and the perfect balance between all ingredients.
being only nine o’clock the place wasn’t packed and although the music kept our head moving it was still possible to have a decent conversation without damaging our vocal cords. having a more careful look at the menu we discovered a plethora of unusual drinks, some tremendously tempting, others that seemed just a bit too experimental for our tastes. still, we really enjoyed the whole experience and we’ll definitely go back for more drinks, more relaxed conversations on the red leather couches, more pleasant music.
we’ll just be careful not to have a drink too many and then attempt to reach the futuristic toilets downstairs...as we might get lost on the way.
oqo| 4-6 islington green| london n1 2xa
