London Cocktail Club
4 Great Portland Street, W1W 8QJ
As well as pouring award-winning cocktails at ten locations throughout the city, London Cocktail Club was voted Get Hired Champion by the Prince's Trust earlier this year, for putting on Get Hired events and helping to provide tonnes of jobs for young people from all over London. Now that's worth raising a glass (or five) to. And if you want to get in on the action yourself, you can go to one of its mixology masterclasses, where you'll learn to muddle, shake, garnish and drink three of the bar's signature serves.
Dandelyan
20 Upper Ground, SE1 9PD
Ryan Chetiyawardana's – Mr Lyan – sustainability credentials need little introduction, and it's a passion he brings to each of his projects. Not least Dandelyan at the Mondrian Hotel, a plush, purple and green space with a lavish 1970s vibe that serves botany-inspired cocktails that use slightly off-the-wall ingredients like root-infused tinctures to delicious effect. Sustainability aside, this bar is worth a visit in its own right: its team recently scooped World's Best Cocktail Bar, Best International Bar Team and Best International Hotel Bar at the prestigious World's Best Bars list.
Fairly Square
51 Red Lion St, WC1R 4PF
Sustainability is as much about people as it is about the environment, and that's why we're fans of Fairly Square: all of the spirits, beers and wines it has on offer are all – you guessed it – Fairtrade, as are the products used in its snacks and sharing menu. And the ethos extends from the menu to the interiors, using recycled and repurposed materials – even the tiling grout is made from recycled glass.
fairly-square.com
65 & King
65 Westbourne Grove, W2 4UJ
Serving locally inspired cocktails like the Carnival Zombies and the Trellick Tower, this Westbourne Grove drinking den blends creative serves with low lights and glammed-up Art Deco interiors. The team are always committed to serving daily specials that use whatever fresh fruit is in season and available in the market that day.
Graphic
4 Golden Square, W1F 9HT
Graphic
4 Golden Square, Soho, W1F 9HT
Part of the small, boutique Urban Leisure Group, which prides itself on a central focus on sustainability and seasonality, Soho-based Graphic will dazzle you with a list of no less than 305 world-class gins and vibrant murals by local artists on its walls.
Scout
93 Great Eastern St, EC2A 3JD
The Green Pea cocktail serves as a great summary of Scout's methodology – based around ingredients that's bang in season at the time of writing, with ingredients foraged from Essex.
Photograph: David Harrison
Inside Matt Whiley's Scout.
The Fig Leaf cocktail is made with fig leaf-infused bourbon, vodka and gorse flower syrup, and bound together by vetiver oil, more commonly used in perfumes. The foraged ingredients come from right on the doorstep in Shoreditch.
Photograph: David Harrison
The Scandi-slick interior of Scout, Shoreditch.
At Matt Whiley's Scout, it's strictly all about seasonal ingredients sourced or foraged locally. Forget orange peels and lemon slices, they don't get a look in at this Scandi-slick bar and drinks laboratory in Shoreditch. Instead, garnishes include dehydrated waste coffee grounds and salt. And after a drink or two if you're feeling even more sustainable, you can even grab a bite to eat off the food menu which is specifically designed to close any loop between the bar and the dinner, cutting down on waste left, right and centre. Intrigued? Read our review of Scout.
Go in for one more round with more of our guides to London's best bars.
