Her Majesty's Secret Service, Clifton, Bristol

This is not your traditional pub by any stretch of the imagination, but a small cocktail bar tucked away off Whiteladies Road. You’re unlikely to stumble upon it by accident, unless you’re perhaps going to the station. There is just a small, unobtrusive side doorway behind a rank of shops. Inside, it’s a long narrow room with exposed brick work all the way up the left hand side, and a painted frieze of Clifton Down on the other. Flooring is stone slabs, and seating a mixture of a large J-shape orange leather bench seating on the left, with high tables and stools elsewhere. A projector screen was showing an old black and white comedy film. There were a few small black and white photos on the wall, plus a pile of magazines and a board game or two. The bar counter was a pine type of wood, and the bar back drop was cream brick size tiles that seem to be coming in to vogue these days, although they always remind me of a public convenience. Unusually there were no crisps, nuts or any other nibbles available to purchase. I’ve come across this once before it a place that considered itself “more of a restaurant” but it seems odd in a bar that’s clearly not. The only food offering was a small platter of charcuterie, cheese, bread and olives. Drinks were pretty much limited to cocktails or bottles, with the only draft offering being Stella Black. The cocktail list was unusual and divided in to sections that were apparently aimed and starting the night, end of the night, and in between! I seem to recall the “end of the night” ones were supposed to have a settling effect on the stomach, but seeing as one of them contained a whole raw egg I decided not to put it to the test. These were mostly priced around the £6-£7 mark. If you do want something a little more conventional, the bottle selection included a number from Bristol Beer Factory, and Weston’s Wyld Wood.