In the autumn of 1897, after gold was discovered in the Klondike, my English great-grandfather rode out from a cattle ranch near Edmonton, Alberta, to make his fortune. It was late in the season. He traveled with three Americans, eight pack ponies, a Winchester rifle, a tin billycan for tea, a Dutch oven for making bread, a goatskin coat, and a few light mining implements. But the snowfall was heavier than expected, which made the ground treacherous for the horses. When his companions decided to sit out the winter with some fur trapping, my great-grandfather sold his share of the ponies for sled dogs and hired an Indigenous tracker instead. His pace picked up, but the weather deteriorated. When supplies got dangerously low, he suggested to his tracker that they eat the dogs. Eventually, he was forced to return to England empty-handed. His diary, however, survived.
7 of the best underground bars in the UK
11.02.2024 - 10:05 / nationalgeographic.com / Johnnie Walker
Maybe it’s the nation’s glut of centuries-old cellars and tunnels. Or perhaps it’s the world-class bar scene, which led the way with speakeasy-style drinking dens when they were trending a few years back. Either way, the UK today is full of quirky places to say ‘cheers’ at a subterranean level. Whether your preferred tipple is wine, beer, whisky or a mixologist-crafted cocktail, these celebrated bars from London to Edinburgh will serve it to you amid atmospheric underground vibes.
London’s oldest wine bar — pouring since 1890 — is lined with dusty vintage bottles, cluttered with barrels and perennially lit by flickering candlelight. Set below Villiers Street, steps from the Embankment, it’s been dutifully preserved by the Gordon family (blackened arched ceilings and all), and serves classic wines, ports and sherries within its Victorian interiors. Order a tawny with a charcuterie board and settle in.
This subterranean space has the perfect blend of pro mixologist staff and easy-to-understand drinks — no wonder it’s earned a place on the elite Top 50 Cocktail Bars list. Pull up a wooden chair in the cosy interior, complete with tile-lined bar and parquet flooring, and dive into a barmalade, which blends vodka, marmalade, soda, Chartreuse and rye whiskey.
Pass by the faux barbershop doorway on Queen Street, descend the stairs through a bookcase and enter the world of Panda & Sons — Edinburgh’s finest speakeasy-style bar. The wood-lined room may have the soul of a simple pub, but the cocktails are prepared to precision using mad scientist techniques. This being Scotland, order a Solasta: Johnnie Walker and Monkey Shoulder whiskies with marsala wine, pastis and lemon verbena.
Set inside defunct Kingly Court Underground Station and used as an air-raid shelter during the Second World War, this Soho bar is full of 1940s character — think war-time adverts, floral soft furnishings and staff in costume. Of the three drinking spaces, opt for the ‘Underground’ — complete with vintage tube carriage — and sip a Well-Oiled Conductor with vodka, vermouth, bay leaf and white port infused with sea purslane.
Neon lighting, communal seating, rounds of pool and table football — this lively late-night venue has the feel of an old-school dive bar, even though it only opened in 2022. Expect craft beers, cheese-smothered smash burgers, sport on the TVs and games of Mortal Kombat on the retro arcade machines.
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