Oriole offers top-drawer mixology [Casey Gutteridge]

THE slow demise of Smithfield Market also spelled the end for Oriole – voted one of the world’s best cocktail bars.

While butchers toiled above, this speakeasy traded in a sprawling basement space decorated in high style. It was a mecca for cocktail afficionados and on the hip list of every five-star hotel concierge hoping to impress guests with an insider’s guide to the capital.

Sadly, the owners were forced to surrender the lease last year. Oriole was one of many victims of the redevelopment plans for the meat and poultry market, which has been trading for around 800 years.

Thankfully, PRELUDE by Oriole has popped back up in a temporary spot in Slingsby Place in Covent Garden, a relatively new development also home to restaurants such as Bill’s and Dishoom.

The owners plan to use this venue as a three-month test space before Oriole moves into permanent digs opposite.

The décor – like the drinks menu – riffs on the idea of exploring the globe. The wallpaper mural evokes a paradise of palm trees and parrots; a row of wooden shelves showcases an eclectic collection of vases, sculptures and a lobster with petrifying claws.

There’s live music every evening and a new food menu from their Argentinian chef featuring fusion-style dishes.

Make no mistake – the cocktails here are exceptional. The menu is decorated with botanical drawings of some of the more unusual ingredients, such as eucalyptus and meadowsweet.

I started with La Culebra, £16, inspired by Jalisco state in Mexico. Made with a premium vodka, this includes lime juice, agave nectar, and the clarified juice of tomatillo, a green fruit from the same plant family as the tomato. A final touch is a few drops of a distillation of Pasilla Mixe chillies, macerated in a spirit made from Danish heritage purple wheat and pilsner malt then rested in a sherry Oloroso cask.

Oriole offers top-drawer mixology and the results are startling. This drink was intense and invigorating, with citrusy and vegetal notes from the tomatillo and a subtle heat.

Whisky features in many of the drinks, such the Mizuwari – inspired by Japan – with 12-year-old Highland Park “washed” with chocolate miso, plus asparagus eau de vie, amontillado sherry, green walnut vermouth and cold brewed Hojicha tea.

The short food menu ranges from snacks such as olives to more substantial dishes. Chunky chickpea chips, £7, are served like a Jenga tower with an aioli dip on the side – perfect finger food.

Same for the Sando, £14, which is a Japanese sandwich. Here, pieces of steak are enclosed in soft cubes of toasted white bread, served with a rich tonkatsu chipotle sauce.

I love the drinks here but do miss the unique atmosphere of their old site at Smithfield Market.

Slingsby Place feels more functional and is yet to develop that seductive, engrained sense of history and soul.

PRELUDE by Oriole is open every Wednesday to Saturday from 5pm and is due to move to its new site in June.

PRELUDE by Oriole
23 Slingsby Place, WC2E
www.oriolebar.com
@theoriolebar