Pub Awards: Best Spirits finalist - Water Lane Bar & Restaurant, Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire

Innovations introduced by assistant general manager Harry Hazelwood and general manager Kevin Concannon, include barrel-aged cocktails that are made by staff on site, as well as seasonal cocktails and a stand-alone gin menu. 

A £5 cocktail menu is also run alongside the site’s current full menu. While it sounds like quality won’t be a big part of the £5 offer, that’s not the case. Each drink on the ‘budget’ menu is made to a high standard, with just as much theatre and style as a more premium drink.

Knowledge

Staff are also very knowledgeable about other serves that aren’t on the lists and can knock together almost any drink.

Above the cocktail bar, which is in the basement, the site also has a busy restaurant. Plans to pair meals with cocktails are already under way, with the bar staff regularly creating drinks to go with starters, main courses and desserts.

To develop the business, there are plans to launch supper and cinema clubs, as well as cocktail masterclasses and prohibition-themed evenings and charity events.