How do people manage to keep abreast of the number of private members clubs in London? And by 'members clubs', I’m not talking about your gentlemen-only, port-quaffing, cigar-puffing gigs that attract the same sort of people that enjoy fox hunting.
What we actually have are a whole host of venues aimed squarely at the readership of this site. Well, at least the ones who aren’t quite ready for pipes and slippers.
In the City alone, we host the trend-defining Shoreditch House, the edgier Milk and Honey group, and the more urbane Number 8 clubs. Yet there are plenty more on the horizon with the soon-to-be launched Gresham Street, and the recent discovery (for me, anyway) that is the 40/30 Bar in The Gherkin.
While I’ve always known there was a venue atop of this landmark building, I didn’t realise it was part of a private members club. Technically it’s known as Searcys Club, The Gherkin (Searcys actually being an upmarket catering company), and it pitches itself as the City’s most exclusive private members club, restaurant and Champagne Bar. But don’t they all.
Nevertheless, it doesn’t take much to imagine that if anything, 40/30 will have a good view. Well, for once I am going to agree with the PRs behind this place when they say that the views from the glass dome are simply breathtaking. If anything, that does it a slight disservice. The space on top of the Norman Foster-designed Gherkin that houses the bar is an architectural wet dream. The striking contrasts of the sky and London’s cityscape are framed by the iron girders that Foster’s engineers have forged into the dome. On a clear day you can see the best views I’ve ever seen across the city, taking in all four corners of London. The view is so impactful that it is very hard to resist spending your first 20 minutes madly snapping ‘look at me’ pix on your phone before uploading them to Facebook. But maybe that was just me.
However, you don’t go to a private members club just for the view. The bar staff are incredibly charming and very efficient. Given that it seats around 200 people and the night the Northerner and I visited it was at capacity, the team coped admirably with an excitable and thirsty crowd. We attacked the cocktail menu, and started with a couple of the Champagne variety – Gherkin Fizz with Amaretto, Blue Curacao and lemon juice; Apple Vice with Grand Marnier and apple. They were crisp and refreshing.
We then sampled two Martini cocktails – Aromatic Elixir with Tanqueray, Amaretto, LBV Port, lemon juice and strawberry puree; and the La Boheme, with Ketel One vodka, elderflower, Chambord and cranberry juice. They were both superb concoctions and we had to show considerable constraint not to have a repeat round.
Fortunately we tried two more from the long drink range, the Elderflower Collins with Hendricks gin, elderflower, lemon juice, sugar and soda, and the Mai Tai with Pamero Especial rum, Orange Curacao, orange juice, lime juice and sugar. Now, the only other time we had tried Mai Tais was in Hong Kong for the Northerner, and the legendarily-bad Covent Garden cocktail bar that was Long Island Ice Tea for me. I think it's fair to say that neither of our experiences were good. Well 40/30 overturned years of accumulated prejudice by producing a Mai Tai that was stunning. I don’t often recommend trying a particular drink, but I will in this case.
To make sure we didn’t make complete spectacles of ourselves we did sample some of the bar snacks, of which the grissini and dips (mayonnaise and green pesto) were particularly moreish.
40/30 isn’t cheap but it's not wallet busting, either. Cocktails hover around the £13 mark, which might sound steep, but for the quality and that view is money well spent.
The punters are very City – lawyers, insurance brokers, and of course, bankers. You won’t find any fashionable young things here. While the ambience, no doubt triggered by the views, is laid-back cocktail lounge. This is striking contrast to the nearby pubs and bars, which have a more frenzied atmosphere.
Searcy’s also has a club lounge on the 38th floor, a restaurant and private dining rooms for punters or execs looking to entertain in style. So far so perfect, but there is one thing that is a little odd.
To get into 40/30, you have to go via the main reception to the Gherkin. The entrance necessitates that you have a full security clearance, which actually means going through metal detectors and bag x-ray machines. You half-expect the security guards to ask you to remove your shoes. And while this is fine early on, if you were coming from another bar or restaurant later in the evening and feeling a bit ‘fresh’, negotiating the entry might prove a little bit tricky. Because after all isn’t one of the main joys of being in a private members club being the ability to drop in any time you like? There’s a lot be said for an old fashion door person to greet you. Perhaps the traditional members clubs haven’t got it all wrong.
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