Knowhere Special is both the best, and worst place to arrange a date.
For one, when your romantic partner-in-crime asks where you’d like to go, you need to answer “nowhere special” before awkwardly explaining the spelling.
For two, you can’t agree to meet them at the venue, either. At a place as well hidden as this, there’s a distinct possibility you’ll think you’ve been stood up, only to find out they’ve been stood on Kentish Town Road, crying in the rain and cursing your family name.
But, so long as you’ve arrived together, the fun can begin in earnest, and we can see the other side of the date spot coin.
Wedged between a café and a pub, you’ll both enter an unremarkable door, walk through a graffiti covered hallway, and down a narrow staircase until you’ve found your pot of gold; a small, low lit, living room style speakeasy that seats no more than 30. Flea market rugs, taxidermy and exposed brick walls give this shelter a chilled out, bohemian atmosphere.
Because their website only provides an address and an email and they don’t have a phone, finding a current cocktail menu to entice you with is as hard as locating a fourteen-year-old who’s just got their first partner – however, expect a concise, inventive list, all of which are accompanied by interesting snacks. A cocktail we had was Friar’s Luck (home-spiced rum, Benedictine, yellow Chartreuse, burnt orange, and frankincense), and it was delicious.
There’s even a house Jack Russell called Otto…
…if you’re in need of a little hair of the dog.
NOTE: Knowhere Special is open Tues-Saturday, 5pm-late. There are no reservations, so just drop in.
Knowhere Special | 296 Kentish Town Road, Kentish Town, NW5 2TG
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