Are you struggling to get into the new speakeasy bar in Union street, Aberdeen? The entrance password is to be found on Instagram, although it is only up for about an hour on a Friday.
The password is one of the 21 crimes that got you deported to Australia. More on that later, but first the review.
After weeks of much anticipation my friends and I obtained the password. So there we stood outside Vovem ringing the bell, and nothing happening. Hmmm........................Did they just not like the look of us, and so never answered the bell?
Finally after a 2 minute wait, the beautiful people departed. And there at the end of the departed was a young chap in bonnet blocking our entrance.
I looked him in the eyes and declared "I have a confession to make, I am in possession of forged notes". There was hesitation, there definitely was, as he looked me up and down. However he must have sensed my frustration rising, and said "ok, come in".
Down the stairs and to the left and hallelujah we were in. "Hmm", I thought, slightly disappointed, "is this what all the fuss was about?"
We found ourselves in a cramped room with dark green walls, loud music and lots of little nooks and crannies to sit in. The blokes behind the bar all wore bonnets and did indeed look like they were from the prohibition era. It was busy, quite crowded, and you kind of got the impression most folk inside were up themselves.
We ordered some cocktails. At £8 a pop they weren't cheap and to be honest the choice was a little disappointing. None with Malibu. None with whisky liqueur, just with whisky.
The barman definitely put in a lot of effort to creating them but then came the disappointing part. He filtered my cocktail into a very small glass, and stopped when it was full. A very tiny cocktail indeed, and worst of all was that the metal mixer probably still had at least another half glass inside it. But the remains were simply discarded to the side! At £8 a pop that simply isn't on!
The music was quite loud, could not be turned down , and so speaking certainly was not easy.
No beers behind the bar also made for a rather thirsty experience.
Would I go back? To be honest, only if someone else was paying. I didn't do a full examination of the area but it was quite crowded and dingy so tripping up or bumping into someone is not unlikely. I guess you could say it was at least authentic in terms of not being flash or visible.
Worth a visit? Yes.
Likely to get your return custom? Only if you are not claustrophobic, love cocktails and have money to burn. Or are trying to hide from someone!
And now the 21 crime passwords. Check Instagram on a Friday for the current one.
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