cato, Covent Garden review: Cheese martinis and mushroom brandies in the new London bar for the most adventurous cocktail lovers
Prepare to have your tastebuds — and your mind — blown away.
Do mushrooms have a place in a cocktail serve? How about a block of cheese in your martini? If the prospect of either sets your tastebuds tingling rather than cowering in fear, cato will be the cocktail bar for you.
A new Covent Garden hangout that mixes New York soul with very British ingredients, it’s got mixology royalty behind the bar, and drinks that look crazy on paper but are a revelation on the tongue.
Inspired by 19th-century celebrity bartender Cato Alexander, this bar takes heritage mixology seriously, but welcomes adventurous guests with open arms. The result? Clever drinks, comforting food, and a vibe that feels like someone took a Manhattan tavern and taught it a few modern tricks. Read on for why it should be top of your list the next time you’re chasing a new taste sensation.
WHERE IS IT?
You’ll find cato tucked away on the corner of Mercer Street in Covent Garden — that lively stretch where theatre crowds, shoppers and slightly lost tourists collide.
The bar is spread over two levels, and each has its own personality. Upstairs feels like a cosy New York tavern: dark walnut panelling with colourful abstract art, a stool-seating bar for an up-close and personal look at the drinks being made, soft lighting and enough seating for 20 or so walk-ins. Downstairs things get moodier with corner booths and a stainless steel bar seating area, where the most elaborate cocktails are concocted.
It’s upstairs for casual drinks with friends, downstairs for when you want to flex the boundaries of your palate.
WHAT’S SPECIAL?
The cocktails are the headline act here, overseen by award-winning bartender Angelos Bafas — a name cocktail nerds will already recognise. His philosophy is simple on the surface but wildly intricate underneath: minimal, seasonal ingredients for maximum flavour.
The beautifully presented menu downstairs is called “Colour Has Flavour”, which sounds abstract until you realise it’s built around a clever concept: drinks grouped by colour, exploring how colour and its associated ingredients affects the way we taste things.
So instead of a paragraph-long poetic cocktail name to tug at the heartstrings, instead you’ll be ordering something like “Wasabi + Mustard Greens” or “Sweet Woodruff + Cream.” To the point — at cato, the flavours do the talking.
It’s worth noting that everything — ingredients, spirits, herbs — come from the UK. Even the mint in your drink might be grown on site thanks to the bar’s in-house herb system.
WHAT’S NEW?
Everything, really! cato is a brand-new opening, and it’s one of the more intriguing cocktail launches London has seen recently. The venue also includes cato’s Study — essentially a cocktail laboratory where the team host mixology masterclasses and showcase experimental drinks. For more on those events, enquire on the cato website.
WHO SHOULD YOU BRING?
Cocktail geeks will lose their minds over the creative menu downstairs at cato, but our visit saw couples and after-work groups all settling in. I’d say it’d actually make for a great solo visit too — sit at the bar, have a chat about flavours with the incredible team, let them pick you a winner, and just enjoy the flavour odyssey by yourself without the distraction of conversation. A cocktail led ‘mindful moment’, if you like.
WHAT SHOULD YOU WEAR?
Don’t fuss at cato — while you’ll never want to be the slob in a room, the bar is relaxed and welcoming. Smart trainers will do, but leave the joggers for the gym.
WHAT WILL YOU PAY?
Cocktails sit roughly in the £14 to £18 range — pretty standard for a quality central London cocktail bar, and I’d say a steal given the craft on show here.
Add a few snacks or small plates and you’re likely looking at £35 – £60 per person. But the drinks menu is so full of intriguing ideas and combinations that you’re likely going to order a few drinks out of pure curiosity, even when your thirst has been truly quenched.
WHAT SHOULD YOU DRINK?
There are beers and wines on offer, but the cocktails here are non-negotiable. They’re very much the star of the show at cato, whether you’re sitting upstairs or down.
The knowledgeable staff can handle any classic you ask of them, and the more traditional upstairs bar is also no slouch in the flavour combo stakes — I kicked off with a wild Irish Coffee Old Fashioned (£15) that was unlike any Old Fashioned I’d had before, mixing Monkey Shoulder Malt Whisky with Irish cream liqueur and toffee for a complex layering of sweet and savoury tastes.
But downstairs at the basement the ‘Colour Has Flavour’ menu is where it’s really at.
A few standouts from the colour-themed menu include:
- Wildflower Honey + Tumeric (Orange) (£15) – The winner of the night. With a Glendronach 12 year old whiskey at its heart, this lightly carbonated highball had a summery sweetness, with its honeyed smoothness balanced against a zingy citrus and turmeric kick.
- Elderflower + Cheese (White) (£17) – The weird one that I insist everyone must try. A dry martini with Cygnet 22 Welsh dry gin and X muse vodka, this savoury sip is infused with British cheeses, softened by an elderflower mead. It’s challenging but tasty, playful with its cheddar block in place of an olive, and boozy enough to blow your head off, too.
- Medlar + Mushroom (Brown) (£17) – Earthy, savoury and a little bit mind-bending, this Burnt Faith Brandy, mushroom distillate and vermouth combo, topped with a smoked Cornish tea, is another must-try. The way the mushroom creeps up on the finish is a mystery that your tongue will never solve, and never forget.
- Forced Rhubarb + Apple Blossom (Pink) (£15) – A mix of Ramsbury Single Estate Vodka, in-house apple blossom spirit, rhubarb, lemon balm and a fortified rosé wine. Light, refreshing, and just waiting for the sun to finally shine.
If you’re overwhelmed, ask the staff — they clearly love explaining the drinks and pointing you in the right direction.
MUST-TRY DISHES
The drinks are the stars at cato, but the New York inspiration extends to a hearty small plates and sharing menu — even if the ingredients remain steadfastly British. We snacked on a delicious British Charcuterie mini board (£12) that included coppa, venison salami, soppresata salami, caper berries and focaccia. And you can hardly call it an NYC joint without a Beef Pastrami Sandwich (£15), with just the right amount of sauerkraut and mustard, and a hint of cinnamon.
GET ON THE GUESTLIST?
If your palate thinks it’s seen it all, cato is a must-visit. Experimental, at times challenging, but never less than delicious, there’s a craft and care to the experience that few other London cocktail bars can offer. It’s a joyous reminder of just how lucky we are to have tastebuds, and the wild flavours out there to turn them on with.
If you’re wandering around Covent Garden, the upstairs House of Julep welcomes walk-ins. For the full experience (especially downstairs with the Colour Has Flavour menu), booking ahead via their website is a smart move. But the full menu is available at the upstairs bar, too.
Make your reservations direct at the cato website. cato is found at 17 Mercer St, London WC2H 9QJ, and is open Tuesday to Sunday from 3pm. For more, check out the @catocoventgarden Instagram page.
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