thrillist

Hyper-focus can yield astonishing depth -- like John Coltrane teasing out the possibilities of one note in "My Favorite Things", or Hugh Grant teasing out the possibilities of "bumbling womanizer" as he too hit only one note. Going all gin: The Arch Bar -- soft open now, official launching Wednesday.

A wood-floored booze den with windows looking up at Wellington's Arch from beneath the Hyde Park Intercontinental, Arch's bar stocks 25 basic brands of juniper-juice, but also offers a huge range of home-infused variations from their "apothecary station" -- also where heroin addicts catch a Train in Vein. Martini & tonic enhancers swing from Bulldog loaded with lotus leaves, liquorice & lychee, to Plymouth w/ cherry, bitter lemon & almond stones, to malt wine, corn & wheat abetted Bols Genever; on the cocktail front, there's the "Old Time Tipple" (Berkeley Square, cranberry, cherry tom, basil), and the Six O'clock, cherry liqueur, cassis & lemon Mother's Ruin, aka the "Daniel Craig". Because choice is sometimes good, beyond-gin offerings include the Churchill Downs (Kentucky bourbon, mint, sugar, soda), the Toasted Cabbie (toasted hazelnut atop Cognac, almond liqueur, orange & lemon), and the rum/ grapefruit/ Maraschino Ernest Roots, named for Hemingway, who personally ensured there would be no Roots Revival.

Moveable feasts provided by the abutting Wellington Lounge include Scottish lobster cakes, steak empanadas, yellowfin sashimi w/ Portland crab maki, and warm pork & lemongrass dumplings -- so good, you would go up a hill for them, after you've finished having awkward sex with an attractive woman, because that's what cartographer's assistants do.

Add this to My Thrillist

They're running a daily Gin Hour, from 5.30-6.30, giving away mini-versions of their cocktails. Get way more than seven deadly gins at ICHotelsGroup.com