Pantechnicon is a multi-venue space in the heart of Piccadilly that offers two restaurants (one Nordic, one Japanese), drinks areas, a café, various private event options and a unique shop which doubles up as one of London’s smallest bars: Sakaya.
Found on the ground floor, this unique spot is a Japanese bottle shop stocked with both rare and exclusive bottles of whisky and sake and offers a place to try interesting serves in cosy surrounds. With only four seats, you can book the bar in its entirety for an intimate gathering and take full advantage of the carefully curated menu. Alternatively, feel free to drop by in case of a free seat, it’s the ideal destination for a low-key date. Warm lighting and wooden walls create a relaxing atmosphere and the helpful and knowledgeable team are on hand to help with picking the perfect serve.
Cocktails include favourites like the Sakura – a Roku gin serve made with vermouth and peach – which is punchy with alcohol but mellowed with sweet fruit notes. Elsewhere a White Blossom combines Haku vodka with sake, rhubarb, cherries and oat milk for a sophisticated and lightly creamy drink. Popular Japanese High Balls are also given a dedicated section, garnished with traditional ingredients like shiso leaf, yuzu wedges or pandan.
If you prefer appreciating sips in their purest form, there are also well thought through whisky and sake flights which change according to the best bottles that are in stock at any one time. These have been carefully chosen by the bar team and allow you to taste either three different whiskys or three different sakes, with tasting notes and tips offered from staff along the way.
Helping to complement the drinks is a small line-up of snacks that just help to take the edge of things. Think pepper flecked almonds, crispy lotus crisps or tempura nori bites.