Mystery bar number 61

File under: drink, nightlife, Wellington

It didn't take long to identify the previous mystery bar as the Herd Street Brasserie, and I'm expecting this one to be a bit of a doddle as well. A few of the recent mystery bars have been primarily cafés, but this place is all bar, and if the food is not quite an afterthought, then it definitely comes after drink and possibly music in the list of priorities. The décor is eclectic (part glamour, part dishevelled retro), and glittering decorative touches are mixed up with plain dark wood and a rather alarming carpet. It's been described to me as "very masculine", and I guess it is in a gentlemen's club sort of way, but there are a few frilly and feathery bits and pieces that I doubt would be well received among the clubbable gents of Pall Mall.

The wine and beer lists seemed adequate if predictable, but this is a place that specialises in spirits. There are brands and rare bottle here that I've never seen anywhere else, some from parts of the world (such as India and Guyana) that one doesn't usually associate with liquor. It would take the most dedicated lush connoisseur many weeks of arduous, expensive yet undeniably delicious toil to sample every bottle here.

There are plenty of leather booths and mismatched armchairs in which such an exhausted adventurer could rest between drinks, though the proximity of some of the seating to the dancefloor could make it less than relaxing. While there's plenty of emphasis on comfort, this is also a place made for raucous late-night shenanigans.