After a near-complete overhaul, Piccadilly department store Fortnum & Mason is relaunching its cocktail bar 3’6, with a menu that will let customers create their own cocktail.
Set on the third floor of the shop, in what was traditionally called the “gentlemen’s floor”, the bar first opened in 2017, and is set to reopen on May 1. Pronounced “three and six” — the name a reference to the historic cost of hiring Fortnums to host a cocktail party in a guests home — the new incarnation of the cocktail spot has more of a focus on art, and will also operate for coffee and cake in the daytime.
The overhaul has been done in partnership with French design studio Arthur Mamou-Mani, with Fortnums saying the bar will now offer “a bar and exhibition space for some of the world’s most exciting artists.” The first artist to feature will be street photographer Alan Schaller.
In the daytime, the space will serve tea and coffee, various soft drinks including smoothies, and will be available to book as a workspace. In the evening, cocktails will be served on a menu overseen by bartender Mustafa Tumburi, previously head bartender at Fortnums’ restaurant, 45 Jermyn Street.
Tumburi’s menu will update with seasonal ingredients, aiming to use regeneratively farmed products and leave as little waste as possible. It will be divided into three sections:
- The Six As the name indicates, six signature drinks of the bar, including the The Tesseract, a twist on the Vieux CarreÌ
- Made to Measure Where guests can mix their own drinks. The publicity gumpf says: “Guests will be guided through a four-step process, picking a base spirit, pairing it with an essence.”
- The Classics Just as it suggests, although with a number of in-house ferments available for those after a twist
Fortnums also has a wine bar found on the lower-ground floor, beside the food hall.
