Oh come all thee to an old faithful; the newest iteration of a London classic has landed — Rita’s. Birthed into the basement of an East London nightclub, Rita’s has grown up in symbiosis with London’s creative scene, developing first to a restaurant on Mare St, then to serving sandwiches at their cozy Bodega in Kings Cross. Now, as the evenings draw shorter and the festive season glitters on our calendars, Rita’s is the place to go for dinner on Lexington Street in Soho. And their drinks menu, curated by Missy Flynn, is always “seasonal first”.
“I am lucky that we work with a few farms and growers who make small productions of very seasonal ingredients.” Flynn says. “This is evident in the lead flavours we use in things like our margarita specials, and the spritzes. Basic drinks can be made special with a few seasonal tweaks.” When making a thoughtful cocktail, Missy asks — Is it balanced? Does everything in it serve a purpose? Add something? Does it make sense in its context?