"I've walked past Translate bar several times, mostly in the day and each time I think ooh, what's that place, that looks nice' before realising again it is Translate. On Saturday, I actually went in, for a drink or two before The Dance Assembly at the Horse and Groom.And it was nice. It wasn't as busy as I feared it would be plenty of people to give it an atmosphere but there was still plenty of space for standing, or, if you were lucky, sitting like we did. There's pretty lights at the window and interesting art on the wall, plus that stripped back, brick thing that Shoreditch does so well. They had a couple of interesting beers that Stephen went for I had an averagely priced glass of house white which was plenty drinkable before perusing the cocktail list. These are mainly (or if you go for one of the posh' ones their words) which is an acceptable price to pay for a cocktail in a place whose raison d'etre isn't cocktails unlike, say, Callooh Callay or Worship Street Whistling Shop. I ordered the Taste of Honey (apparently the first person to actually call it by its name, rather than just the top two ingredients of honey and lime listed on the menu The menu, by the way, is a rather cute-looking thing itself, the ingredients of each cocktail being designed in the shape of a drink (presumable to match what it looks like when served). The taste of honey was a short, strong drink of rum, but obviously the addition of honey gave it a sweetness that I like in my boozy beverages. It was great, and I could have have had many more but I didn't want to spend a fortune so I switched back to wine for my last drink there.The music while we were in there was fantastic. I meant to write down just a few choice songs but each time another song came on, it was again worthy of note. So, a selection of our soundtrack to the night included:Salt n Pepa's Whatta Man, Soul II Soul's Back to Life, Madonna's Papa Don't Preach, The Doors – Break on Through, The Beach Boys – Barbara Ann and Aretha's Respect. Not too shabby diverse and a little bit old school but all gems to put you in a mood for a night out."
