Mokoko Cocktail Bar

I know the owner, he was one of my 3 favourite barmen in Barney’s years ago. The Place is very small & he is to be commended, for what he has managed to do, with such a limited amount of space (Compact & bijou) is definitely the word to describe Mokoko. They do make good cocktails & the doormen have always been charming to me. The only downfall is the size, because unless you are waiting outside the door, at opening time, you are very unlikely to get a seat & manoeuvring through all the crammed in drinkers, to find yourself a spot to stand, with your drink, can result in most of it knocked down you.
There is a small outside patio area with 2 or 3 tables, but with our rubbish summers, if you do get one you are normally sat there shivering! One of the more silly drawbacks of the place, is their habit of reserving tables, so you are often crammed in, while tables sit empty for 20 30mins, when you could of come in had a drink, there then go.
I went there recently on my birthday, in June, I went there with a girlfriend for a drink or two, and a group of 4 girls, got up from a reserved table & left. So my friend & I sat down with our tasty Cosmopolitan’s, thinking the reserved crowd had just left. I popped to the ladies just before finishing off my drink & ordering the next. The ladies (Another downfall, only one small toilet, so you often have to queue outside it) placed at an awkward spot by the bar.
When I came back, my friend passed me my jacket & said We are going I went to finish my drink, but it had gone. She said the barman had come over & rudely told her to get up, the table was reserved, she hadn’t noticed, that my Cosmopolitan wasn’t finished, when he took it. She said he had given her no chance to say, she had assumed the reserved sign had been for the 4 girls who’d got up from the table earlier & had been very rude & abrupt in his manner too her.
She said Lets find someone else to take our money that, at least acts like they appreciate our custom so we went to The Peahen, where we bumped into a couple who had been on the table next to us, who had been leaving as I came back from the ladies, they were sitting there annoyed & indignant, talking about how rude the barman had just been to them (Apparently the same scenario my friend had experienced!!)
To be honest I think the reserved tables bit, in such a minute venue, is daft, they should scrap that, but close it to the public, for a set fee, for people who want to hire Mokoko for private cocktail based partys! If you like a well made cocktail that doesn’t come cheap, and don’t mind feeling crammed like on the underground, it could be the bar for you, if not maybe save it for a special lunch time drink, when you may have some room & a free table.

Set off the main drag of St Albans competitive and compelling nightlife lies Mokoko’s Cocktail and Wine Bar. Deep dark purple signage suggests money and a member’s club feel and once you have stepped up the hefty steps, a doorman heaves open the door, a treasure lies within. Believe me you do need money to come in here but boy is it worth it. The place was packed with it being a Saturday after pay day after a long and somewhat alcoholically dry January.
I had with me an egg that I had stolen from Pizza Express. Yes a hen’s egg. I vowed to love, nurture and cherish this gift of life, insisting it would one day hatch. The egg was a talking point with friendly punters and sadly as I placed her on the bar to photograph her, she rolled off, smashing beneath my platforms. The manager quickly came to the floors aid and scooped up the mess, with me saying «who would bring an egg to a lovely place like this?» in his ear hole. Ahem.
We got served quickly, even though the bar area is tiny and were produced with a fantastic passion fruit cocktail with a shot of expensive champagne. Later I had a shot of tequila and an 80’s Pina Colada which I have to say was the best I’d ever had. Even after real ones in Cuba. Music was current, cool and loud and I managed to burst into the VIP section and get brought some drinks for myself and the other two darling Nicola’s. Result. To finish off my fabulous members only kind of evening I used my light fingers again to acquire a lovely chalk board. This lives on my kitchen table.

Great place for quality cocktails. Dress to impress. Fabulous staff. Not cheap.

A great cocktail bar with some superb classics and modern wonders the best in my opinion is their own ‘Plum Sour’ — The sour is a mixed drink containing plum sake, lemon juice, sugar, and optionally a an egg white which give is a ‘head’ — It is shaken and served either straight or over ice. The traditional garnish is half an orange slice and a maraschino cherry.
The bouncers and the bar staff will make you feel most welcome.
L:-D

This is a really nice modern cocktail bar, based just slightly off the town centre in St Albans. It is a little tricky to find (just off a side street), but once you get there its worth the trip!
It is really stylishly decorated inside, and whilst it is very sophisticated, you still feel relaxed in there. The cocktails are quite expensive, but very yummy! They will even make you a cocktail to suit your tastes if you don’t see anything on the menu you like.
Definitely worth a trip!

I don’t particularly like the layout of this compact cocktail bar (narrow pathway to toilets between the door and bar to causes havoc), nor the fact that there is a one out one in door policy when it gets busy, but you can’t knock a good cocktail and Mokoko certainly delivers on that front.
From the exterior this bar looks like an old man’s pub but upon entering you notice straight away the stylish design and modern touches to the décor. It was once an old boozer called The Harrow but there is not a whiff of it anymore. The crowd that drink here I would say are between 25 – 35, quite a smartly dressed bunch, however there’s also the odd hen party too — you have been warned. The place always has a fun and friendly ambience and like I said the staff really know their stuff about making a cocktail or two, prices start at £7.00. Definitely one to pop into if you are in St Albans — but go early or you will be stuck outside cueing!

Sophisticated venues are all too rare in St. Albans, so when Mokokos moved in it was quickley snapped up with facebook events for 21^st birthday parties.
Cocktails galore and a fancy venue so can get nice and dressed up without the worry of being sat next to a burberry chav.
Cocktails are around £8 each but if you don’t fancy one you can always grab a popular beer.
Don’t fancy alcohol? Their non alcohol cocktails are just as much of a treat. I had the watermellon and pepper. Scrummy!
Not your birthday? Impress that special lady on a first date.
Mokokos do not serve food but it is is surrounded but popular italian restaurants.
A great night out.