Knock on the (Little Orange) Door this Christmas

We love the concept of the Little Orange Door. It’s made to feel like you’ve been invited to dinner at your artsy friend’s apartment. Let us explain. The bar is disguised as a kitchen (cocktails are scribbled on the back of pots and pans dangling from the ceiling), there’s a cosy ‘living room’ filled with sofas, a fireplace and a Christmas tree, there’s the bathtub which, by the way, is perfect for a mini photoshoot… It really is just like home!

All of the cocktails are inspired by favourite films of the staff (AKA the flatmates) and we soaked up the atmosphere with two funky drinks. The ‘Crimes of passion’ is their take on a Pornstar Martini and they’ve really upped the game here; strawberry and cream infused vodka is added to the usual passionfruit and fizz accompaniments. Oh, and there are 2 toasted marshmallows as a garnish. It’s as sweet and delicious as it sounds. Next was the ‘Forest Gump’ which was a nostalgic mouthful- lavender infused gin flavoured with raspberry and hibiscus made it deliciously floral and the addition of a puff of candy was a welcome bit of theatre.

The theme runs through to the food, too. You know that one friend who loves to host? They’ve got matching cutlery sets, impressive crockery and can whip up an impressive cocktail or two? It’s like you’ve been invited over to theirs. Except here there’s no need to offer to help with the cooking or washing up and everyone is as relaxed as can be.

We got a real spread for the table; the sage and apricot sausage roll and the pigs in blankets were a satisfyingly porky way to begin the meal. Both felt suitably festive and we especially appreciated the stuffing and gravy that came with the pigs in blankets which added a bit of substance to the bites. We freshened things up with the burrata which came with fennel and blood orange. We loved this one, it was a lovely way to whet the appetite and felt both bright and luxurious. A vegan salad can be easy to overlook, but the roasted pumpkin salad felt really generous. It came with kale, vegan feta, toasted seeds and dried cranberries which gave it all the satisfying textures of the season. The main event was the ‘Merry Crustmas’ which wasn’t your usual pizza by any stretch. It came with a gravy base and was topped with all the trimmings- turkey, cranberry, mozzarella, pigs in blankets… Christmas dinner on dough? We were sold. We finished with a chocolate orange brownie which was exactly what we were hoping for- a dollop of ice cream cut through the classic festive flavours perfectly.

It’s festivities galore at Little Orange Door. Check out our article here where we outlined all the goings-on, but whether you want a big party for 180 people or just a fun evening with a friend this holiday period, The Little Orange Door is the place.