Hokus Pokus for celebrations and group nights out

Some bars work for groups. Others work for groups who want the evening to feel like it was worth organising. Hokus Pokus is the second kind.

It’s an underground cocktail bar at 1 Belgrove Street, London WC1H 8AB, underneath The Megaro Hotel in King’s Cross. The Victorian apothecary interiors, the botanical cocktail list built around in-house preparations, the below-street-level setting that separates the evening from whatever was happening above ground — these are the ingredients of a night out that has a shape to it rather than a string of rounds at a generic bar.

Why it suits a celebration

The setting does work that most bars can’t. Descending below street level into a space that looks like a deconstructed apothecary shop from a parallel Victorian future creates an immediate sense of occasion — the kind that makes a birthday, a leaving do or a work social feel deliberately chosen rather than default. The copper pipework, the cabinets of curiosity, the theatrical lighting that shifts as the evening develops: none of it is background noise. It’s the point.

The cocktails match that ambition. Everything on the menu is made from ingredients distilled, infused, pickled or smoked on the premises — botanical concoctions and in-house creations that give the group something to talk about and the team something to guide you through. A round of interesting cocktails with a story behind them is a better beginning to a celebration than a round of whatever’s on tap.

The atmosphere is lively without being loud. For a group celebration where conversation is part of the point, that balance matters more than most venues manage.

What occasions it suits

Birthdays are the most natural fit. The sense of occasion the venue creates, the cocktail menu as an experience in itself, the below-street-level setting that separates the evening from the ordinary — all of it earns its place for a birthday night out more than a conventional bar would.

Leaving dos benefit from a venue that feels like it was chosen rather than defaulted to. Hokus Pokus is the kind of place colleagues and friends remember because it’s specific — the evening has a character that a chain bar on the high street doesn’t.

Work socials work here for the same reason. The sharing of cocktails, the team’s guidance through the menu, the environment that generates its own conversation — these things help a group of colleagues relax into an evening in a way that a standard bar rarely does.

Hen parties, birthday weekends and group visits from out of town all benefit from a venue that gives the evening a focal point. For guests arriving by Eurostar or from elsewhere in the UK, King’s Cross is the most straightforward destination in London — and Hokus Pokus, directly opposite St. Pancras International, is reachable from the station without any additional journey.

Planning a group visit

For groups of six or more, booking in advance is strongly recommended. The bar is intimate enough that walk-ins at peak times — Fridays and Saturdays particularly — risk a wait or no availability. A booking confirms the space and allows the team to prepare for the group.

Table sessions are timed: the team can confirm the duration for your group size when you book. Arriving on time matters — the bar operates a 20-minute grace period. If you’re running late, call ahead.

For larger celebrations or groups who want the bar to themselves, Hokus Pokus is available for private hire. Contact the team directly to discuss availability, capacity and what that looks like for your occasion.

Ordering for a group

The best approach for a group is to let the team guide the first round. Tell them what each person usually drinks — spirit preferences, whether they want something sweet or bitter, fruit-forward or complex — and the team will make recommendations from the botanical prescriptions menu. Most cocktails are customisable, so no one needs to settle for something that doesn’t suit them.

If the group has a mix of drinkers and non-drinkers, the alcohol-free options on the menu are made with the same botanical approach as the alcoholic ones — not afterthoughts, but drinks built with the same level of care.

Before or after the bar

For celebrations that start with dinner, Spagnoletti — the Italian restaurant at 23 Euston Road, directly opposite King’s Cross and St. Pancras — handles group bookings well and the semi-private mezzanine seats up to 30 guests. Dinner at Spagnoletti followed by cocktails at Hokus Pokus is a complete evening without leaving the Collection’s King’s Cross neighbourhood.