Will Hawes and Aaron Wall open The Prince in London
A neighbourhood cocktail bar called The Prince has opened on Old Street, taking over the site that was once The Gibson.
Industry veterans Will Hawes and Aaron Wall have taken on the site on 44 Old Street, where The Gibson once was.
Hawes was part of the opening team of Booking Office 1869 in the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel and has also worked at 69 Colebrooke Row and Zetter Townhouse. Wall, meanwhile, co-founded London’s Homeboy bar and was manager of Callooh Callay for a time, as well as leading bars in Dublin and Paris.
The pair aim to ‘restore London’s traditional hosting style of a gracious, smart and clean service without the exclusivity and stuffiness’.
Named after ska musician Prince Buster, the bar has a gold and forest green colour scheme and combines a 1920s-era cocktail bar with the intimacy and warmth of a local pub.
Three signature cocktails headline the menu: The House Martini, Black Velvet and Buster’s Stout Punch.
The Punch features three different rums, Cognac, lemon sherbet, Guinness and nutmeg, and is served from a large Dickens-esque punch bowl at the bar.
The rest of the menu is divided between Aperitivo, Daisies, Fixes & Sours, and Booze Forwards. Classic cocktails are reimagined through modern syrups, liqueurs and fresh juices to revive original recipes.
There will also be a focus on the Martini, with The Prince offering 10 iterations of the cocktail alongside step-by-step instructions on how to build one’s own to their liking.
Additionally, draft and bottled beers and ciders, wine, and zero-ABV cocktails will be available.
The bar has been in a soft launch period and will officially open on 2 January 2026.
It will open from 3pm seven days a week, closing at 11pm on Sunday and Monday, and at 1am on Tuesday to Saturday.
For more new openings, see what venues graced the bar world over autumn.
In less fortunate news, popular Peckham bar Funkidory was forced to close last week.
Related news
UK distillery openings hit new highs in 2019
