Kitty Somerset

I found the atmosphere to clash… the furniture had a cozy café or dorm room feel to it, but the openness to the street (front wall of windows) and décor felt stark. It felt like I was trying to make myself at home with a drink in a furniture store, expecting a clerk to come over at any moment and ask what on earth I thought I was doing. Kinda fun at first, but that passed and I was just uncomfortable, despite the good company.
The drink selection was about what I expected. There was an interesting looking drink with a scotch soaked cigar, but they were out of cigars. That was frustrating.
A number of the drinks arrived differently than the menu described them, making us question the order… «Is this mine? It has an orange peel, I wasn’t expecting that and it seems an odd pairing.»
The staff were nice, but at times seemed distracted with doing fancy things to their friends drinks.
This is a very soft two stars, the place isn’t bad, but there is nothing particularly interesting or special and it really feels like there should be. Some minimal fine tuning could bump them to a strong four overnight.

On a recent visit to Kitty Sommerset I contemplated chucking in my career and becoming an English literature student so I could spend my study hours there. Yep, I could just imagine myself propped up on one of the couches, book in my lap, pen behind my ear and a glass of red wine on the little side table next to me… I’d find myself a poetry-​reading boyfriend, maybe act in a few plays, learn to sing again, and come here to get all intellectual while enjoying a fine range of cocktails and simple bar snacks. I’d be one of those ‘arty’ types and fit right in amongst the mis-​matched grandma-​chic furniture. Kitty Sommerset during the week seemed like the perfect place to undertake such pursuits.
Then I started calculating how much wine I could buy on a a student budget and quickly decided that being ‘arty’ probably wasn’t going to be as great as I thought, ordered another cocktail and vowed never give up my job so I could afford to come here more often.

I ran into one of my rockabilly friends last night getting of the train at Croxton and we agreed to meet for a drink some time soon. It’s no surprise she suggested Kitty Somerset on High Street as the design aesthetic kind of matches her own.
In saying that, I got absolutely no beef with this joint whatsoever. Kitty’s is part of this new wave of bars, cafes and restaurants that are brightening up this end of High Street (call it gentrification or whatever, but it’s better than disgusting men’s clubs and a bunch of crusty old bastards playing dominoes and staring at your girlfriend as she walks past). What once was the height of suburban boganity, the Thornbury stretch of the street is now populating with great little hideaways for those in the know.
Kitty’s do great cocktails in a great setting, with flair and in a cheery way. They have a courtyard for summer and an open fire for winter. Really, they’re one of the coolest little spots in the area. You should check it out…
And, it’s open LATE!