Cocktails and Prison Cells at ‘Alcotraz’
In a twist on reality, this crazy new pop-up will leave you wanting to sneak into jail. Located on Brick Lane in Shoreditch, London- guests are invited to swap their glamorous attire for orange jumpsuits and smuggle alcohol past the guards.
A play on the infamous ‘Alcatraz Island’, the bar stands to represent elements of its historic prowess. With guests sitting in cells surrounded by their fellow inmates, to being served cocktails in unassuming containers. As well as this, all of the criminality is overseen by the watchful eye of the prison warden.
In a turn against the norm, guests are invited to bring their own booze to the bar and are challenged to somehow get it past the guards that patrol the area. If they are successful in their mission, then a trained mixologist will concoct cocktails for the prisoner.
Contraband and Controversy?
Whilst founder Sam Shearman intended the bar to be a “hugely fun experience”. The intention being to “allow visitors to experience a slice of Alcatraz penitentiary only seen by most in fiction”. However, it has come under-fire for trivialising the reality of prison life.
Jane Gould Smith, who acts as the chief executive of ‘Clean Sheet’, has said to The Guardian that; “I do not endorse customers paying 30 quid a pop for a cheap thrill, to pretend to play drug smugglers trying to smuggle contraband, which is a huge issue in prisons”
Shearman responded by stating that “The purpose of the bar is not to romanticise any wrongdoing,”. However, whether you agree or disagree with Smith one thing is clear. The comical and light-hearted nature of the bar will almost guarantee an amazing night, as long as you don’t get caught.
Whilst this article focuses on getting into prison, check out the real life ‘snake man’ as he attempts to make his way out of his jail cell. Perhaps some of ‘Alcotraz’s guests should try this as a method of getting in.
