Our Story
From the Basement to The World
The Cocktail Club didn’t become one of UK's most prestigious bar experiences overnight. In fact, our story started way back in 2008, when childhood friends JJ Goodman and James “Hoppy” Hopkins, with nothing more than a small loan from JJ’s mum, Lizzie, decided to change the London bar scene. Armed with a world-class drinks menu, years of cocktail expertise, and a passion for nightlife artistry, they came together to open the Covent Garden Cocktail Club.
From that moment onwards, a little local site with a lot of heart soon blossomed into one of London’s most booming bars. Aided by their victory on the 2009 UK television program, The Restaurant, which featured Raymond Blanc and Dragons’ Den’s Sarah Willingham, The Cocktail Club began to revolutionise the London cocktail scene.
Since that first site, TCC has exploded outwards, winning a range of national awards from London Lifestyle, Time Out, Design My Night, and more.
What started with a speakeasy-style basement has now become London’s most sought-after party experience. 13 years and 17 new sites later, The Cocktail Club brings the very best of British Bars to your night out. We party harder, we go for longer, we do it better. Every. Single. Time.
Founder
JJ Goodman
A globally recognized personality and thought-leader in the world of mixed drinks, JJ Goodman is the Founder and Owner of The Cocktail Club bar group.
Infatuated with bartending from a young age, JJ had firmly established himself as an innovator in the drinks industry before opening his first bar at the age of 24 in 2008. Since then, he has opened an additional 10 cocktail bars across London, pioneered revolutionary cocktail trends around the world, and is seen as one of the globe’s greatest drinks minds due to his many accolades.
Achievements & Recognition
Among JJ’s achievements, highlights include winning the 42 Below Cocktail World Cup, becoming one of London Lifestyle Award’s 50 Most Influential People and one of Zagat’s 30 Under 30 Trailblazers. JJ also won BBC Two’s The Restaurant in 2008, which consequently secured him a business partnership with Dragons’ Den’s Sarah Willingham and chef personality Raymond Blanc OBE. This win catapulted JJ’s career into the limelight, and he is now recognized as the leading celebrity bartender. Recent television credits include Alan Carr: Chatty Man, Let’s Do Lunch with Gino and Mel, The Alan Titchmarsh Show and Saturday Kitchen.
JJ has also recently partnered with multiple global brands and is currently an ambassador for the likes of Sainsbury’s, Marks & Spencer, Lidl, Red Bull, Eurostar, & Marriott. Other notable media credits include features in The Daily Mail, Wall Street Journal, Evening Standard, Metro, The Sunday Times and Bar Magazine.
After partnering with The Prince’s Trust, Springboard UK, and the British Institute of Innkeeping (BII), JJ is now focused on education and developing a community of resources within the hospitality industry. His vision is to open doors within hospitality for Britain’s unemployed youth and, in collaboration with the industry’s leading companies, to create the first government accredited qualification in specialized cocktail bartending.