This London Speakeasy Is Hidden Behind a Bookshelf in Soho

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While wandering through Soho, I stumbled across a whisky shop that didn’t seem like much at first, until I learned what was hidden behind the shelves. The Vault Soho sits behind a bookshelf in the back of the store, and finding it is part of what makes the experience fun. Keep reading to see what it’s like inside this hidden London speakeasy and whether it’s worth the stop.

The Vault Speakeasy in Soho

The Vault Soho is hidden beneath Milroy’s of Soho, one of London’s most well-known whisky shops.

Inside, the shelves are stacked with whisky bottles from floor to ceiling, and it feels like the kind of place you pop into without much thought.

The exterior of Milroy’s of Soho on Greek Street, a historic whisky shop that’s been around since the 1960s.

That’s what makes it so surprising when you realize there’s a speakeasy hiding behind it.

My Experience at The Vault

What I love about The Vault is its fun secret entrance!

All you have to do is enter through the whisky shop upstairs, then slip behind a bookshelf and head down the secret stairs.

Finding the Bookshelf

After stepping inside The Vault Soho, I walked toward the back of the room and immediately started scanning the shelves.

Finding the bookshelf was easily my favorite part of the experience.

The hidden bookshelf inside Milroy’s of Soho that opens up to The Vault, one of London’s speakeasy bars.

Once I spotted it, I pushed it open and revealed a dark staircase leading down, with a simple sign pointing the way to The Vault at the bottom.

Opening the hidden bookshelf at the Vault Speakeasy in London

There’s something so satisfying about physically opening a hidden door yourself.

Once I made it down the stairs, everything shifted from an ordinary whisky shop into a true speakeasy experience.

Cocktails at The Vault Soho

The space opened up into a moody, intimate bar that felt completely separate from the busy Soho streets above.

The lighting was low, the atmosphere calm, and the focus was clearly on the drinks.

The cozy, low-lit interior that gives this London speakeasy its intimate, tucked-away feel.

I ordered the Coconut Butter Old Fashioned, made with coconut oil–infused Buffalo Trace bourbon, Peychaud’s bitters, Angostura bitters, and Woodstock fortified wine.