The lights are red, low, cozy. The shadows project the silhouettes of the objects on the walls covered with Chinese tapestries. I almost feel like I’m in a Brian De Palma film, one of those where tension grows as in Snake Eyes with red lights. But I’m certainly not going to end up like the protagonist. The inspiration for this secret bar is China, you can see it in every detail: a secret China, that of the Wootsu Society – from which it takes its name – and it recalls the somewhat murky and nuanced atmosphere of opium shops. The Wootsu Society is one of the oldest secret societies in China: it literally means society of the five ancestors and contains a symbolism linked to the sacred animals in the country. This secret bar is located inside The Doping Club, the bar of the hotel The Yard.

Here you can access by invitation only, or better, by registering on their site and then receiving a card that will allow you – upon reservation that guarantees a one-hour stay – access to the secret bar. Do not try to understand where it is. The entrance is well hidden and you access it only through strange passages that we will not reveal to you. Too easy otherwise. The hand of the bar is that of Stefano Agostino, bar manager of The Doping who comes from experiences like the Savoy in London. Quality guarantee. Only 5 people at a time, you certainly don’t come here on a school trip. All you have to do is to try.

Martina Di Iorio

Translated by @silaskin