ITS no secret that we enjoy trying out new things and by ‘things’ we mostly mean rum and bars… this just so happens to be one of those perfect storms were both were on the cards…
Not far from our humble abode in west London lies the rum and tiki lounge bar Trailer Happiness which was been established for some 11 years now so it was high-time that we paid this place a visit (its pretty much sacrilege that we haven’t been already!)
We choose a Friday night to pop our Trailer Happiness cherry and can safely say we had a great time from the moment we met Chris (the General Manager) moonlighting on the door and the host/security to saying goodbye to the bar staff at closing.
Rewinding to the beginning of the evening as we wandered down the stairs it was like we’d crossed a divide from 2014 to 1974 and in no way was this a bad thing! There is a truly fantastic vibe when you get into the bar that is instantly welcoming like an old friends front room (if that old friend happens to have a early-70s Californian cool surfer-style thing going on).
The decor is a mixture of open brick walls and veneer wood matched with beaded curtains and patterned carpet. To give it that intimate feel its topped off with customary low ceiling and matching low-riding tables and chairs.
The bar covers two-thirds of the wall as you walk in and is well stocked, as you expect, with rums from around the world and fronted by some of 
the most skillful and fun bartenders we’ve come across.
Opposite the bar is the open fronted DJ booth with a music policy that is described as (deep breath… “Harder They Come” meets “California Psychedelica” AND West London Ska AND Dub Lounge Beats, mixed up with the best rich AND exotic funk AND swinging beats from the ‘in crowd’ AND beat generation that we can dig out, rockin’ blues AND independent hip hop…everything we love.
Now the scene is set and the necessaries taken care of lets get down the the real important element and the make-or-break point… THE DRINKS MENU!
At first glance we can see its full of interpretations of popular classics (The Banzai ’45 or Mr Yellow Belly) to recipes of fully fledged Tiki favourites (Missionary’s Downfall, Rum Runners and Hell in the Pacific) as well as a host of ‘Trailer Originals‘ which meant it was living up to the potential we were hoping for!
And at the tasting stage it did not disappoint one little bit, each cocktail we tried was perfectly mixed, full of flavour and suitably strong – especially our favourite, Hell in the Pacific, which contained 73% dark overproofed rum, maraschino (cherry liqueur), lime and pomegranate Molasses – get one in when you first get there to start the party!
Fear not if rum isn’t your thing (or you just fancy something else) but you still like the sound of this place because they still stock lots of fine spirits, wine and beer. And if you’re feeling a little bit peckish then Head Chef ‘Toots’ is knocking out some amazing dim sum that works brilliantly with the tropical cocktails.
So in summary don’t make the same mistake we did… get yourself down to Trailer Happiness as soon as possible and enjoy the people, the atmosphere and most importantly their superb range of rums and cocktails!
177 Portobello Road, W11 2DY London, United Kingdom
Mon – Sat 17:00 – 00:00
Sun 17:00 – 23:00