Bath is conservative when it comes to design but someone finally ditched the rule book and created this striking bar. To top it all, Grappa also serves great drinks and pizzas.

The Venue
Grappa Bar has a rustic made elegant look about it and it's one of the few Bath venues to have invested in elaborate decor. Starting from the back room, you will see the wine cellar behind an iron fence. On the wall there is a striking gold and cream floral wallpaper while the bar is covered in silver and grey.

Deer horns hang here and there together with stuffed fox heads, old-fashioned cot hangers and small glass lampshades. The exposed wooden beams on the walls and ceiling are mixed with modern touches, such as the punchy artwork that doubles as light panels. These light boxes are covered with colourful old-fashioned slides. Wood furnishings are everywhere and the chairs have straw seats, as typical in the rural Italian tradition. Upstairs, a bright dining room repeats all these motifs and the centre of attention is the black and white wallpaper on one side.

The People
There are many nooks and crannies where groups of different sizes can sit and chat. Grappa Bar is a social type of venue and not one of those places where you go just to be seen. It is in fact very popular with those who are 30 and above. Most come in groups of all sizes and sit down to have a shared platter with drinks or a tasty pizza. There is no specific dress code but the place looks rather dashing so you may want to wear something casual but not sloppy.

The place is not particularly quiet and when it's full it buzzes with conversation. Talking without shouting is still possible and the atmosphere is full of energy.

The Food
Grappa is also a pizzeria and a rather authentic one. You can get all the classic Italian pizzas (£10), like the one with Parma ham, mozzarella, tomato, parmesan and rocket. Even those you may have never seen before are rather common in Italy, like the ones with wilted spinach, pine nuts, roasted garlic, parmesan and free range egg. You can also opt for a pasta bake or a starter (£6) if you aren't that hungry. The avocado, crispy bacon and blue cheese salad is not very traditional but it tastes great. For groups, get the rich antipasti platter (£15) which has fine cheese, charcuterie, Tuscan artichoke pate, olives, roasted peppers and more.

The Drink
Grappa is a traditional Italian spirit, mostly produced in the mountains and not particularly known outside of the country. Just like vodka it can be naturally flavoured with fruits and even flowers, but beware - grappa is actually much stronger than vodka. Its alcoholic percentage is usually above 50. That'll give your hangover a bit of bite. Here you can sample several grappas, straight or maybe as part of a cocktail. They serve a handful of martinis at £6.50 and a few sparkling cocktails at £7. You obviously can also pick wine as well and the bottles are all chosen to go well with your pizza.

The Last Word
Grappa Bar And Pizzeria looks great and just for that it deserves to be crowned as one of the best Bath venues. The fact that they also serve special drinks and good pizzas means Grappa deserves five stars.