Florita's - Miami or Medley?

I said I'd review a new bar in town for website newcastlecentric.com. Well, a newly-improved bar, I should say. The owners of the popular, trendy bar Apartment on Collingwood Street, Vibrant Ventures, decided that after five years it was time for a makeover. Vibrant Ventures are responsible for the growing number of thematic bars across Newcastle - including Jesmond's Mr Lynch and As You Like It, and Nancy's Bordello on the edge of Byker. Each bar has a different theme whilst being unmistakeably similar in style; all are decked out in vintage mismatched furniture from an era or place relevant to its theme, along with patterned wallpaper and plentiful knickknackery for added authenticity - from fake plants and paintings to light fixtures and ornaments. There must be a depot for cast off vintage shite somewhere, I would love to pay it a visit, being a huge fan of bric-a-brac, car boot sales and flea markets. Although I could probably do with keeping well away, as I have no self restraint when it comes to miscellaneous junk - I'd end up with a home decorated half in delicate Victorian style floral soft furnishings and half like some garish 70's boudoir out of Boogie Nights.

And so back to topic, Apartment has now been brought into line with its sister venues, which speaks volumes about the success of this particular niche in the market which Vibrant Ventures has found. Thematic bars, not of the tacky variety championed by the likes of Buffalo Joes or Baja Beach Club, but of the retro cool kind. The newly named Florita's is described as a Miami Bar and Tropical Garden, but the décor is a medley of English country house chintz patterned chairs, stateside diner style benches, neon signage and post modernist artworks. The wall mural behind the bar seems to be more inspired by tattooed bikers than a Miami scene. That said, the atmosphere is definitely tropical, from the ornamental inflatable pink flamingoes to the abundance of fake exotic foliage. The ‘Tropical Garden’ does feel reminiscent of a botanical surrounding of sorts; a wooden framed conservatory with copious leafage and an open roof so it doubles up as a smoking area - although with four enclosed walls it barely passes no-smoking legislation. There is an eminent warmth about the place too, although it is not obvious whether it is a deliberate addition to the tropical environment or if it’s simply a case of lots of bodies tightly packed in one place, along with a large quota of smokers all lit up within a few square metres.

The music with which to soak up Florita’s atmosphere is a fusion of party anthems and old classics which will definitely inspire your dancing shoes to start tapping and as there’s a lack of seating in the main room, there is a lot of floor space for making shapes. The drinks are priced similarly to most of Newcastle’s trendy bars, with soft drinks around £2, pints around £3 and cocktails in the £5 range. The cocktails are delicious and well worth parting with your pennies – particularly so for the gargantuan sized cocktails for sharing at around £17 each. They could well contain several portions of your daily guideline amount of fruit, all made using fresh ingredients and finished off with a tropical twist, served with fruit and a piece of greenery for good measure.

The drinks are served by bar staff who appear barely past legal drinking age, with table service provided by pretty young things tottering around in the latest fashions and unnaturally bronzed skin - much like in Miami I would guess, so at least that adds genuinity. There is a VIP area downstairs, although it is stressed that by VIP they do mean celebrities and footballers - which are thin on the ground in Newcastle so I'm unsure how they will manage to fill the area provided without allowing in the usual VIP crowd of WAG wannabes.

Florita’s is apparently a temporary arrangement for Vibrant Ventures, and after the summer the bar will be transformed again. It may not be the Miami style it aspires to but by no means is it a disappointment – just misrepresented. It’s definitely worth a visit while it remains as it’s a quirky change to Newcastle’s usual offerings and whether you see it as cool or kitsch, you’ll have to admit it has its charms.