Ladies and gentlemen: we have a winner. The Honky Tonk Blues Bar is Chelsea‘s latest addition to a plethora of local American-style diners – and it certainly brings home the bacon as one of the most welcoming joints in the area.

The relaxed but well thought out decor matches the Hollywood Road eatery’s perfectly pitched music and simple, hearty cooking. Where similarly themed restaurants tend to overdo the cheese, the Honky Tonk Blues Bar has an instantly easygoing feel. The relaxed, cafe style atmosphere in the back room, for instance, is the perfect place to recover from a late night(or early morning) King’s Road bender.

Settle in with a wholesome Longhorn beef burger, accompanied by thick cut fries and tasty tomato salsa, and wash it down with the riffs of the Rolling Stones and a tall glass of cinnamon flavoured milkshake. We also recommend the house-recipe Meatballs – served in a sea of tomato sauce and tantalizingly melted Monterey Jack cheese – and two other house specialities: the succulent ribs and the wonderfully named “Not” Fried Chicken (it’s oven baked instead). And don’t dare to leave without trying one of their delicious desserts – a seductive selection of everything Americans do best, from home made apple pie to New York style vanilla cheesecake.

If you’re coming later in the day, of course, the bar at the front of the diner has plenty to offer. The briefest of glances at the house cocktails will have the most travelled mixologists in spasms of joy. Our favourite? ‘Awaken the Kraken‘ – a twist on the classic ‘Dark and Stormy‘ using one of the greatest things to happen to rum since Sailor Jerry – Kraken Black Spiced. Good enough to drink neat, the combination of this superlative spirit with ginger beer and lime juice is simply intoxicating. Those of a sturdier liver might go for the stiffly laced bourbon classic, the Buffalo Smash. Frankly, any choice from this menu is a winner and will set you nicely up for a rousing night of ribs and rockabilly. We’ll leave their trademark Picklebacks for readers to discover on their own – but rest assured that you’re in for a treat…

Brooklyn babies and Chelsea chillers alike will love the vibe of the Honky Tonk Blues Bar – and the food, drink and service all hit the spot too. The one downside is an unavoidable consequence of its West-side trendy location – you can expect the bill to be a touch heftier than the bog-standard, ‘burger and fries diner’-style, chain restaurant prices. But for the great atmosphere, the special selection of mixed drinks and all round quality of the food, you’d be a fool not to try it at least once. On that note, it’s about time we booked our table for next weekend…!

For more information or to make a booking, visit: www.honkytonkchelsea.com