London bars lean into vinyl culture
The Thesleff Group, the London hospitality operator behind Los Mochis and other premium dining concepts, is expanding the role of Viajante87 as a music- and agave-led basement bar.
Music, agave and a late-night basement setting
Last September, the award-winning Latin American-inspired cocktail bar Viajante87 introduced Vinyls by V87, a new Thursday night series inspired by listening bars. The programme runs every Thursday from 6pm to 11pm, with DJs playing exclusively on vinyl and spanning Latin, Afro-international, instrumental jazz, funk, soul and lounge sounds.
Led by Bar Director Pietro Collina, the initiative brings an additional cultural dimension to a site already leaning heavily into travel, music and agave-led mixology. Collina, who oversees the bar’s broader creative direction, has steered Viajante87 to growing international recognition since its reopening in September 2023, with the venue placing No. 99 in The World’s 50 Best Bars 2024 and No. 17 in the UK Top 50 Bars 2025.
The Thursday night programme aims to build on that momentum. Each week will feature a curated line-up of DJs, with Latin funk, soulful grooves and instrumental jazz forming the series’ core sonic identity. The bar describes the experience as designed to “transport guests on a musical journey through eras and genres”, while retaining what it calls a “contemporary West London edge”.
Agave-fronted menu development
Alongside the music, the bar is rolling out a special agave-led menu created exclusively for Vinyls by V87. The headline serve is a build-your-own Margarita, priced according to spirit selection and available with Altos Plata Tequila (£12), Del Maguey Vida Mezcal (£14), or Código 1530 Blanco Tequila (£16). Guests can opt for a classic Margarita with agave, lime, house citrus liqueur and salt, or a Spicy Margarita elevated with a choice of green, yellow or red pepper.
Other serves include the East 8 Hold Up, combining lime, Aperol, pineapple and passion fruit with a guest-selected agave spirit, and the Paloma, built with lime, bitter grapefruit cordial, Wave Length Ruby and London Essence Grapefruit Soda. For those looking towards darker agave, the Mezcal Negroni (£14) brings together Del Maguey Vida, Campari, sweet vermouth and an orange twist, while the Oaxacan Old Fashioned (£14) combines Altos Reposado and Del Maguey Vida with agave and orange twist.
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Food extends the concept beyond snacks
During a recent press visit, the broader food offering demonstrated an attention to detail not always associated with cocktail-led venues. Dishes included spicy salmon tartar on crispy rice, guacamole and chips, grilled flank steak tacos with crispy shallots and coriander, and calamari. The latter, often a risky choice in bar environments, was tender rather than rubbery, while the steak was cooked to a consistent finish. The overall impression was that the food programme has been developed to support longer dwell times rather than serve as a token add-on.
Sister venue strategy
Viajante87 is part of the Thesleff Group, a hospitality portfolio built by entrepreneur Markus Thesleff and now spanning multiple concepts in London. The Group includes Los Mochis Notting Hill, home to Juno Omakase, as well as Los Mochis London City, Sale e Pepe in Knightsbridge, Luna Omakase in Liverpool Street and Viajante87 in Notting Hill. The Group positions itself around “authentic hospitality, top-quality cuisine and exceptional service”, with ambitions to “redefine the restaurant and bar industry on a global scale”.
Viajante87 serves as the Group’s dedicated nightlife-driven bar format, distinguished from the more restaurant-led Los Mochis brand. The two concepts remain linked — Viajante87 is frequently described as the “sister” venue to Los Mochis — but sit in different dayparts and consumer occasions, allowing the Group to broaden its reach across West London audiences.
For the trade, the introduction of a vinyl-driven weekly music programme underscores how operators are seeking to differentiate in a highly competitive late-night market where cocktails alone are no longer enough to retain footfall or extend dwell time. The agave category continues to demonstrate strong premium momentum in the on-trade, and Viajante87’s pricing architecture, choice-led Margarita format and combination of tequila and mezcal positioning sit in line with wider market trends.
The inclusion of a more substantive food offer supports the Group’s wider intent to build hospitality concepts rather than single-occasion venues, while maintaining the high-energy basement aesthetic that has contributed to the bar’s positioning.
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