Have you ever been to an ice bar? If you haven't, then you're just like me as before this visit, I had only ever heard of such a thing. I know that there are some in London, and there's probably a few dotted around various cities around the country, but until now I had never heard of one being in Leeds. As you can imagine, my curiosity peeked when I was told that pop-up one was coming to Leeds - I had to give it a go! So, last Thursday evening, me and Martin traipsed into town for our very first ice bar experience.





It took us a little while to find the ice bar itself, and for someone who had never previously visited Bierkeller it was an experience in itself! I thought that it would be on the ground floor, but it was actually on the top floor, tucked away in one corner. It's hard to describe how big it is, but it is basically a giant walk-in freezer that has been kitted out - although you find that hard to believe once you're inside! It's baffling me to this day how they even got it inside the building, as it is quite sizeable. When we arrived, we were greeted by the event's host, Amy and given a glass of prosecco and some nibbles to keep us going until everyone else had arrived. Seeing as I had just come from a full day at work, these small touches were very much appreciated! We had about twenty minutes to wait until the previous group came back out, so we just sat and relaxed. When the time came, we were given some rather ridiculous looking thermal capes to wear, which I think you can agree make us look pretty daft! These were entirely neccessary though, as we were told that the ice bar is kept at -15°C; so it was going to be nice and chilly! We were given a quick briefing about the ice bar, and what not to do if you ran into trouble (i.e. don't go running for the door as it needs to be kept shut!), and then we were quickly ushered inside.







Once we had all got inside and the door slammed shut behind us, I think everyone in the room just stood for a few seconds to take it all in! Then, the cameras were whipped out and everyone, including me, were taking pictures left, right and centre. Almost everything in the room is made entirely out of ice, like you would expect, and due to the temperature is kept perfect until presumably it gets melted down. How they even constructed a bar out of ice, I don't even know! The drinks selection were limited, but obviously they had bottles of Coors Light, Jagermeister, Wild, gin and vodka - and I even saw a member of staff pull out a bottle of wine, although it ended up being half frozen slush! For £5 entry, you get a free bottle of Coors Light with your thirty minute session, which works out to be good value. We decided not to have a drink as Martin was driving, but we did end up with a surprise one which I'll tell you about later on in the post!








In one corner of the room there is a polar bear ice sculpture, which was probably the most photographed thing in the room - I think by the end of our thirty minute session, everyone had had their picture taken with it! Lasered into the ice walls are various logos for Coors Light and Bierkeller, as well as the hashtag to use on social media, #BECICEBAR. There are also quotes on the walls from various celebrities, my favourite of which I've included in the images above, as well as a toy mammoth and dinosaur encased within the ice. Also included in the ice bar is a "sofa" which is, of course, made entirely out of ice but is scattered with a few cushions and a throw so you don't end up with a frozen backside! On the one wall that was not made out of ice, there was a TV that was playing the Coors Light TV advert on a loop.







The most exciting part of the ice bar - apart from the bar itself, of course - was a corner where you could have a go at miniature curling! If you landed the curling stone on the red section of the target, then you could have a free shot. Well, me and Martin are competitive people at the best of times, so of course we were going to give it a go, weren't we? After several goes we both emerged triumphant, clutching our shots of Wild Sour Cherry and beaming like idiots. Aah, the things you'll do for a free drink, eh? But it was good fun, and it definitely made the thirty minutes go by quickly, as all too soon we were being let back out. Thirty minutes doesn't sound like a long time, but actually for me it was just right; any longer and I personally would have been feeling the effects of the cold, even through the cape. It was great fun to experience an ice bar for the first time, and I can now tick that off my bucket list - thanks Bierkeller!

The #BECICEBAR is running for twelve weeks until the end of August, and can also be found in Liverpool and Manchester. Booking is advised to avoid disappointment, which you can do online via Bierkeller.

Have you ever been to an ice bar before? If not, would you go to one? Let me know in the comments!