Try Brick Lane for a cooler hang-out

So as a local Shoreditch girl I was thrilled to hear about the launch of The Brickhouse, a super-cool new supper club which offers the three Ds: dining, drinking and dancing, all under one roof.

I've heard the cabaret and burlesque shows are as impressive as the food and drink, so I book myself in for a Saturday night quicker than you can say Monica Ali.

I take my friend Sarah and we are so busy chatting that we miss the entrance and have to double back. The doorway is blink-and-you'll-miss-it: tucked into the wall of The Truman Brewery with neat signage above, it couldn't be further from all those bright, glossy, curry houses with waiters outside begging for custom.

We push through a thick, velvet curtain and are led down a corridor to the ground floor of the three-tiered restaurant. It's all white and minimalist, save for the red-lit bar area and artwork littered around. The art is by Rolf Harris's daughter, Bindi, which we find amusing as her paintings are much ruder than her dad's.

We sit at a square table in the middle of the floor, in prime position in front of the stage. It's 8pm and already the place is busy with diners and folk sitting and milling around in the bar area. It's a well-heeled crowd but with a cool east London edge.

As we order a bottle of house rosé (£16), Adam Wilson, one of the co-owners, comes over for a chat. "The Brickhouse was born out of wanting to create a one-stop shop for a great evening," he tells us.

"Often in London, you go for food and then have to find somewhere else to carry on the night. Here, you can dance until 2am." Sounds ideal.

We can't wait for the dancing, but first we line our stomachs with the tasty food: I have the tuna followed by the lamb cutlets, while Sarah opts for broccoli soup and pan-fried salmon (£39.50 for three courses). Combined with the lovely wine, the whole meal is melt-in-your-mouth, and by the time we finish our second courses, we're light-headed and happy.

Entertainment at The Brickhouse varies week to week and can be anything from sexy burlesque to jazz cabaret, solo singers or comedians.

Tonight it's aerial rope acrobatics by modern circus performer Virginia Gamboa, who walks on to the stage and slowly limbers-up by doing yoga-style stretches on the floor before darting up a thick rope that's hanging from the ceiling.

Sarah and I giggle at her speed, and then gulp at the way she hangs upside-down from the rope by just her shin. Her show is amazing and involves her curling the rope around different bits of her body as she hangs down at dangerous angles. The Amazing Hari follows her act, swooping down as we eat.

When it's over, but before our coffee and desserts arrive, we run upstairs to check out the other two floors. The middle floor features dining booths, while the third floor has four double beds.

There are groups reclining on the beds and we decide to come back later to join in the fun. A girl from Highbury tells us they booked the bed for the night and are eating from the snack menu, "It's a genius idea and so comfortable," she says, as her friend falls off the bed after too many cocktails.

Peering over the railings we see that back downstairs the resident DJ Sam Totolee is on. Sam has played everywhere - the Charlie's Angels film premiere, Rod Stewart's wedding, Jensen Button's birthday and at Marc Jacobs perfume launches - so it's fair to say he knows how to make the beautiful people dance.

The music ranges from funk to disco, fusion to jazz. We gulp down our desserts (crème caramel for Sarah, apple tart for me) and then join other diners who are already shaking their stuff in between the tables and on the stage.

Initially I get a stitch from jigging straight after eating, but nothing that a daiquiri (£7) from the bar doesn't sort out.

One couple twirl each other around the floor while another pair are attempting the tango. We twist and twirl around and the dance floor fills up, with diners coming down from the booths upstairs.

Finally, two guys who were dining next to us stand up and start dancing, a little self-consciously at first, but soon letting themselves go. After an hour or so we're all dancing together and we discover they aren't gay - as we thought they were. Oops.

At 2am, Sarah and I stagger out laughing, before those boys - and those beds upstairs - can get us into any trouble. But we'll be back for more of our favourite 3Ds soon.

The Brickhouse, The Old Truman Brewery, Brick Lane, E1 (020 7247 0005, thebrickhouse.co.uk)