Drink at the flicks

The Rex is a welcome oddity: a private cinema, right near Leicester Square, for those who like their films well-watered (and care at least as much about the quality of water as about the quality of film).

For £150 a year, you get a dinky silver membership card and access to a pleasantly louche 1930s style bar, all leather chairs and chandeliers, which does a mean Cosmopolitan, a divine Bloody Mary, a couple of nice bottles of wine and surprisingly good sushi and sandwiches for those afraid they'll snore drunkenly through the film.

Movies show at 8.30pm nightly, but the programming still leaves a bit to be desired: more genuine classics and quality pre-releases as well as crowd-pleasers and recent releases might be a suggestion.

Still, the seats are comfy, you can take your drinks into the film and the bar stays open until 3am.

Those wanting a sneak preview before committing their hardearned pounds should smile sweetly at a member (they can bring in three nonmembers-each) or turn up reasonably smart and, if it's not too busy, the doorman will overlook the lack of silver card.

Prices are the upper end of reasonable, with cocktails and food hovering around £7.