Maybe Its Because I'm a...
Whenever people come to London they ask me for recommendations and I realise the list I put up here years back needs some updating. So if you're in town for three days this is where I'd shove you:Galleries
- Maureen Paley, 21 Herald Street, London E2
- SPACE Studios, 129—131 Mare St, London E8
- Ibid Projects, 35 Hoxton Square, London N1
- Seventeen Gallery, 17 Kingsland Rd, London E2
- Camden Arts Centre, Arkwright Rd, London NW3
Food
- Dean Street Townhouse, 69 Dean St, London W1 (art, amaretto sours)
- Polpo, 41 Beak St, London W1 (or Polpetto above the French House)
- Bar Bruno, 101 Wardour St, London W1
- St John (the bar area), 26 St John St, London EC1 and the bar at St John Hotel
- The Wolseley, 160 Piccadilly, London W1
- Pizza East, 56 Shoreditch High St, London E1
- Rochelle Canteen (lunch only mon-fri), Arnold Circus, London E2 (recommend booking 02077295677)
Drink
- The French House, 49 Dean St, London W1
- The Royal Oak, 73 Columbia Rd, London E2
- The Holly Bush, 22 Holly Mount, London NW3
- Cecconi's, 5a Burlington Gardens, London W1 (prosecco on tap at the bar)
Shop
- Compton News, 48 Old Compton Street, London W1
- Fopp for 3 quid DVDs and CDs, 1 Earlham Street, London WC2
- Music and Video Exchange shops (esp the Book one 14 Pembridge Road, and Soul and Dance, 42 Notting Hill Gate).
- Fenwicks, 63 New Bond St, London W1
- The Top Shop concession in Selfridges; APC and Acne on Dover St; The B Store on Kingly St for shoes; Fred Perry on Newburgh St etc
- Seventeen Gallery, 17 Kingsland Rd, London E2
- Camden Arts Centre, Arkwright Rd, London NW3
- Whitecube Bermondsey (for the insane building if nothing else), 144-152 Bermondsey St, London SE1
Coffee
- Flat White, 17 Berwick St, London W1
- Wiltons, 61 Wilton Way, London E8 (where I do my occasional London Fields Radio show)
- Daquise, 20 Thurloe Street London SW7 (in afternoons only for apple strudel and a taste of 60s poland)
- Sensory Lab, 75 Wigmore St, London W1
Food
- Dean Street Townhouse, 69 Dean St, London W1 (art, amaretto sours)
- Polpo, 41 Beak St, London W1 (or Polpetto above the French House)
- Bar Bruno, 101 Wardour St, London W1
- St John (the bar area), 26 St John St, London EC1 and the bar at St John Hotel
- The Wolseley, 160 Piccadilly, London W1
- Pizza East, 56 Shoreditch High St, London E1
- Rochelle Canteen (lunch only mon-fri), Arnold Circus, London E2 (recommend booking 02077295677)
Drink
- The French House, 49 Dean St, London W1
- The Royal Oak, 73 Columbia Rd, London E2
- The Holly Bush, 22 Holly Mount, London NW3
- Cecconi's, 5a Burlington Gardens, London W1 (prosecco on tap at the bar)
Shop
- Compton News, 48 Old Compton Street, London W1
- Fopp for 3 quid DVDs and CDs, 1 Earlham Street, London WC2
- Music and Video Exchange shops (esp the Book one 14 Pembridge Road, and Soul and Dance, 42 Notting Hill Gate).
- Fenwicks, 63 New Bond St, London W1
- The Top Shop concession in Selfridges; APC and Acne on Dover St; The B Store on Kingly St for shoes; Fred Perry on Newburgh St etc
Tourist Stuff
Sir John Soane's Museum, 13 Lincoln Inn Fields, London WC1
Walk up Primrose Hill in general or swim in Hampstead Heath ponds in summer
London Books
JG Ballard 'High-Rise'
Graham Greene 'Ministry of Fear'
Anything by Iain Sinclair