One of the many great things about living in London is that every once in a while, you hear about a pop-up where you can stand inside a chamber filled with fireworks as they go off. Or a hidden underground bar that looks like a glamour-soaked retro fever dream. Or a floating igloo, filed with fondue. Or an immersive show in which you are both the only audience member, and the main character. Or any number of great, sometimes offbeat, occasionally jaw-dropping, but always interesting places.
This is a celebration of those places that have been added to the ranks of London’s scene over the past year, from great bars, to elegant restaurants, envelope-pushing experiences (not literally, but give it time), and much more besides…
SAMBA Room | Most this-will-massively-impress-your-date rooftop cocktail bar
When it comes to London’s rooftop sushi joints, Sushisamba is lucky to make it into the top 10 (after places like Endo at the Rotunda, Kioku, SACHI, Aqua Kyoto, Los Mochis, etc) …but none of those other places have a new cocktail bar that looks quite as sleek and absurdly glamorous. SAMBA Room overlooks half the city, and does it with style. Plus, a glass of champagne is a glass of champagne, only the ones here somehow taste like you’re drinking in the city itself.
Details: 39th floor, Heron Tower, 110 Bishopsgate, EC2N 4AY
Zum Barbarossa | Most ridiculously extra subterranean cocktail bar
When the team behind The Seafood Bar in Soho decided to turn their basement floor into a hidden cocktail bar, they must have slipped, tripped, and accidentally filled the place with a dozen bars-worth of lavishly chic, retro, seductively flamboyant stylings. The drinks are perfectly fine (try the Tommy’s Spicy Mezcalita) but when it comes to making a good first impression, there aren’t many that can go toe-to-toe with it.
Details: Below The Seafood Bar, 77 Dean Street, W1D 3SH
Julie’s | Best new, but also extremely old restaurant
So, Julie’s first opened way back in 1969. This year’s ribbon-cutting is just the latest in a long line of reboots & refurbs, but it may well be the best. Because in all its years entertaining the glitterati, clearing the tables for Tina Turner to dance on, and feeding everyone from Sir Paul McCartney to Princess Diana, it’s probably never been quite as good as it is right now. And granted, Sir Paul may well be quite literally the only one qualified to actually make that statement, but when the food, design, and service all come together so phenomenally well, it seems hard to argue.
Details: 135 Portland Road, W11 4LW
Rake At The Gun | Best pop-up to hopefully bloody turn in to a full-time restaurant
Rake appears to be headed for the culinary stratosphere, and it’s launched itself on a rocket fuelled by a stellar pop up at The Gun in Hackney, and a forthcoming residency at The Compton Arms. And frankly, we’re hoping it makes it all the way to the moon (which, for the purposes of this slightly tortured metaphor, is a permanent restaurant). Their food is very British, highly satisfying, frequently creative, and skilfully executed. Let’s hope there’s more to come.
Details: Opening on January 9th 2025 at The Compton Arms, N1 2XD
Moyagi | Best new bleeding-edge Japano-Nordic karaoke bar
We’ve all come to terms with karaoke in London: flypaper-level sticky floors, cramped rooms, and the only thing flatter than your singing is the beer. Well, not at Moyagi. Because this neon-drenched wonderland is genuinely cool, and comes armed with a sleek Tokyo-inspired aesthetic, a streamlined drinks & concierge bottle service, top-shelf audio systems, and a 150,000 different tunes you can belt out/murder as you please.
Details: 5 Cavendish Place, W1G 0QA
Skuna Igloo Boats | Best new Franken-boat hybrid
We’ve had igloos. We’ve had boats. And now, joined together in a wonderful, nautical shotgun wedding we finally have igloo boats. It’s one of those glorious things in life that is exactly what you think it is, and will give you exactly what you think it’ll give you. It’s an igloo you can sail across the docks, then have some fondue in. If that sounds fun, hop aboard.
Details: £45pp+, Off Hertsmere Road, West India Quay, E14 4AL
Wild Feasts at Oxmoor Farm | Most ridiculously idyllic pop up
So, no, this one isn’t in London and, yes, we do need to draw the line somewhere otherwise why aren’t we including that nice new place in Sydney. We get it. But Wild Feasts are worth including here, simply because a trip out to Oxmoor Farm is only a hop & a skip from Amersham, and it’s such a beautiful & idyllic experience. The food’s almost always superb, the chefs change each weekend, and the vibes are off the charts. Plus, they shut the barn doors to run through the winter, and they’ll almost certainly be back in 2025…
Details: Great Missenden HP16 9RD | To get there, head to High Wycombe station (a 30-minute train from London) and then hop in a 10 minute taxi.
You Me Bumbum Train | Most life-changing immersive experience
There are very few immersive shows that get major critics from major newspapers saying that it literally changed their lives, that it’s utterly unforgettable, that it will surprise you in ways you didn’t know possible, and will restore your faith in humanity. But You Me Bum Bum Train is one of them. It found a new home in Covent Garden this year, and they’ve used the space to incredible effect, although they’ve maintained their steadfast adherence to complete secrecy. IF you get tickets, then you go in cold, having no idea what to expect, and you’ll be all the more grateful for it. Hopefully there’ll be more to come in the new year…
Details: There are no details, that’s the point.
The Architectural Blasting Chamber | Least-believable pyrotechnic experience
Bompas & Parr, the Picassos of the pop up, gave us all another masterpiece this year: The Architectural Blasting Chamber. It’s an idea so completely off the rails that the rails are barely even a faint blur in the distance. Dressed in a special protective suit, you stand inside the blasting chamber, and watch as fireworks are let off inside with you, basically putting you at the epicentre of a fireworks display in the most immediate & terrifying way possible.
Details: The Architectural Blasting Chamber took place this summer, and sold out almost instantly. Hopefully, it shall return.
The Magician’s Table | Best cocktail-fuelled closeup magic show
The Magician’s Table is a pop-up immersive closeup magic show, and – cynicism alert – we often find ourselves a little disappointed by immersive shows, given the hyperbolic, quasi-evangelical over-promising, compared to the plywood-flavoured disappointment that so frequently ends up happening. Well, this one actually nails it. The closeup magic that the show is built around is genuinely mind-boggling, and brilliantly executed. The story ticks along nicely, there’s some great audience involvement, and the cocktails aren’t half bad either. Get there before it disappears into thin air….
Details: Running until 16th February 2025 at a secret location in London Bridge
Want more superlative goodness from the last 12 months? Then check out the best bars and restaurants of the year…