Mayday! Mayday!….
…is right at the beginning of the month, and things just get better from there. After all, the next four weeks will give you a chance to eat melted cheese on a rooftop; go spelunking in a Costa Rican cave (in Camden); have an al-fresco banquet on a lush, pastoral farm; check out a huge photography exhibition; have your brain tingled by a little ASMR; watch movies in a surprisingly comfy plane cabin; gorge yourself on a Michelin Starred mango-based menu; take in a sprawling exhibition of futuristic laser art; and a whooooole lot more.
It’s an alarming amount quite frankly.
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POP UP EVENTS
Blackhorse Beer Mile
You’ve probably heard of the Bermondsey Beer Mile, but the Blackhorse Beer Mile is a bit of a… well, a dark horse. Well, this weekend, the Walthamstow brewing quarter is getting its official launch. There are six craft breweries to take in on the route, including Signature Brew, Exale and Wildcard, all of which are equipped with buzzing taprooms and/or outdoor seating. To celebrate, each brewery will be serving up exclusive brews, plus there’ll be live music, street food – and a limited edition glass for anyone who makes it to all six.
Details: 1st May | Along Blackhorse Road – suggested route here | Free
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HaugenFest
HaugenFest is essentially a temporally misplaced Oktoberfest: the Alpine restaurant will be loading up their rooftop terrace with raclette stations; German sausage; Bavarian beer from ABK (they’ve been brewing for over 700 years); dancers; DJs; and ‘surprise entertainment’…
Details: 1st May, from 1pm | 9 Endeavour Square, London E20 1JN | Free entry
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Queen’s Yard Summer Party
The day festivals have kicked off in full force, and this weekend it’s the turn of Queen’s Yard in Hackney Wick. It’ll be taking place across 16 venues from canalside bars, breweries, al fresco terraces, warehouses and an actual boat, all a stone’s throw away from each other, so you can hop from gig to gig and take your pick from the 140+ different artists and DJs performing. And if you work up a thirst? We hear those breweries might be able to help you out.
Details: 1st May | Across Hackney Wick | £65.50, or afterparty entry from £15
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Tomb Raider: The Live Experience
An immersive tomb raiding experience might sound… well, kinda creepy – until you realise that this one is like stepping into the video game itself, allowing you to escape sinking ships, explore freezing tundra, go spelunking through Costa Rican caves and shoot arrows through the back of a moving truck…
Details: Previews 3rd – 8th May, opening fully 10th May | Camden Market | From £44
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Our Time on Earth
Climate change is – unfortunately – so hot right now. And joining a slew of recent exhibitions exploring the ecological emergency we find ourselves in (check out Our Broken Planet at the Natural History Museum, or the Science Museum’s Our Future Planet), the Barbican’s latest asks how designers, activists, scientists and tech can come together to rewild our cities and bring us closer to nature. With a strong experiential element, you’ll step into vast animations; feel ‘tree time’; and take part in an ‘immersive soil experience’…
Details: 5th May – 29th August | The Curve, Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London, EC2Y 8DS | £18
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Vegan Nights
The big (non-dairy) cheese of vegan festivals makes its triumphant return this month. Taking over the vast industrial spaces and outdoor courtyard of 93 Feet East in Brick Lane, it’ll bring together over 40 vegan street food traders (including The Gnarbecue and Oh My Gulay!) alongside vegan booze, DJ sets, and dancing.
Details: 5th May | 93 Feet East, 150 Brick Lane, London, E1 6QL | £10
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Queer Britain
London (and the country’s) first museum dedicated to LGBTQ+ history opens its door this month, hoping to “complete the Nation’s family tree” by shining a spotlight on the lives that have otherwise been confined to the margins of history books. Taking up residence in Granary Square in King’s Cross, there’ll be four galleries to explore, and it’s totally free to visit.
Details: Opens 5th May | 2 Granary Square, N1C 4BH | Free
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At Home Farm
If this looks like something that would be tricky to pull off in London, you’d be right. It’s actually on a lush cereal farm juuust at the end of the Jubilee Line. And it’s well worth the journey, because for a second year running, Home Farm’s hosting its own low-key festival, featuring long al fresco banquet tables with food from the likes of Ixta Belfrage, Stevie Parle and the Moro founders; comedy, theatre & circus; and live music on a woodland stage…
Details: From 8th May | Home Farm, Aldenham Road, Elstree, Hertfordshire, WD6 3AZ
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London Craft Week
Dan Weill Photography
The annual celebration of craftsmanship is back, and there’s an insane amount going on, from exhibitions and workshops to talks, markets, and after-hours events in shops and ateliers across the city. Highlights include a makers’ market at the Royal Exchange (with the chance to make some cool stuff yourself); a cognac cocktail tasting using a Victorian hangover cure; a workshop that allows you to create new materials from rubbish; an insight to how Morgan cars are made entirely by hand; a tour of the English National Opera’s costume workshop; demonstrations across Borough Market; a shadow puppetry class; and a live performance art piece in which a potter breaks everything she’s made. To music.
Details: 9th – 15th May | Across London | Individually ticketed
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Life Drawing at the Old Operating Theatre
People have been studying bodies here for centuries – but this is probably the first time they’ve been drawn here. In the atmospheric setting of a 200 year-old operating theatre hidden at the top of a church tower, artist and model May Prothero will take you through a 2 hour drawing class. All the artistic materials will be provided for you, and the profits go to charity, which is nice.
Details: 10th May | Old Operating Theatre Museum and Herb Garret, 9a St Thomas Street, London, SE1 9RY | £15
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Rebel Reel Cine Club: Blow Up
Michelangelo Antonioni’s Blow Up is an amazingly evocative snapshot of 60s London, following a fashion photographer who accidentally captures a death on film. And Rebel Reel Cine Club will be showing it outside on the big screen this month in one of the locations actually featured in the film itself: the 1964 modernist Smithson Plaza. There’ll be 60s music before the film, plus wine and pizza from the nearby Locket’s wine bar.
Details: 11th May | Smithson Plaza, 25 St James’s Street, London, SW1A 1HJ | £29.50 (inc. pizza & a glass of wine)
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Photo London
Life’s A Beach – Martin Parry
Returning for a seventh year, Photo London is the city’s biggest photography exhibition, with hundreds of shots from galleries around the world all on display in Somerset House. But that’s really only a snapshot of the whole event: there’ll also be film screenings, talks, workshops and more…
Details: 12th – 15th May | Somerset House, Strand, WC2R 1LA | £29-45
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Wild Tango
World tango champions take to the stage for this brand new piece by choreographer German Cornejo. Infused with elements of other dance forms like malambo as well as circus and hip-hop, it’s an explosive piece with a mostly male cast, calling back to the dance’s origins as a passionate display of strength and synergy between men.
Details: 12th – 21st May | Sadler’s Wells, Rosebery Avenue, London, EC1R 4TN | From £18
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Campfire Club
Remember when everyone used to huddle around a campfire on school trips while someone played the guitar, and you all told stories, and had a singalong? Well, this is like that, except instead of your PE teacher, the person with the guitar is a celebrated folk musician, and there’s a full bar stocked with home-made wines, ciders, ales, and mead…
Details: 13th, 20th, 27th & 28th May | Outdoor venues across London | £15
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Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Open air theatre always brings the house down. Especially when it’s got a line-up like this amphitheatre hidden in a pocket of Regent’s Park, which’ll be staging the Legally Blonde and 101 Dalmations musicals; a new adaptation of Antigone by the lauded Inua Ellams; comedy with Tim Key; a new show from Le Gateau Chocolat; and Luna Cinema screenings under the stars…
Details: From 13th May | Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, Inner Circle, Regent’s Park, NW1 4NU
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Weird Sensation Feels Good
It may help to imagine reading the following in a very breathy, intimate voice punctuated by chewing gum: The Design Museum is about to host an exhibition all about ASMR, with acoustic installations set up in a huge, comforting space. There’ll be contributions by classic ASMR creators like HairCut Harry, as well as big names like Björk, Bob Ross, and, er – Ikea.
Details: From 13th May | The Design Museum, 224-238 Kensington High Street, W8 6AG | £10.50-12
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The Sea, The Sea Seafood School
Despite already being an intimate, chef’s table restaurant and a wholesale supplier to some of the best restaurants in the city, The Sea, The Sea has decided to add another string to its bow. As of this month, it’ll be hosting Saturday ‘seafood school’ classes in its moody Hackney railway arch. You’ll dive into topics like nose-to-tail eating, raw fish prep, and how to cook shellfish over a welcome drink with head chef Leandro Carreira, before tucking into the fruits (de mer) of your labours at lunch.
Details: Saturdays from 14th May | The Sea, The Sea Hackney, Arch 337 Acton Mews, London E8 4EA | £100
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RAW Natural Wine Festival
Natural wine might be having a moment right now, but RAW’s been championing it since the early days. And this month, they’re staging one of their epic fairs in London – you’ll be able to taste the unlimited wares of hundreds of indie growers and producers hailing from France, Austria, Georgia, Slovenia and, er, Sussex.
Details: 14th & 15th May | The Store X, 180 Strand, London, WC2R 1EA | £45, or £75 for both days
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Urban Village Fete
If you’ve not been down to Greenwich’s al fresco festival, it’s about time. For one day only, Central Park will be filled with deckchairs, street food stalls, makers markets, free drop-in workshops, talks on the future of urban living, yoga classes, and a live stage with DJs, jazz bands and local dance groups.
Details: 15th May | Greenwich Peninsula | Free
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My Dad Wrote A Porno
If you didn’t find just listening to the podcast through headphones toe-curling enough, the three comedians behind My Dad Wrote A Porno are hosting a live evening at the Southbank Centre this month. They’ll be taking a deep dive into other literary gems from the Dad in question, as well as promising ‘surprises’ and ‘interactive elements’…
Details: 18th May | Southbank Centre, Belvedere Rd, London SE1 8XX | £37-55
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The Grotteaux
Shotgun Carousel – the immersive theatre/party collective behind hits like The Red Palace – decided to put on a Christmas cabaret. But then you-know-what insisted on rearing its ugly head again, and it was cancelled. Now they’re back in full force for a Spring cabaret – and by ‘cabaret’, we mean a raucous parade of burlesque bombshells, drag performers, circus stunts and comedians, all accompanied by a live band & some fancy booze to wash it all down.
Details: 18th May – 4th June | The Fireworks Factory, 11 No 1 Street, Royal Arsenal, London, SE18 6HD | From £15.50
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The Bowls Club
Old people: the original hipsters. So it’s no surprise the quintessential game of Lawn Bowls is about to make its comeback with a 21st century spin thanks to live music, street food, cocktails, and a high-stakes, ‘sudden death’ finale. Which is something its usual demographic actively doesn’t want to happen.
Details: 18th & 19th May | Finsbury Square Bowling Green, Finsbury Square, London, EC2A 1RR | From £75pp inc. food & drink
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Salsa at the Rivoli
The Rivoli Ballroom is London’s most intact 50s dancehall, which nowadays is used for pop up cinema screenings, filming, and er, dancing. This month they’re hosting a special salsa, bachata and reggaeton night with a dedicated DJ and cocktails.
Details: 20th May | 350 Brockley Road, Crofton Park, SE4 2BY | £12
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Pip & Pop
To say Pip & Pop – a.k.a. award-winning Aussie artist Tanya Schultz – likes colour is an understatement. For the next ten months, she’ll be filling an exhibition space at Kew Gardens with her mind-meltingly psychedelic ‘fantasy food landscapes’, filled with rainbow hues, pompoms and glitter…
Details: From 21st May | Kew Gardens, Richmond, TW9 3AE | Inc. with admission to Kew (£15)
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Canary Wharf Night Markets
Canary Wharf’s street food markets are about to start moonlighting. Once a month, they’ll be running late into the evening alongside pop-up bars, DJ sets, and free, colourful minigolf designed by Craig Redman & Karl Maier.
Details: 26th May | Montgomery Square, Canary Wharf, London, E14 | Free
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Power Up
The world’s most ancient and beloved video games & consoles just got an extra life. This month, the Science Museum will be making over 160 consoles from the past five decades available for people to just pick up and play. From Pong, to Pacman, to Mario Kart, to Halo, to bleeding edge VR games, it’s all there. And there are even booze-fuelled evening sessions, too.
Details: Until 6th June | The Science Museum, Exhibition Road, SW7 2DD | £8-£14
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Pergola Paraíso
Pergola Paddington, the al fresco street food hangout in Paddington Central, is sponsored by Corona this summer – which means something much better than it has for the past two years. Fresh from a new makeover, it’s promising to transport you to the beachside resorts of Tulum with new food vendors Dos Mas Tacos and Crudo Cevicheria; a dedicated margarita menu; beachy decor and hammocks to lounge around in; weekly late events with DJs, fire dancers and live percussionists; and – for the first time ever – a proper dancefloor.
Details: Throughout May | Pergola Paddington, 4 Kingdom St, London W2 6PY | Free entry
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Rooftop Film Club
Rooftop Film Club is back.
Which is good news, because now, when people ask us the question, “Where should I go to watch a selection of both the best classic and new release films under the setting sun and into the starlit night, with deckchairs, and a bar?” (as they often do) we no longer have to politely deflect and change the subject…
Details: Throughout May | Bussey Building, Peckham & Roof East, Stratford | £17-£23
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The Burnt City
For Punchdrunk’s latest show, they’ve taken on three historic, Grade II listed buildings, and reinvented them as a kind of futuristic, neon-drenched version of two ancient cities, Troy and Mycenae, complete with apartment blocks and secret passageways. Featuring beautiful choreography, atmospheric soundtracks and lighting that makes you feel like you’ve stepped right into a film, you’ll encounter gods, monsters… and at least 599 mortals in the form of your fellow masked audience members…
Details: Throughout May | One Cartridge Place, Woolwich, SE18 6ZR | £25-£150
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Underbelly Festival
Prepare to enter the Underbelly of Earl’s Court.
Turn’s out, it’s actually quite nice.
Something they proved last summer when, for the first time ever, the site formerly known as the Earl’s Court Exhibition Centre was graced by the presence of a large, upside-down purple cow.
Last year it was called London Wonderground, but they’ve now reverted to their old moniker of Underbelly Festival – and it promises to be no less wonder-inducing, thanks to the dazzling array of comedy, cabaret, circus, drag and more that they’ll be staging over the next few months…
Details: Until 31st July | Earl’s Court & Cavendish Square | Individually ticketed
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Backyard Cinema
Boarding a plane to get to the cinema might sound like the kind of outrageously decadent activity a Kardashian would do. But it’s all part and parcel of the immersive set-up at Backyard Cinema, whose LA and Miami-themed screening rooms are back for the summer. With two different kinds of experiential pre-amble, al fresco street food stalls and sunshine-loaded cocktails on offer, it’s well worth making the trip to Wandsworth for…
Details: Throughout May | Backyard Cinema: Capital Studios, 13 Wandsworth Plain, SW18 1ET | From £20
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Future Shock
Turns out, the future’s not orange.
It’s really more of a hot pink, with parallel lines shooting off into the unknowable expanses of infinite space.
That’s according to 180 Studios, at least, which has just unveiled a sprawling exhibition of audio-visual art inspired by our ‘near future’, featuring infinite reflections, 3D laser projections, and a ‘labyrinth of the subconscious’…
Details: Until 28th August | 180 Studios, 180 The Strand, WC2R 1EA | £20
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Roof East
East London’s finest pop-up activity complex on a carpark rooftop has returned for the summer, bringing with it old favourites like batting cages, crazy golf, outdoor cinema, and bringing in newness in the form of ‘car-aoke’ and archery. Plus, there are street food stalls and pop up bars, who make a great shot – even if you don’t.
Details: Throughout May | Floors 7 & 8, Stratford Multi-Storey Car Park, Great Eastern Way, E15 1XE | Free entry, pre-book activities here
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Catch an Exhibition
Insert a little culture into your calendar with our guide to London’s top exhibitions, which this month includes a critically lavished blockbuster on one of the biggest artists of the Renaissance; a peek into the design behind the beautiful game; a survey of surrealism beyond the Western canon; and an insight into how Disney’s animators took inspiration from French antiques… See what’s on
Cellars Presents…
Peckham Cellars started a new series of monthly knees-ups in April. It went well. Well enough so that they’re back for a sophomore event this month. -this time, it’s a Sunday Session, for which they’ve enlisted the help of both the party animals at Everybody Loves To Boogie and the record label High Praise in order to maximally fill their dance-floor. Oh, and the small matter of the food will be taken care of by Ling Lings, and their modern Chinese/Vietnamese wares…
Details: 1st May | 125 Queen’s Road, Peckham, London SE15 2ND | No bookings, just turn up
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Alphonso Mango Season at Jamavar
During the brief-but-bright Alphonso mango season in mid-spring, the fruit becomes a minor national obsession in its native India. Over here, celebrity chefs evangelise about them, and aficionados scour supermarkets trying to find them. Basically, they’re mango royalty. And there aren’t many better places to get them than at Michelin-Starred Indian restaurant Jamavar where, for the month of May (when they’re at their peak ripeness) head chef Surender Mohan is taking them out for a spin to see what they can do. Expect a special, mango-laden menu of mango curry, mango puliserry, burnt mango tarts, mango sorbet, and a lot more…
Details: 2nd-22nd May | 8 Mount Street, Mayfair, W1K 3NF
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WeinoNuts
This dubious portmanteau is the result of the very un-dubious Wingnut Wines and Dalson’s Weino BIB joining forces for a series of Tuesday night takeovers. They see a different chef take over the pans, while Wingnut put together a weekly-changing list of their top picks by the glass. This month, they’re teaming up with the excellent Hot-4-U to form Come-2-Papi…
Details: 3rd & 10th May | Weino BIB, 39 Balls Pond Road, London, N1 4BW
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Alex Webb at Number One Park Lane
Chef Alex Webb has moved from his native Essex all the way to the purple squares on the Monopoly board via stints as a pot-washer, a commis chef at The Savoy, a junior at Helene Darroze at the Connaught, and the outright winner of MasterChef: The Professionals. Now, he’s taking on a three month residency at Number One Park Lane, where he’ll cook up smoked beef tartare with caviar; butter-poached lobster with sea herbs; charred English asparagus with lemon dressing; and black sesame cookie matcha ice cream sandwiches…
Details: 3rd May – 28th July | One Hamilton Place, Park Lane, W1J 7QY
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#CookForUkraine at Mortimer House
Yurii Kovryzhenko isn’t just a Ukrainian chef. He’s literally an ambassador for his home country’s cuisine, working as a ‘gastro diplomat’ to help popularise its traditional dishes across the world. Now, he’s on a slightly different mission: raising funds to help the victims of the war, while giving many people their first real taste of Ukrainian food. Expect a four-course meal starring aubergine caviar, borsch, and honey cake at private members’ club Mortimer House.
Details: 4th May | 37-41 Mortimer Street, W1T 3JH | £60
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Spiritland x Stevie Parle
Thanks to places like Pastaio and JOY, Stevie Parle has developed something of an unimpeachable reputation for excellent, Anglo-Italian food. So the fact that he’s pitching up at the sound-driven Spiritland for a pop up this month can only be music to our ears…
Details: 5th May | Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, SE1 8XX | £67.50pp | Get tickets here
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Tacos Padre
The secrets to Tacos Padre’s success are twofold:
- They make everything from scratch.
- They make that everything into tacos.
It’s simple, but effective.
That means they get whole carcasses delivered to their Borough Market taqueria. They then butcher them, make marinades & rubs, and slow-cook it all for days on end before stuffing it into house-baked tortillas. And during the warmer months they fire up the stoves in a pop-up market stall, strung up with festoon lighting and set up with colourful tables & chairs amongst potted greenery in Borough Market itself…
Details: From 5th May | Borough Market Kitchen, SE1 9AG
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Bob’s Lobster at the National Theatre
You’re about to land a big roll at the National Theatre.
It’ll be in their Terrace restaurant, and it’s going to be stuffed with lobster.
It’s all thanks to Bob’s Lobster who’re snapping up the first in a series of residencies within the theatre’s in-house eatery. Well, we say ‘in-house’, but the fact is that the place is called the Terrace restaurant because, believe it or not, a great deal of the space is outside, on a terrace overlooking both the South Bank and the river. You know, hence the name and everything…
Details: 7th May until late August | Terrace at The National Theatre, South Bank, SE1 9PX
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Jimmy’s BBQ Club
Jimmy Garcia, prince of pop ups, tycoon of temporary restaurants, baron of BBQs is back. His BBQ Club has sold out bewilderingly quickly every year, and because he’s not a total idiot, he’s bringing it to the South Bank once more. Expect a rooftop filled with Big Green Egg BBQ for you to personally scorch your lamb shoulder and grilled peaches, as well as a street food counter below…
Details: 7th May – 17th September | Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, SE1 8XX
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Pop Ups at Carousel
Hopping on the Carousel this month is Fadi Kattan, who brings us some truly excellent modern Palestinian cuisine ahead of his solo Notting Hill restaurant opening. Then, we’ll see Parisian chef Thomas Coupeau deliver an imaginative, seafood-driven menu from his former restaurant Carbón. And finally, Haikara (yes, just ‘Haikara’. He’s like Cher.) will be wrapping up the month with some Franco-Japanese izakaya dishes…
Details: Throughout May | 19-23 Charlotte Street, Fitzrovia, W1T 1RL | £65-£70 | Book here
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The Hash Hut
With a name like The Hash Hut, you’re likely to be either reaaaaally disappointed or reaaaaally happy when you find out that what they serve, is hash browns. But not just any hash browns. Oh no. These are loaded has browns cooked up by chef James Sharp, who devised the idea in the kitchen at Michelin-Starred restaurant Alchemilla. And the toppings on offer include miso BBQ pulled pork, 4-cheese mac ‘n’ cheese with bacon, smoked ancho cilli bean ragu, and more.
Details: Until 15th May | Until 27, Boxpark Croydon | £4-£12
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Rajiv’s Kitchen’s
Nepalese food may have a mountain to climb before it gets the kind of recognition it deserves, but chef Rajiv KC has been doing some truly outstanding work to try and help make that happen. His many pop ups have been pretty universally acclaimed (particularly for his crack-adjacent momos) and he’s back with another this month. It’s at Brixton’s Annapurna Cafe, and he’s playing all the hits…
Details: Wednesday – Saturday until 28th May | Annapurna Cafe, 39a Loughborough Rd, SW9 7TB
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KERB Counter
KERB are kicking the kerb. Their latest project is an indoor, bricks-and-mortar test kitchen where they host up-and-coming food outfits and support their development. Next up is HAUSMATE – from old Kerb favourites STAKEhaus – who’ll be zoning in on sustainably produced ingredients and supporting London-based producers as much as possible.
Details: Dinner Wed-Sat plus Sat lunch, until 28th May | KERB Counter, 1 Bath Place, London, EC2A 3DA | Book here
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Jamie Smart x P. Franco
When it came to finding their next resident chef, the folks at P. Franco went for the Smart option. The iconic Clapton wine bar has just a pair of induction hobs tucked away at the back, but it’s here that some of London’s top chefs (Anna Tobias, Chase Lovecky, Tim Spedding etc.) have put together their most innovative menus. The incoming Jamie Smart has manned pans at St. John Bread & Wine, Flor, and Auberge de Chassignolles in the south of France…
Details: Thurs-Sun throughout May | 107 Lower Clapton Road, E5 0NP | No reservations
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Jam Delish at the Sun & 13 Cantons
Jam Delish proudly proclaim themselves to be “Soho’s first vegan Caribbean restaurant”, and we’re going to happily assume that they’re right. At least temporarily. Because they’re taking the current shift in the kitchen residencies at the Sun & 13 Cantons, where they’ll be staying for the next few months serving up vegan jerk prawns, plantain fries, and rum-soaked ‘chicken’ wings cleverly wrapped in a sugar cane skewer so that you can eat the ‘off the bone’.
Details: Tues-Sun throughout May | 21 Great Pulteney Street, W1F 9NG | Book here
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Smashed at The Gipsy Queen
Technically speaking, you’ve always been able to get smashed at The Gipsy Queen. But now you can get Smashed – an innovative burger outfit with a decade’s experience behind them. Their M.O. is pounding dry-aged beef into ‘wafer-thin’ patties that get a lacy crust on the griddle; sandwiching them in thick potato rolls; and finishing them off with home-made sauces from blueberry hot sauce to peanut butter mayo…
Details: Throughout May | The Gipsy Queen, 166 Malden Road, London, NW5 4BS | Book here
Venture Beyond by Penfolds
Wine? In a spaceship? In Harrods? That’s the vibe that the Penfolds pop up hitting Knightsbridge this month is all about. In an effort to push their Australian wine brand into the future they’re literally creating a little space capsule for you to sit inside as you taste one of their wine flights. Let’s see if it takes off.
Details: 1st-30th May | Fifth Floor, Harrods, 87–135 Brompton Road
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Rosé Garden Party
This central London piazza never promised you a rose garden. They are, however, promising you a rosé garden. For the next few weeks, Covent Garden market will be surrounded by pop up bars (with al fresco seating) serving up over 30 kinds of rosé wine, bubbles and cocktails. The surrounding eateries (including Ave Mario, Frenchie and The Oystermen) will be laying on rosé specials to boot, and you can bet there’s going to be a lot of floral installations.
Details: Until 15th May | Covent Garden Piazza | Free entry
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Cherry Blossom Garden at The Queen of Hoxton
The Queen of Hoxton is reasserting her regal supremacy of the East London rooftop scene this month by once again getting dolled up in an all-new eye-opening theme. This spring, it’s cherry blossoms, so expect a whole lot of pink and a wigwam full of trees…
Details: 4th May | 1-5 Curtain Road, Shoreditch, EC2A 3JX
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Vin-Yard
Wine purveyors Top Cuvée & pizza purveyors Yard Sale have decided to Voltron themselves together into a joint pop up for May – it’s called Vin-Yard (clever, right?) and it’ll feature the best of both worlds: top shelf natural wines, and first-class pizza, all paired up together. And of you want to go off-piste, there’ll be a couple of cocktails, too.
Details: 6th May – 25th May | 184 Hackney Road London, E2 7QL
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Brew LDN
If you thought Brew LDN – hitting the massive Printworks this month – was just about beer, cider, spirits, beer, street food, live music, beer, and a little more beer, then you’d be dead wrong.
There are also apparently snack stands.
Details: 6th & 7th May | London, Printworks, Surrey Quays Rd, London SE16 7PJ, UK | £24+
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La Pinta Tequila Festival
Lena Plotnikova / Unsplash
Tequila? Mezcal? Whatever you prefer, you’re calling the shots. Because at La Pinta Tequila Festival in Tobacco Dock, you’ll be able to sample the smokey wares from 20+ different agave producers. You’ll get a glass on the way in, and free rein to sip away to your heart’s content…
Details: 7th May | Tobacco Dock, Wapping Lane, E1W 2SF | £21+ | Get tickets here
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Midnight Apothecary
Huzzah! Everyone’s favourite bar-on-a-museum-rooftop is back. The mercury has finally crept high enough for the folks at the Midnight Apothecary to reopen the botanical cocktail garden slapped on top of the Brunel museum. Expect a charming fairylit urban garden, complete with salvaged garden furniture, firepits, and thriving vegetable and herb patches. And booze.
Details: From 7th May | Brunel Museum Rooftop Garden, Railway Avenue, SE16 4LF | £8
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Tequila Taco Tuesday Tasting at Corrochios Cocina & Cocteleria
This wonderfully alliterative name breaks down fairly simply: you get to taste a 6-course taco menu paired up with some of Mexico’s finest tequilas, mezcal, & sotol. To help you understand the tune playing on your tastebuds, it’ll be led in a mini-masterclass by drinks expert Mario Teruel. And it’ll take place on a Tuesday. At Corrochios Cocina & Cocteleria.
Details: 10th May | 76 Stoke Newington Road, N16 7XB | £79 | Get tickets here
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Madison x ITALICUS
The Madison roof terrace is already quite nice – to wit, the view of St Paul’s, the day beds, the DJS, etc. – But now, in order to zhuzh up the already very well-zhuzhed space, booze brand Italicus have swooped in and turned it all into lush Mediterranean garden, with greenery, lemon trees, and a few new cocktails…
Details: Until the end of June | Rooftop Terrace, One New Change, St. Paul’s, EC4M 9AF
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H-Division
East London has immersive cocktail experience themed after a Victorian-era police station – and it doesn’t take a detective to figure out which case you’ll be solving. The place is called H-Division, and it’s one of three different experiences packed into the two-floor Shoreditch Funhouse…
Details: Throughout May | 36 Bethnal Green Road, Shoreditch, E1 6HT | Book here
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Rosé Lumière
No, summer’s not for another month, plus change. But believe it or not, rosé still exists, and you can still drink it. And the people at Selfridges are setting out to prove it with Rosé Lumière, a pop up dedicated to pink wine. It’s dressed up to look like an Art Deco cinema, and it’s serving up Champagnes, cocktails, wine flights, and bar snacks.
Details: Open daily until June 2022 | Selfridges, 400 Oxford St, London W1A 1AB | No bookings, just turn up
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Old Bakery Gin
When a plumber and his dad took over an old bakery, they were expecting to find the old ovens. What they weren’t expecting was the century-old illicit gin distillery hidden at the back. Having tracked down the recipe from the baker’s grandson, they’re now making the stuff above board – and on the last Saturday of the month, they open their doors and turn the whole place into a bar. They’ll be serving up their own gin and rum alongside Merchant Heart mixers, as well as guest drinks and spirits to try.
Details: 28th May | 2 Pymmes Mews, London, N13 4PF | Free
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Main image: Future Shock