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Jason Allen 31/08/23


Your September Agenda

If you were born in September, then you can be sure of two things: a) it’s highly likely that your parents really enjoy New Years, and b) you won’t be bored on your birthday.

Because our fair capital has gone to the trouble of getting you a loooot of presents, including everything from a chance to witness a troupe of nimble dancers put on an acrobatic, gravity-flouting performance on the side of St Paul’s Cathedral (for free); see a river race with 300 boats desperately trying to outpace each-other down the Thames; get lost in a kaleidoscopic labyrinth of psychedelically colourful tunnels; see a fleet of glowing robotic swans perform a little aquatic ballet; eat food from a legendary chef in a private members’ club; and see one of the planet’s most acclaimed pianists perform inside a 40ft cube of moving art. And that’s just for starters… 

 


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POP UP EVENTS

Totally Thames | Boat Race, Art Installations, And Rides On A Paddle Steamer

The Thames. It’s pretty mainstream. And there’s a monthlong festival this September to celebrate it in all its glory. You can expect everything from a river race featuring 300+ boats, to a colourful floating art installation, to a trip on a good ol’ fashioned paddle steamer…

Details: 1-30th September | Along the Thames

Queen’s Park Book Festival | Some literal entertainment

Queen's Park Book Festival 2023

Sure, there are a lot of people reading books in parks on any given weekend. But only in this particular park, on this particular weekend will you find esteemed novelists like Sebastian Faulks and Zadie Smith discussing their latest books; the Guardian critic Jay Rayner in conversation with multi award-winning chef Michel Roux (not long after announcing the closure of his iconic restaurant, Le Gavroche); pop-up bookshops; author signings; stand-up comedy… and a lot of people reading books.

Details: 2nd & 3rd September | Queen’s Park, Kingswood Avenue, NW6 6SG | Tickets from £5

Capital Crime | A convention of crime novelists? They must be plotting something…

To the average person, being placed in a room surrounded by hundreds of the country’s most ardent murder enthusiasts might not sound completely appealing. But to the average literary thriller buff, Capital Crime sounds like one of the best festivals of the year. You’ll get to see over 100 authors, presenters, and publishers including Richard Osman, Sally Wainwright, Lisa Jewell and dozens more iconic names. And it doesn’t take a detective to figure out if it’s going to be any good…

Details: 2nd September | Leonardo Royal Hotel St Paul’s, EC4V 5AJ | £65+

Meatopia | A festival of pure protein

Meatopia

Meatopia is back. Once again it’s pitching up at Tobacco Dock for a weekend in early September, and once again it’s going to spoil you with proteinous treats courtesy of over 70 first-class live-fire chefs, all of whom will be scorching their meaty goods over hot, sustainably sourced coals.

Details: 31st August – 3rd September | Tobacco Dock, E1W 2SF | Fan-to-fan resale tickets available here

Outdoor Cinema at The Barbican | We’re calling it ‘BarbiCannes’. (To be clear, no one else is).

Outdoor Cinema at The Barbican is ending its annual run this month, with a pop up cinema being erected in the Barbican’s atmospheric Sculpture Court against a backdrop of the City’s skyline and the famous arts complex’s iconic brutalist buildings. Screening this year include kung-fu masterpiece Hero; Andrei Tarkovsky’s Mirror; Scorsese’s The Last Waltz; and Singing’ in the Rain. Which we sincerely hope they won’t be.

Details: Until 3rd September | Barbican Centre, Silk Street, EC2Y 8DS | £18

Kew the Movies | Watch flicks in an ancient botanical garden

View views so nice they threaten to disctract your attention for the actual screen, Kew Gardens is putting on a series of pop up cinema nights to kick off September. Evening showings this weekend include Top Gun: Maverick, and the old school, original Star Wars…

Details: Until 3rd September | Kew Gardens, TW9 3AE | £14.25

Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre | Balmy evening shows in the park

Regent's Park Open Air Theatre

Here’s some dramatic news: the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre is back open for business. Surprisingly for its size – it seats a cool 1,253 (capacity was increased by 53 seats over winter) – it’s a place you wouldn’t really stumble across unless you knew it was there. Hidden away in a grassy corner of Regent’s Park, it’s a sprawling outdoor stage surrounded by a canopy of trees and rows of amphitheatre-style seating, that all allows for the kind of mind-blowing staging that’s hard to get inside…

Details: Until 3rd September | Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, Inner Circle, Regent’s Park, NW1 4NU | £25

Hawk’s Nest Nudge Member Party | Your ticket = cocktails, music, pizza & arancini

Hawk's Nest glass rof

We’re holding a party at The Hawk’s Nest this month.

Now, we know what you’re thinking: You mean the Hawk’s Nest in Shepherd’s Bush which is one of the best alfresco spaces in London, but which is nevertheless subject to the whims of the famously fickle and unpredictable British weather?

Well, yes, we do mean that Hawk’s Nest. Only… they’re about to install one of the UK’s largest retractable glass roofs. And it’s going to be an absolute beauty, too. So whatever tricks ol’ Johnny weather tries to pull they’ve, ahem, got it covered.

Details: 6th September | The Hawk’s Nest, Goldhawk Rd, Shepherd’s Bush Market, W12 8DF | £15 (incl. entry, x2 welcome cocktails, pizza & arancini, and a live DJ)

Open House Festival | Snoop around mansions & derelict factories. for free.

BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir – iStock/Victor Huang

London has so many amazing museums, galleries and free places to visit, that anything kept behind closed doors seems all the more enticing…

…and for just one fortnight a year, those doors are unlocked.

For three decades, Open House Festival has provided the public with legitimate ways to be nosy by throwing open the doors to private houses, mansions, libraries, clock towers, factories and other buildings of particular architectural interest, to all and sundry… for free.

Details: 6th – 17th September | Across London | Free

True Story: SOUNDTRACK | Real Stories, Brand New Music

Looking for an original night out? This series of events sees musicians and songwriters take to the stage to perform brand new music inspired by real life stories… accompanied by a live retelling from the people who experienced them. This month’s edition, taking place at the Temple of Art and Music by Mercato Metropolitano, will feature music spanning rap, indie pop and vintage soul, all inspired by two truly heart-stirring tales.

Details: 7th September TAM, Mercato Metropolitano, 42 Newington Causeway, London SE1 6DR  | £11.55+

The London Podcast Festival | 10 days of live podcasting

The London Podcast Festival is returning for its eighth audio rodeo, to be held once again at Kings Place – in King’s Cross – over ten days in September (from the 7th-17th). As is the norm, the organisers have rounded up some of the most acclaimed names from both the UK and US podcast scenes, giving you the chance to finally see some of your favourite opinionists in the flesh. Those voices on the other end of your headphones that have kept you company during those long tube commutes for the past however many years? There’s a very real possibility that you’ll be able to put an actual face to them at this.

Details: 7th-17th September | Kings Place, 90 York Way, London, N1 9AG

Colourscape | Do a little prism time

Colourscape has popped up at several locations around London over the years, but it’s never failed to completely annihilate the reality centres of visitor’s brains. It’s made up of a labyrinth of huge tunnels – almost an acre of them – whose walls are made up of vibrant colours that seem to glow in the daylight. And this year, they’re throwing in a little live music, just to push the psychedelic button a little harder.

Details: 9th – 17th September | Clapham Common, Windmill Drive, SW4 9DE | £7

The Greenwich & Docklands International Festival | A free festival of creativity in South London

This month sees the return of The Greenwich & Docklands International Festival (or the ‘GDIF’ to its friends) takes place, and it’s basically one of the highest concentrations of theatrical & artistic talent in the country. And pretty much all of the shows are free. This year’s events include a daring high wire act, an aquatic ballet performed by some life-size glowing robotic swans, and a play set on a partially submerged & sinking house. In the docks.

Details: Until 10th September | Across Greenwich | Free

At Home Farm | Woodland gigs & banquets at the end of the Jubilee line

At Home Farm

Old McDonald’s farm had a lot going on.

If reports are to believed, there was everywhere a quack quack.

And yet however bountiful his menagerie, it pales in comparison to Home Farm, an oasis just at the end of the tube map which – aside from being a proper farm growing grains & cereal crops across its 150 acres of beautiful pastoral landscape – is once more staging a magical series of events and residencies this summer, including woodland gigs, a nostalgic summer circus, and outdoor banquets with some of the city’s top chefs. And after two sell-out years, this time they’ve really brought in the cream of the crop.

Details: 12th-14th September | Aldenham Road, Elstree, Hertfordshire, WD6 3AZ

Succession: An Evening with the Writers | In conversation on the Southbank

If you’d like to know how the various members of the Roy family decide whose back looks most stabbable, then this is for you. The writers of Succession (Jesse Armstrong, Tony Roche, Jon Brown, Lucy Prebble & Georgia Pritchett) will be on stage at the Southbank this month, discussing plot lines that never happened, character insights that don’t make it to the screen, and the inspirations for their stories. (Tickets are limited, but there are returns & cancellations.)

Details: 13th September | The Southbank Centre, SE1 | £15-£35

One Track Minds | A life-affirming evening of storytelling & music

For those of you with one track minds…

…no, this event isn’t about that.

Instead, it’s an uplifting, thought-provoking, life-affirming evening that combines live storytelling with music – resulting in a kind of wild, inspirational mash-up of TED Talks and Desert Island Discs.

Taking place every few months in the crumbling old beauty that is Wilton’s Music Hall, it sees an invited panel of interesting people take to the stage to talk about a song that changed their lives. These interesting people span all careers and walks of life – in the past, they’ve included The Guilty Feminist Deborah Frances-White; doctor-diarist-comedian Adam Kay; food critic and jazz musician Jay Rayner. And even if there’s a few names on the roster you don’t recognise, you might just come away with fresh perspectives or insights on topics that you never even knew you’d be interested in.

Details: 13th & 14th September | Wilton’s Music Hall, Graces Alley, E1 8JB | £9-£17

Greenwich Comedy Festival | London’s biggest comedy festival

Greenwich comedy festival

Want to hear something really funny?

Well in order to do that you’ll need to head along to the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich for the annual gagfest that is The Greenwich Comedy Festival. Because the impressive 2023 line up includes Jack Dee, Ed Gamble, Steward Lee, ventriloquist Nina Conti, Russell Kane, Phil Wang and everyone’s fourth favourite ex-children’s TV presenter, Simon Amstell…

Details: 13th – 17th September | The Greenwich Comedy Festival, National Maritime Museum, Royal Borough of Greenwich, London, SE10 9J | £26

Batman Unmasked | Visit the Batcave and see some cool props

Photo by Dev on Unsplash (edited)

There’s a new Batman exhibition coming to town, and it’s completely free (so they won’t be Robin’ you). It’s called Batman Unmasked, and its in honour of about six different anniversaries, ranging from Warner Bros 100th, to the 85th birthday of the masked crusader himself. You’ll get to step into a replica Batcave and see props & costumes from several decades of movies. Tickets predictably got snapped up insanely fast, but there are a few walk-in slots available each day.

Details: 15th – 17th September | 180 Piccadilly, St. James’s, W1J 9HF | Free

Gabrielle Chanel: Fashion Manifesto | It’s the little black dress of exhibitions

Anouk Aimée lors d’une séance d’essayage chez Chanel Paris en 1960. Photo by Giancarlo BOTTI/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images

It seems odd that there hasn’t been an exhibition about Coco Chanel’s life at any major UK museum until now. But here are are, and here it is: Gabrielle Chanel, Fashion Manifesto hits the V&A this month with 180 designs, plus accessories, hats, perfumes, and items of jewellery on show in eight themed sections, that each cover an aspect of the great designer’s work.

Details: From 16th September | V&A Museum, Cromwell Road, Knightsbridge, SW7 2RL | £24

The London Design Festival | Bleeding-edge design ideas & mind-blowing installations

The LDF is here to show off London as the “design capital of the world”, and when you lay down a gauntlet like that, you need to back it up with something impressive. Like, say, pulsating line of light projected at an “architectural scale” in St. Paul’s Cathedral, or a chance to meet & chat to the world’s number one art forger, or an immersive sensory lab that encompasses all five senses. That kind of thing.

Details: 16th-24th September | Across London

Astronomy Photographer of the Year | Get stars in your eyes

Depending on what kind of stars you like seeing photos of you should either buy a copy of Hello!, or go to the Astronomy Photographer of the Year exhibition at the Maritime Museum, where you can see shimmering constellations, vast galaxies, mesmerising eclipses, and feel a sense of genuine awe wash over you as you’re confronted with the sheer vastness of the universe we live in.

We recommend the latter.

Details: Opens 16th September | National Maritime Museum, Romney Rd, SE10 9NF | £10

Classical Concerts in A Car Park | Highly creative shows in a Peckham multi-storey 

London proudly boasts some of the world’s greatest concert halls: the Royal Festival Hall at the Southbank Centre, the Royal Albert Hall, the Barbican… and a multi-storey carpark in Peckham. The unlikely pairing is part of not-for-profit organisation Bold Tendencies’ annual summer programme, where they’ve transformed an abandoned multi-storey car park from a place where people leave their vehicles and loiter late at night, to a cultural hub of sculpture art, literature and music, with a rooftop bar thrown in for good measure.

Details: Until 16th September | Multi Storey Car Park, 95A Rye Lane, SE15 4ST | £6+

The Bartholomew Fair | Watch people dance on the side of St. Paul’s

The original Bartholomew Fair opened in the year 1133, and was held every year at the end of summer for centuries until it was banned in 1855 for being too fun. Well, now it’s back. And its going to be updating the entertainment a wee bit with shows like a laser-mapped projection that follows a path around the Square Mile, as well as one in which a troupe of aerial performers will literally dance on the side of St Paul’s Cathedral… and likely get the fair banned for another couple of centuries.

Details: Until 16th September | The City of London | Free

DEBUT at the Shoreditch Treehouse | Spine-tingling concerts in a beautiful space

DEBUT are a group of extremely talented classical musicians who band together in order to play accessible, fun concerts in interesting & unusual spaces. And the Shoreditch Treehouse is both interesting and unusual. This month, they’re hosting a show with sushi & gyoza, a little light piano improv, a pair of shows from two surprise performers, and BYOB drinks…

Details: 23rd September | Shoreditch Treehouse, 34 Charlotte Rd, EC2A 3PB | £28

Jury Duty | Part theatre, part escape room, all entertaining

Most people will do anything to get out of jury duty. But the verdict on this immersive show has been so overwhelmingly positive, it seems like it’s worth courting the idea after all. The idea is pretty solid: the justice system has been overwhelmed, so they’ve outsourced cases to you and your plucky fellow jurors, and you only have a couple of hours to reach a decision. You’ll have to work together to examine evidence, interview the defendant, and determine whether he’s guilty or innocent. It’s like an escape room meets an immersive theatre show, and by all accounts it’s very slick… but you be the judge.

Details: Until 23rd September | Theatre Deli, 107 Leadenhall Street, EC3A 4AF | £24.23 -£32.50

HowTheLightGetsIn | A music & philosophy festival (Nudge Member Perk)

how the light gets in

HowTheLightGetsIn is officially the world’s largest philosophy & music festival.

Really makes you think, doesn’t it.

And dance.

But aside from being a perfect opportunity to ask why it takes two to tango, it’s also got a whole lot of comedy, food, workshops, and other stuff on offer too. All in all, there’ll be a tidy 150 speakers & performers, ranging from theoretical physicists, to comedians, to Mercury Prize winning musicians. And of course, that’s on top of the long table banquets, pop up bars, philosophy breakfasts, street food, cabaret, and massive amounts of other stuff. And Nudge Members are getting to experience it all, with a stonking 35% off tickets…

Details: 23rd & 24th September | Kenwood House, Hampstead Lane, Highgate, NW3 7JR | Use Code ‘NUDGE23’ for 35% off here

The Nudge X Draughts | An Afternoon Of Casual Gaming

Draughts

We’re holding a casual afternoon games session for Nudge Members in which you can drop by with a plus one, meet other like-minded Londoners, then have a few drinks and play a few boardgames at a beautiful little spot in East London. The idea is to help make Nudge Membership into more of a community and to create a low-key, thoroughly enjoyable social gathering.

If you’re still reading, then hopefully you think it just might work, so here are the details: it’s all going down in Draughts, a lovely, leafy little boardgame cafe in Dalston on Sunday 24th September (2pm until 5pm). Your ticket will net you entry, two welcome drinks (wine, beer, soft drink, single spirit and mixer, cocktail), and a session playing the multitude of games on offer. It’s Nudge Members plus one, but most of the games are playable for up to 4-5 people, meaning you can hopefully team up and get to know each other.

Details: 24th September | 41 Kingsland High Street, E8 2JS | £14 (get tickets HERE, access code: JENGA)

Illusionaries | See it in motion on our Reel

Just reading the ‘about’ part of the Illusionaries website is a pretty transcendent experience. You’ll be promised that you’ll get to navigate “the enchanted nexus of art and illusion”, and in doing so “prepare to be left breathless by dazzling, thought-provoking illusions that challenge your perception of reality.”

So, basically, you’re going to see some mind-blowing sh*t.

And in fairness to the creators, you need to sell a show like this as a transformative experience because A) it helps to build expectation and anticipation in an interesting way without spoiling it by telling everyone precisely what’s in store, and B) it sounds cool. So with that in mind, what is in store? Well, it all sounds rather fun…

Details: Until 24th September | Crossrail Pl, Canary Wharf, E14 5AR | £38

Lightroom Live: Yuja x Hockney | A piano concert in an immersive art show

So, this sounds interesting.

For three days at the end of next month Yuja Wang – one of the most acclaimed & revered classical pianists in the world – will play a series of concerts in the extraordinary Lightroom, currently home to David Hockney’s awe-inspiring exhibition of large scale immersive art.

Basically, both your eyes and your ears are going to be competing to see which of them is more blown away by the whole affair.

Details: 28th, 29th, 30th September | Lightroom, 12 Lewis Cubitt Square, N1C 4DY | £15

Dreamachine | An art show you watch with your eyes closed

Dreamachine - David Levene

This is an art show that you watch with your eyes closed. Which, ironically, makes it something of an eye-opening experience.

The strikingly colourful works are entirely created by your own brain, thanks to computer-controlled flashing lights that project onto your eyelids, designed to trigger a pseudo-hallucinogenic state. Thus, everyone sees something different, and very few people are prepared for the vividness of the waking visions created by the Dreamachine…

Details: Until 1st October | Hackney Downs Studio, 17 Amhurst Terrace, E8 2BT | £15

Power Up | Play basically every games console ever

Presumably compensating for the fact that they don’t get all the cool T-Rex skeletons, the Science Museum is bringing back what may be the best museum exhibition of all time: 160 playable consoles, spanning 50 years of video game history, from Pong to VR headsets. And, once you’ve got a ticket, it’s all free to play.

Details: Throughout September | The Science Museum, Exhibition Rd, SW7 2DD | £10

Jack & Boule | Boules & cocktails on the Southbank

If there’s one thing you can say about Jack & Boule, a laid-back boules court popping up for the summer, it’s that they really do give a toss.

In fact, they’re packing 10,000 sq ft of space with 8 sand-filled lanes at their Southbank venue for lots of people to give a toss, by playfully flinging both jacks and boules as if they were on the French Riviera itself. Only with street food (like mac & cheese croquettes, fattoush salads, and burritos bigger than your head) and a cocktail-filled pop up bar.

Details: Until 22nd October | 101 Upper Ground, SE1 9PP | £25

Genesis London | A hallucinogenic light show in a Central London church

The Swiss Church in Covent Garden is going to be painted in laser-mapped digital light this month in a display so trippy it’s almost, well, religious. It’s called Genesis, and it’ll be a “30-minute, four-part journey through the elements of light, water, earth, and plants, representing the first three days of creation in Genesis.” So, completely on theme, then.

Details: Until 22nd October | The Swiss Church, 79 Endell Street, WC2H 9DY | £13.20+

The BBC Earth Experience | Immerse yourself in an Attenborough documentary 

If you head to Earl’s Court this month, you’ll get to witness the sheer majesty of one of our planet’s most precious resources: David Attenborough.

He’s provided his velvety, highly informed, and hypnotically engaging voice to the BBC Earth Experience, which is an extremely ambitious affair to say the least: it’s all housed in a new, massive, purpose-built venue in West London into which they’ve stuffed some vast, 360-degree, multi-angle digital screens for you to submerge yourself into the natural world…

Details: Until January 2024 | The Daikin Centre, Earl’s Court, Empress Place, SW6 1TW | £28.50

Eat Al Fresco

We’ve never met this guy Al Fresco…

…but we like the way he thinks about outdoor dining.

Especially when the weather gods see fit to bless London with some decent weather – and that’s where these restaurants with outdoor seating come in to play. The city’s overflowing with sun-drenched terraces, riverside dining, rooftops, balconies, and hidden courtyards – as long as you know where to find them. And to ensure you do, we’ve put together your ultimate al fresco dining guide. See the best London al fresco restaurants

Check out an Exhibition

One of the great advantages of living in London is that you have access to more culture than a librarian face-planting into a petri dish. And we’ve collated the best places to go in our guide to… the best exhibitions on in London.

Go To The Theatre

You may laugh. You may cry. You may throw up, or potentially do all three.  See The Best Shows On At The Theatre Now

 


POP UP RESTAURANTS

Feast On Cloud 9 | Get dinner in a hot air balloon

Okay so this one’s not in London per se… but it is a short cab ride from Watford Junction, and frankly it’s worth it for the sheer occasion alone. It feels like you’re miles away from anywhere else, set in 300 acres of shimmering long grass, and you’ll get to have dinner inside your own personal hot air balloon. And there’s a pop up cinema too.

Details: Until 3rd September | The Grove, Chandler’s Cross, Hertfordshire WD3 4TG | £55 for afternoon tea, £125 for dinner.

The Home of Food | A food festival at… Lords cricket green?

A food festival in a cricket green? Howzat for a strange idea. Well, it still sounds like it’ll be good fun – Headlined by Michelin Starred chef Tommy Banks, it’ll feature a dozen top-tier chefs (including the guys from Fallow and Richard Corrigan), some wine tastings, BBQ demos, cocktail masterclasses, and even a little cricket.

Details: 9th & 10th September | Lords Cricket Ground, NW8 8QN | £45

Chez Rowley | A culinary legend pops up at a members’ club

Rowley Leigh at Laylow.

If you think that’s a mouthful, just wait until you eat there.

For anyone who’s not immediately scrolling for the booking link at the mention of his name, Rowley Leigh is, simply put, one of the country’s culinary national treasures. He’s the man who launched the much-loved Kensington Place, a restaurant that marked a new wave of dining in London around the same time The River Café and Bibendum opened their doors. Having him cooking in the capital again is a serious boon, and he’ll be here right up until Christmas with his pop-up restaurant, Chez Rowley.

Details: 13th September – 22nd December 2023 | Chez Rowley, 10 Golborne Road, London, W10 5PE

The BBQ Club | Pop up ‘cueing by the river 

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 brought it back. He’s returning to his tried & tested spot on the Southbank, where the Thames-side venue will be split into two distinct areas: a sit down restaurant overlooking the river, and a street food space downstairs…

Details: Until 17th September | Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, SE1 8XX

Jackson Boxer at Selfridges | Uberchef meets department store

Chef Jackson Boxer is taking over The Corner in Selfridges this autumn for a popup (albeit one with no end date) to fill the gap while he sorts out another of his own restaurants. His first couple – including Orasay and Brunswick House – weren’t too shabby, so this ought to be a belter. Dishes are set to include “chilled peeled XL langoustine tail on ice, with a mayonnaise made from the roasted heads and shell” and a fried veal sandwich. Yes please.

Details: From 22nd September | Selfridges, W1A 1AB

KERB presents: The Table | A 70m long table on the Southbank 

KERB have opened a summer market outside the National Theatre, and it’s packing in eight street food traders, a couple of bars, and precisely one table. Yes, one. It’s 70 metres long, with space for 200 people. So, the salt & pepper shakers will probably be in different postcodes, but it looks pretty amazing. And the food is pretty decent too, spanning Lucky’s Hot Chicken, Sicilian-style deep pan from Bad Boy Pizza Society, and chocolate orange negroni flavour Big Kid Ice Cream.

Details: Until 23rd September | The National Theatre, SE1 9PX

Joe Couldridge at the Prince Arthur | An up-and-coming young chef up-and-comes

The Prince Arthur just got a new monarch in their kitchen.

His name is Joe Couldridge, and you should be excited for three reasons: 1) Hawksmoor, 2) Leroy, and 3) The Clarence Tavern. That’s where he’s previously manned the pans – aside from the Lockdown Years, which he spent on a farm in Cornwall absorbing what we can only assume was vast amounts of knowledge about ingredients, organic farming methods, and seasonality.

Details: Throughout September | The Prince Arthur, 95 Forest Road, E8 3BH

Pamir Zeydan x Kebab Queen | Tasting menus in a secret space

Kebab Queen

Kebab Queen, everyone’s favourite secret-tasting-menu-only-restaurant-within-a-restaurant just got a new chef. That chef’s name is Pamir Zeydan, and it’s one you’re going to want to remember. His culinary style has been imbued with Kurdish and Mediterranean influences from his upbringing in Turkey, as well as the fine dining techniques he’s picked up working in some of the world’s most elegant restaurants. And his tenure is going to mark a brand new direction for Kebab Queen, infusing the menu with echoes of classic Turkish and Mediterranean dishes in a one-of-a-kind, super-intimate dining experience served to just eight people at a time…

Details: Throughout September | Kebab Queen, Downstairs at Maison Bab, Mercer’s Walk, WC2H 9QE

The Good Front Room | Caribbean cooking in a beautiful hotel

If you’re familiar with Caribbean restaurants in London, you’ll probably know that they a) mostly operate as take-away restaurants and/or b) never have any food left.

But The Good Front Room is breaking this tradition.

It’s a pop-up restaurant brought to you by Chef Dom Taylor, who’s just won Channel 4’s Five Star Kitchen: Britain’s Next Great Chef by impressing Le Gavroche’s Michel Roux with his unique cooking style that blends his Caribbean heritage with his South London upbringing…

Details: Throughout September | The Langham Hotel, 1c Portland Place, Regent Street, W1B 1JA

Embers | Fire-driven food in an urban winery

Embers is the work of a pair of friends (one of whom has helpfully trained under multiple Michelin Starred chefs) who’ve been working their way up the London food scene ladder, residency-by-residency, impressing pretty much everyone along the way with their flame-driven menu. Their latest stop will be in the Renegade Urban Winery, where they’ll be cooking up the likes of BBQ’d octopus with hot nectarine chutney; coal-roasted potatoes with miso & chives; and 400g aged ribeye with stuffed onion & bone marrow.

Details: Throughout September (Weds-Sat) | Renegade Urban Winery, 7 Lockwood Way, E17 5RB

Poon’s Wontoneria | A legacy Chinese restaurant in…. an incubator space?

Poon’s has been on a wild ride since opening its first restaurant in Covent Garden back in ’73, winning a Michelin Star, opening half a dozen branches, gaining celebrity superfans, and surviving lockdown thanks to a wonton delivery service. Well, now they’re running ever more permanent supperclubs and popups, the latest of which is a stint at Carousel’s incubator space…

Details: Until October | No.23 at Carousel, 23 Charlotte St, W1T 1RL

Coqfighter at The Sun & 13 Cantons | Fried chicken, in all its glorious forms

The Sun & 13 Cantons has had some stellar kitchen residencies in its past. It even helped launch Darjeeling Express into the stratosphere. Currently, however, it’s the domain of the fried chicken specialists at Coqfighter. They’re putting out a menu that involves fiery Nashville hot chicken burgers, Korean fried wings, Laska style butter wings, overnight brined on-the-bone joints draped in miso butter gravy, and even – get this – some vegan options too.

Details: Throughout September | The Sun and 13 Cantons, 21 Great Pulteney Street, W1F 9NG

Outcrop | A pop up from some former Secret Cinema crew members

Outcrop is here, and it has outshined expectations. And the expectations were high.

It’s mostly thanks to the talent behind it – a trio of Secret Cinema team members (former, current, and freelance) teaming up with the guys from Michelin Star winning Luca, and the duo behind the excellent AngloThai. And just to gild this lily of talent a little bit, they’re now putting on a seres of “Lost Giants” supperclubs, with a trio of uberchefs all manning the pans for an evening in the beautiful space at 180 Strand. They’ll include AngloThai x Brad Carter (10th September); Apricity’s Chantelle Nicholson (11th September); and Spring’s Skye Gyngell (17th September). And we can’t wait.

Details: For Lost Giants: 10th, 11th & 17th September (Lost Giants) Book tickets here | Otherwise currently booking until the end of September | 180 Strand, WC2R 1EA

Rajiv’s Kitchen at The Crooked Well | Nepali food in South London

The Rajiv behind Rajiv’s Kitchen is a Nepalese chef who has been making waves with his highly popular residences across the capital recently. Currently, you’ll find him manning the pans at The Crooked Well down in Camberwell, where he’s cooking up fluffy mommos, tender Nepali-spiced pork ribs, fiery goat curry, coconut & lime panacotta, and more.

Details: Throughout September | The Crooked Well, 16 Grove Lane Camberwell SE5

The Sandwich Shop | American-style subs in Southwark 

Formerly called ‘The Experimental Sandwich Shop’, apparently that experiment didn’t work, so now they’re just calling this place ‘The Sandwich Shop’. Directly inspired by New York’s plethora of gigantic, bread-bordered treats, expect gigantic meatball subs and aubergine parms…

Details: Throughout September | Vinegar Yard, St.Thomas Street, Southwark

Tiella at the Compton Arms | Italian food in a classic North London boozer 

The Compton Arms always gets in great residencies. The last two – Four Legs and BELLY – both impressed massively, so they took a slight risk with Tiella because a) it’s not named after a body part, which seems to be the theme here, and b) it’s the debut of Italian chef Dara Klein, who has not yet helmed her own restaurant. But luckily, it turns out that she almost literally grew up in her family’s restaurant kitchen, and soaked up experience the whole time, then worked her way up through the ranks at places like Brawn, Trullo, and Sager + Wilde. So – surprise surprise – that risk has paid off…

Details: Throughout September | Compton Arms, 4 Compton Avenue, London, N1 2XD

esti | Australian-Greek fusion in a cocktail bar

If you’ve never had Australian-Greek fusion food before – and we’ll take a wild, stab-in-the-dark guess here and say no, you probably haven’t – then get ready to say an Aegean g’day to the latest popup to hit TT Liquor. It’s called esti (the lower case is intentional), and it’s the work of head chef Sal Galasso, who’s spend the last decade working at some of Oz’s finest restaurants. Now, he’ll be cooking up ‘straight-off-the-coals’ pork souvlaki, twice-cooked lamb ribs with Australian ‘desert dust’ spice mix, and smokey aubergine with brown butter & fried peanuts. It’s due to stick around for six months… but that’s just an esti, mate.

Details: Until October 19th | TT Liquor, 17B Kingsland Rd, E2 8AA


POP UP BARS

Lyaness Riviera | £9 alfresco cocktails from one of the world’s best bars

@Fabsinthe

Lyaness isn’t just your average, everyday, ho-hum cocktail bar. It was literally voted the world’s best cocktail bar at the Spirited awards (the Oscars of booze) just last year. And now, it’s somehow getting even better by adding an alfresco cocktail terrace. There’ll be thirst-annihilating numbers like the Lean frozen marg, and the Clarified Strawberries & Cream. And they’ll all be £9 a pop.

Details: Until 3rd September | Sea Containers London, 20 Upper Ground, SE1 9PD | All cocktails £9

Mr Lyan & Friends On The Rooftop | Partner Content

Mr Lyan at One Hundred Shoreditch

Mr Lyan already heads up two of the best-loved cocktail bars in the capital: Lyaness and Seed Library. And for the next two months he’s creating some kind of super-cocktail bar by taking over The Rooftop at One Hundred Shoreditch, and inviting a series of special guests to join him every Sunday and Monday. So far, those guests include his creative lab, Mr Lyan Studio, Lyaness, plus a special collaboration between East London favourites, Three Sheets and The Sun Tavern, with more to be announced. They’ll be serving one-off cocktails, boozy ice cream floats and snacks, all to a backdrop of the London skyline. And that’s a partnership that always works…

Details: 3rd September | 100 Shoreditch High Street, London, E1 6JQ | 5-10PM

Bar Night at Novelty Automation | Pop up bar in a surreal arcade 

Novelty Automation has some truly weird arcades. There’s a Money Laundering cash drop, an ‘Auto Frisker’ that will pat you down like a mechanical bouncer, and a ‘Small Hadron Collider’ among many others. It’s like satire meets surrealism meets stainless steel. And for one night a month, there’s a pop up bar there too.

Details: 7th September | 1a Princeton St, Holborn, WC1R 4AX | 5pm-9pm

 

Cocktails in the City | Complimentary guest list for Nudge Members

If you’re reading this, it means that you get complimentary tickets to Cocktails In The City’s 2023 Summer Series on the 7th & 9th of September, because if you’re reading this then you’re a Nudge Member. “But what is Cocktails In The City?” is the question you’re very unlikely to be asking, because you almost certainly already know the answer. But if you don’t, well this liquor-laced weekender is essentially an al fresco pop-up cocktail festival in a lush, private Georgian garden in the heart of London bringing together a couple of dozen of the finest bars in London (and, by extension, the world) for tastings, masterclasses, and, well, a lot of cocktails.

Details: 7th-9th September | Bedford Square, WC1B 3HH | £22 + £2 booking fee (free for Nudge Members)

Tequila & Mezcal Fest | It’s a, uh, festival of tequila and mezcal

Fun fact: tequila is a type of mezcal. So technically this is just the Mezcal & Other Mezcal Festival, but it’s no less delicious for it. You’ll find dozens of distilleries repped by two fully functional bars, a bunch of Mexican street food, some live entertainment, and some liver entertainment in the form of a whole load of free samples.

Details: 8th & 9th September | Studio 9294, Wallis Road, E9 5LN | £25

Yinka Ilori x Selfridges | Cognac & colours in an iconic department store

Taking up residence in The Wonder Room on Selfridges’ ground floor, this colourful pop up bar is designed by famed happiness merchant Yinka Ilori, and funded by the folks at Courvoisier. Meaning you’ll get plenty of cognac-fulled cocktails in a characteristically whimsical & vibrant space.

Details: Until 10th September | Selfridges, 400 Oxford St, W1A 1AB

Oktoberfest at Big Penny Social | Beer, brats, pretzels, oompah bands, and confetti showers

Big Penny Social is the country’s biggest beer hall so – shocker – they’re participating in the world’s biggest beer festival. Their Oktoberfest (which is genuinely is traditionally held in September, FYI) is going to involve beer, bratwust, pretzels, oompah bands, sing-a-longs, confetti showers, and more. Sehr gut, ja?

Details: 29th & 30th September | 1 Priestley Way, E17 6AL | £13

LOAH Taproom | Low-&-no alcohol bar in Hackney

LOAH are a non-alcoholic beer brand. Not a beer brand who happen to also make a couple of low-percentage numbers, but a dedicated, hangover-free company. And they’ve launched what they claim to be the nation’s first completely non-alcoholic taproom in Hackney Downs, featuring an in-store record shop, a rotating gallery and exhibition space, and plans for movie nights & supperclubs too…

Details: Throughout September | Arch D, Hackney Downs Studios, 17 Amhurst Terrace, E8 2BT

Midnight Apothecary | Botanical cocktails on a rooftop 

It’s summer, and that means tennis, ice cream, and Midnight Apothecary’s botanical rooftop bar. You’ll start your evening in their charming fairylit urban garden, complete with salvaged garden furniture, firepits, and thriving vegetable and herb patches, before descending down for a tour of the Brunel Tunnel shaft too.

Details: Fridays & Saturdays until 30th September | Brunel Museum Rooftop Garden, Railway Avenue, SE16 4LF | £8

 

 


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