London recommendations

[davids]

My wife & I are going to London for a week, leaving next Friday.

Tell me your favorite sights, strolls, and eats.

[maunahaole]

Ping vertical Doug.

[corko]

London Bike sHow......11th 14th Feb. lOndon Excel Arena...pretty central.....worth a look if you can swing it.

More info...The London Bike Show

I'm hoping to go but it's right in the middle of a house move....

[savine]

the lovely walk from Seven Sisters tube down Tottenham High Rd to White Hart Lane.......highly recomend and you can enjoy a local kebab or deep freid chicken at one of the many establishments on the walk down.

in all seriousness walk everywhere up town, no need to go on the tube cos its all pretty close. Covent Garden, Soho during the day n at night, nice walk down the mall, stroll around many of the parks.....it´s all good. If you want museums then a tube to the V&A and then a bowl about Kensington. Jump on a tube and go to somewhere like Kilburn (Jubilie line) to have afry up in a greasy cafe.....this something no tourist does but it´s where the real people are or as i jokingly suggest Tottenham or maybe not. Notting Hill combine that with Kensington. Church Rd market just off the Edgware Rd on a saturday, nothing fancy but the locals or Wembly Market on a sunday and you can say you´ve been to the stadium. Advided all them hipster places like Spitelfeilds etc.......

[stlhenrys]

I live nearby (Cambridge), so I head into London a lot. Here are some brief thoughts:

- There is a Napolitan restaurant called Santore in Exmouth market that has fantastic pizza and the best antipasti I've ever had. My girlfriend is Italian and she makes me go here every time we are in London.
- Kew Gardens (or, "The Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew") are beautiful and enormous. The town of Kew, which can be accessed by the Tube, feels quaint and nicely secluded from the city's bustle--a day trip definitely feels like a rest from the often-draining pace of central London. And there is a very nice pub right next to the train tracks.
- Visit the V&A, but also skip across the street to the Natural History Museum and the Science Museum. Hyde Park is also nearby.
- I enjoy walking along the south bank of the Thames, which will lead you from Parliament to the Tate Modern (and Millenium Bridge/St Paul) in less than an hour. Or so I recall.

I don't have eyes for London as a tourist any longer, so these may not be particularly thrilling options. But I never tire of them.

I will also say that if you have the energy for a day trip, a 45 minute train ride to either Oxford or Cambridge (from Paddington or King's Cross, respectively) can be enormously fun. Both are beautiful towns with many great restaurants, stunning buildings, gardens, book- and whiskey-shops, and museums of their own. And I have many recs for both (having lived in Oxford before and living in Cam now). Get in touch if a question comes to mind.

[Scott G.]

The two fun places, Condor Cycles and the British Museum.
The Rosetta Stone and a Paris Gablier.

[vertical_doug]

Temple Church - Round Church (be a Dan Brown fan) William Marshal is buried here and he started the code of chivalry.
Wallace Museum - Grand old house with superb armor collection + paintings. Again William Marshall connection
Brompton Oratory - it is an interesting place to attend a old latin Mass. (They tried but did not kill all the catholics)
Churchhill's bunker from the London Air Raids
Tate Britain - to see the sculptures and watercolors by Henry Moore from the air raid tunnels in London (go after visit the bunker)
get a #2 head shave at Pall Mall Barbers
if you and your wife are runners, run along the canals starting in Paddington, across Little Venice, Regent Park ending in Camden. You can run up Pimrose Hill too..
Walk across Richmond Park and then down to the bridge and Thames .... row a boat.

Macellaio RC 84 old brompton road for italian steak... rawesome

[caleb]

- Kew Gardens (or, "The Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew") are beautiful and enormous. The town of Kew, which can be accessed by the Tube, feels quaint and nicely secluded from the city's bustle--a day trip definitely feels like a rest from the often-draining pace of central London. And there is a very nice pub right next to the train tracks.

If you make it out to Kew, there's a little cafe attached to the rail station that had fantastic lamb shanks and Doom Bar on tap last time I was there.




Also, the national archives are an easy walk from Kew station, and their cafeteria has an excellent daily food special at a reasonable price.

The regular chapel choir at Westminster is fantastic, too.

[savine]

the lovely walk from Seven Sisters tube down Tottenham High Rd to White Hart Lane.......highly recomend and you can enjoy a local kebab or deep freid chicken at one of the many establishments on the walk down.

in all seriousness walk everywhere up town, no need to go on the tube cos its all pretty close. Covent Garden, Soho during the day n at night, nice walk down the mall, stroll around many of the parks.....it´s all good. If you want museums then a tube to the V&A and then a bowl about Kensington. Jump on a tube and go to somewhere like Kilburn (Jubilie line) to have afry up in a greasy cafe.....this something no tourist does but it´s where the real people are or as i jokingly suggest Tottenham or maybe not. Notting Hill combine that with Kensington. Church Rd market just off the Edgware Rd on a saturday, nothing fancy but the locals or Wembly Market on a sunday and you can say you´ve been to the stadium. Advided all them hipster places like Spitelfeilds etc.......

The main paragraph is perfectly serious.....sometimes it's better to have a quick look at the tourist bits but then pop just a bit out of the city centre and see the bits that just the locals see. If you also want proper old style London food then home give pie, mash n liqueur a go, not everyone s cup of tea but worth a try. Enjoy the trip, I wish I could go home for a short break. Oh, and a visit to the thearte is possible with dAy ticket pick up down Leicster Sq.

[chrisn]

General advice (already eluded to by others) would be to walk or cycle as much as possible and avoid the tube. West End - Westminster - South Bank - London Bridge - Tower bridge etc is all walkable and you'll see so much more. Even catching a bus will be much more interesting than the tube. Another great old London pub near Farringdon station is The Jerusalem Tavern. It's pretty tiny but full of charm - it does get busy at times but worth a visit for the beer. My neighbour used to be the MD of St Peters Brewery - if you like ale these guys are a fine place to start!

Jerusalem Tavern | Bars and pubs in Farringdon, London

[72gmc]

I've been to London all of 3.5 days. On business. Decided to sleep little and walk 2-3 hrs starting at oh dark thirty every morning. Coffee shops didn't open as early as they did in Seattle so check that if you need. The bank of the Thames, St. Paul's, British Museum, Piccadilly Circus, SoHo, the Tube were all highlights. So much to do on foot. Excellent dim sum too. Travel well. I can't wait to go back.

[Gattonero]

Bring a brolley, avoid Oxford street, avoid most of the overpriced restaurants in centre of town, make sure you visit the small -less known- museums-.
Has been a mild winter so far, no need for heavy clothing IMO

[Gern]

I will second the Cheshire Cheese recommendation -- ambiance and food are excellent. V&A, British museum and Imperial War Museum are excellent. The War Rooms are definitely worth a visit. A note on the IWM. There is good food just around the corner from the museum at the Three Stags pub on Kennington Road.

We will be back in April for my wife's birthday. Giselle at the Royal Opera House and the Faure Requiem at St. Martin in the Fields are already booked. We also really enjoy the free organ recitals at Westminster Abbey on Sunday evenings. I am busily researching the other recs in this thread.

I few years ago I was able to convince my wife, and the couple traveling with us, to visit the Royal Observatory in Greenwich -- we took the tour boat from the Tower of London dock. I had wanted to see the Harrison clocks for some time, and I was not disappointed. My wife and our friends really enjoyed the visit and actually felt that my "nerd quest" was very worthwhile. I would like to go back and tour the Nation Maritime Museum as well.

[davids]

I will second the Cheshire Cheese recommendation -- ambiance and food are excellent. V&A, British museum and Imperial War Museum are excellent. The War Rooms are definitely worth a visit. A note on the IWM. There is good food just around the corner from the museum at the Three Stags pub on Kennington Road.

We will be back in April for my wife's birthday. Giselle at the Royal Opera House and the Faure Requiem at St. Martin in the Fields are already booked. We also really enjoy the free organ recitals at Westminster Abbey on Sunday evenings. I am busily researching the other recs in this thread.

I few years ago I was able to convince my wife, and the couple traveling with us, to visit the Royal Observatory in Greenwich -- we took the tour boat from the Tower of London dock. I had wanted to see the Harrison clocks for some time, and I was not disappointed. My wife and our friends really enjoyed the visit and actually felt that my "nerd quest" was very worthwhile. I would like to go back and tour the Nation Maritime Museum as well.

Funny that I read this right after seeing your post on the Valentine's Day thread: We'll be taking the ferry back & forth to Greenwich (both the Royal Observatory and a Pepys exhibit!) on 2/14, then a more romantic (how could that be possible?) dinner near Westminster.

Thanks for all the recs. I read all these suggestions to my wife yesterday, and it was received with gratitude and humor!

[jerk]

go to the crobar. catch the next big thing before they become the next big thing..... put 10pounds in the juke box if you get there early and alternate between thin lizzy, eyehategod and new york dolls songs and threaten people with your americanism when they complain about the music.

i got in a fist fight, got free drinks all night for smashing some horrible drunk dood's face in, and met two women who should have been future ex wives last time i was there.

then- wake up and spend the rest of your vacation at the tate modern.

[Gattonero]

You have been lucky to find some vibe in a 50sqft hole that doesn't even sell pints.
Gone are the days of the Fox in Wardour st.
meh

[davids]

go to the crobar. catch the next big thing before they become the next big thing..... put 10pounds in the juke box if you get there early and alternate between thin lizzy, eyehategod and new york dolls songs and threaten people with your americanism when they complain about the music.

i got in a fist fight, got free drinks all night for smashing some horrible drunk dood's face in, and met two women who should have been future ex wives last time i was there.

then- wake up and spend the rest of your vacation at the tate modern.

You know I'll follow your last rec... Maybe the crobar too if I can convince my valentine to deal with the volume.

FYI - I was asleep last night at 8. Of course that's after over 30 hours awake. I'll do better today.