A freelance writer and Super Blogger for Visit Britain, Laura has written for About.com London Travel since 2006. During her first five years in London she moved 25 times, ruining her friends’ address books with regular address updates in the process. But it did mean she got to know a lot of London in a short space of time.
I knew Islington well before I lived around there. I’d often travel into London with a group of friends to see a band at one of the many popular pubs. Times change and those venues are all trendy wine bars or gastropubs now, yet Islington still attracts the night crowds because of the many restaurants along Upper Street, also known as ‘Supper Street.’
One of the oddest evenings I’ve had there was at House of Wolf where it’s experimental dining on the menu. The last time I was there I had to inject my food with a syringe full of single malt and eat with a metre long tree branch instead of a fork! We then had cocktails in The Apothecary, which has a surprising secret. After you’ve had a few drinks, ask to be shown into The Fainting Room - a tiny secret room with adult images decorating all the walls. Yep, I wasn’t expecting that either.
Overall, Islington is a pretty neighbourhood so do enjoy some outdoor time too. I’m a big fan of browsing in Camden Passage or strolling beside the Regent’s Canal, but maybe the best way to enjoy outdoor time here is in a pub garden. When I was pregnant with my daughter I wanted to enjoy a night out with friends but didn’t cope well with the smell of beer so we really got to know pub gardens well.
The Albion pub by Ewan Munro
The Albion is on a quiet street and has a large walled garden out the back, where I’ve spent many Saturday nights. If you visit for the Sunday lunch make sure you factor in time for a walk along nearby Richmond Avenue where the large Georgian townhouses are guarded by sphinx statues by their front doors.
Another large pub garden can be found at The Canonbury, which got George Orwell’s seal of approval when he wrote about the elements that make up the perfect pub in an essay called ‘The Moon Under Water’ for London Paper the Evening Standard back in 1946.
Walking along the Regent’s Canal’s paths you can head east through Hackney or west and go down to King’s Cross and onto Camden. I used to work in King’s Cross near the Canal Museum and liked walking along those stretches of the waterways. I once saw a turtle swimming in the canal basin from the outdoor terrace at King’s Place so the water is cleaner than you might expect for such a big city. I’ve also seen them at Camley Street Natural Park, which is a wonderfully peaceful place to spend a lunch hour too.
When I need to do some gift shopping Camden Passage is where I like to daydream and while away my time. It’s a bit like Portobello Road in Notting Hill as it’s lined with independent stores and has a Saturday antiques market. As well as the vintage gems there’s Smug for quirky prints and homeware and I can never walk past the Paul A Young chocolate shop without walking in to try the delicious samples and drink a cup of the best hot chocolate I’ve ever tasted.
But don’t be fooled into thinking it’s all quiet and sedate in Islington as the nightlife can still be lively. The Union Chapel is a working church but also a popular music venue with Daylight Music on Saturday lunchtimes and a fine variety of music in the evenings too. For a night in at the local boozer, the Hemingford Arms is spot on and has an excellent pub quiz on Thursdays and when the pubs shut you can enjoy a late night movie at the pretty Screen on the Green Cinema.
Union Chapel by Abi Skipp
There’s a lot of fringe theatre here too. The Pleasance Theatre has a twin in Edinburgh and has lots of performances to suit the whole family, which is good for those challenging pre-teen or early teen years when the kids are not young but not so mature either. The Old Red Lion is a pub theatre and my neighbours who first met there are now happily married with a young family. We often get together to take the kids to The Little Angel Theatre as it has captivating puppet performances for a younger audience.
I’d stroll down Upper Street before the shops open so I could window shop without the expense, but I’d make sure that Camden Passage antiques market was set up so I could hunt out the perfect unexpected treat to buy.
After popping into a few of the independent stores there, I’d stop for breakfast at Kipferl, an Austrian Café where the classic apfelstrudel is fantastic, but I’d be after the Austrian-style French Toast and Viennese coffee served the traditional way: on a metal tray with a glass of water.
