London’s best pop-ups

Munch your way through dishes from the great and the good of the capital’s restaurant scene at this sprawling culinary festival in the picturesque surroundings of central London’s Regent’s Park. New Syrian brunch joint Aram, hyped Dalston gastropub The Prince Arthur and masters of Pan-Pacific cuisine Los Mochis are among the restaurants peddling plates and appearing at the event for the first time this year. If you’re not in a food coma by the end, there’ll also be kitchen masterclasses, chef talks and tastings to get involved with. Our advice? Have some Rennies on hand. 

Foodies Festival is far more than little cheese samples and Q&A sessions. The touring event, which is back in London’s Syon Park this spring, is one of the UK’s largest food and drink fests and goes ham with its progreamme. This year, you can you watch stars of Masterchef and Bake Off do what they do best, gorge on street food from around the world, give it your all in a chilli-eating contest, try pro cooking techniques for yourself, get a facial and be serenaded by the likes of Scouting For Girls, Boyzlife and Gareth Gates, all in one place. 

Feeling thirsty? Desperate for a funky sour, cheeky saison or a fruity IPA? You’re in luck. The capital’s biggest beer celebration is back for 2026, and it’s moving to a brand new venue. Set over two days in Southwark Park, London Craft Beer Festival promises four-hour sessions of non-stop-beer-drinking bliss, with visitors getting to sample London’s best beers as well as some international standouts, including our faves Gipsy Hill, Verdant, Deya and more. Hungry? The food line up is pretty serious too, this year featuring Meltdown Cheeseburgers, Bone Daddies and Chick N’ Sours. A ticket gets you a four-hour session and access to more than 800 beers from over 100 brewers, and there are group discounts available too. All the beer is included in the ticket price. Happy drinking, folks. 

If you’re a carnivore with a big appetite for BBQ, Meatopia has your name written all over it. The boozy food fest is a veritable utopia for meat lovers, with 50 chefs invited down over four days to cook up a storm over a live fire. This year's highlights include Jess Murphy from Ireland’s only Michelin Green Star restaurant Kai, Geravich Mesaengnilverakul from Bangkok’s Choen, plus legends of the UK barbecue scene, Melissa Thompson and Hon’s BBQ. Book your tickets here, but be warned – they don’t include food, and the queues here can be lengthy, so it’s best to arrive early with your ‘meatbuck’ tokens at the ready.