London

Café at Foyles
The most easygoing and relaxing place you’ll find on Charing Cross Road, this unpretentious joint (on the first floor next to Ray’s Jazz) serves up all the expected café grub: sarnies, salads, flapjacks, fantastic coffee. And it’s a more cerebral alternative to Starbucks and the like.
Café at Foyles, 113-119 Charing Cross Rd, WC2 (020 7440 3207/www.foyles.co.uk) Leicester Square tube. Open Mon-Sat 8am-9pm; Sun 10am-6pm.

Porchester Spa
Getting off the sofa is hard. Getting out of a bath? Impossible, particularly if you’re sitting in these traditional Turkish baths, which boast two Russian steam rooms, three Turkish hot rooms, a log sauna, an ice-cold plunge pool, plus a range of hamam treatments and massages.
Porchester Spa,Queensway, W2 (020 7792 2919/www.westminster.gov.uk/leisureandculture/sports/porchesterspa.cfm) Bayswater or Queensway tube. Open Mon-Sun 10am-10pm. Ladies: Tue, Thur, Fri; men: Mon, Wed, Sat. Three-hour session £20.35. Feature continues

Bourne & Hollingsworth
Decked out just like your great aunt’s front room circa 1930, this tiny bar hidden under a newsagent at the bottom of Charlotte Street only opened recently – and if we’re honest, we were reluctant to tell you about it. The cocktails are superb, and they somehow find room to fit live music into the space. Prohibition-era themed parties and radioscript recitals are pencilled in for February.
Bourne & Hollingsworth, 28 Rathborne Place, W1 (020 7636 8228) Tottenham Court Rd tube. Opening times vary.

Candid Café
Beaten-up sofas, drapes on the walls and battered wooden furniture… you’d have to work hard to find somewhere as comfy as this Angel stalwart. There’s a gallery next door if you fancy a touch of culture, and a courtyard if by some miracle it’s warm enough to sit out.
Candid Café, 3 Torrens St, EC1 (020 7837 4237/www.candidarts.com) Angel tube. Open Mon-Sat 12noon-10pm; Sun 12noon-5pm.

Nikita’s Russian Restaurant
This small, decadent restaurant has two private dining booths, each seating six, full of cushions, mirrors and a heavy curtain to pull closed for privacy. Two private dining rooms each seat 15.
Nikita’s, 65 Ifield Rd, SW10 (020 7352 6326/www.nikitasrestaurant.com) West Brompton tube. Open Mon-Thur 6.30pm-11.30pm; Fri, Sat 6.30pm-1am.

BFI Southbank
While The Electric and The Everyman have some two-seater sofas, at £30 they’re hardly suitable for January purses. Try the BFI Southbank. Seats are just as snug and you can take drinks into the cinema. Hitchcock’s ‘The Lady Vanishes’ is showing throughout January.
BFI Southbank, Belvedere Rd, SE1 (0870 787 2525/www.bfi.org.uk) Waterloo tube/rail.

The Pig’s Ear
This upmarket Chelsea gastropub does indeed serve deep-fried pigs’ears, though you could always go for the slightly less squeamish Pig’s Ear ale instead. There’s also a swish dining room where you can enjoy more adventurous grub (salad of duck hearts, anyone?), or simply find a seat near the fire and settle down with a bottle of fine French wine.
The Pig’s Ear, 35 Old Church St, SW3 (020 7352 2908/www.thepigsear.co.uk) Sloane Square tube. Pub open Mon-Sat 12noon-11pm; Sun 12noon-10.30pm.

Arch One
Polished wood tables and leather banquettes, all tucked into the curve of an old railway arch, handily located for Waterloo commuters. For true cosiness head for the tables at the back. Cocktails are the order of the day, particularly the various takes onthe martini.
Arch One, 1 Mepham St, SE1 (020 7401 2329/www.arch-1.com) Waterloo tube/rail. Mon-Thur 12noon-12.30pm; Fri, Sat 12noon-1.30am.

The King’s Head
When it’s cold outside, this Islington theatre lights its fire – you often can’t see inside from the street because the windows have steamed up. At the bar you’ll find thespian types sipping pints of Adnams, in keeping with the fact that there’s a theatre at the back.
The King’s Head, 115 Upper St, N1 (pub 020 2226 4443; theatre 020 7226 1916/www.kingsheadtheatre.org) Angel tube. Pub open Mon-Thur, Sun 11am-1am; Fri, Sat 11am-2am.

The Brickhouse
It doesn’t get much more comfy than laying in bed, and the top floor of this new three-floored restaurant-cum-cabaret club has four double beds on which to recline. There’s cabaret most nights from 9pm.
The Brickhouse, 152c Brick Lane, E1 (020 7247 0005/www.thebrickhouse.co.uk) Liverpool St tube/rail. Bar open Tue-Sat 12noon-12midnight; Fri, Sat 12noon-2am.