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Shoreditch, area guide
Photograph: Claudio Divizia/Shutterstock.com

Shoreditch area guide

Discover the best things to do, see, eat and drink in London’s Shoreditch, from indie shops to tasty street food

Written by
Time Out London editors
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Shoreditch has changed a fair bit over the years. It’s been home to hipsters, tech bros and even a ball pit bar in the past decade and it’s still transforming as we speak. Despite its metamorphosis, a weekend there still always has always has to include a wander through Brick Lane – long home to great Bangla curry houses and some of the city’s best vintage shops. And for a wholesome vibe, the blooms of Columbia Road Flower Market should be your destination. But this is Shoreditch, arguably our city’s ultimate hen and stag destination. Perhaps you don’t want wholesome. If that’s the case you’ll find top bottomless brunches and brilliant after-dark fun in the ramshackle bars around the rough triangle made up by Old Street, Great Eastern Street and Shoreditch High Street. Then, for the thrill of trying something new, head to a performance at creative space Rich Mix, or sample cultural delicacies from a nearby street-food pop-up. 

Watch our video below for our picks of the best things to do in this east London neighbourhood…

RECOMMENDED: London by area.

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Song Que

Song Que

  • 5 out of 5 stars

This is still the undoubted star of the Kingsland Road Vietnamese scene. Big, light, airy, buzzy (if slightly resembling a school canteen), Song Que is...

Andina

Andina

  • 4 out of 5 stars

Bored with burgers? Tired of tapas? Then let Andina shimmy up your tastebuds with its Peruvian-inspired ceviches, street food, cocktails, and colourful...

Dishoom

Dishoom

  • 4 out of 5 stars

In Bollywood, ‘dishoom dishoom’ is the sound effect of blows landing in a classic fight scene, and is usually followed by a hip-thrusting...

Lyle’s

Lyle’s

  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • price 3 of 4

‘Wham-bam, thank you m’am’ – the new normal for London’s restaurants. Book ahead? You’re having a laugh. Queue? Of course....

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The Cocktail Trading Company

The Cocktail Trading Company

  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • price 2 of 4

It’d be churlish for an otherwise stellar cocktail bar to lose points just for playing truly awful music, but on a quiet Tuesday evening the new branch...

Happiness Forgets

Happiness Forgets

  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • price 2 of 4

The only problem we’ve encountered here is an excess of popularity: if you haven’t booked, don’t bank on getting a table whatever day of the...

TT Liquor

TT Liquor

  • 4 out of 5 stars

There’s a whole world of bevvying to be had inside this converted police station

Nightjar

Nightjar

  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • price 2 of 4

Nightjar opened in 2010 and has become such a huge success that it now operates an online-only booking system and charges your credit card if you don’t...

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The best pubs in Shoreditch

Pride of Spitalfields

Pride of Spitalfields

  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • price 1 of 4

Miraculously, this supremely unpretentious little boozer continues to thrive just off Brick Lane, its modest charms seemingly not appealing to the whinnying...

The Golden Heart

The Golden Heart

  • 5 out of 5 stars

Landlady Sandra Esquilant, regular Tracey Emin and Lady Di are given equal profile on the walls of this traditional Truman boozer, a hangout for the arty crowd...

Wenlock Arms

Wenlock Arms

  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • price 2 of 4

On an unremarkable backstreet in the Hackney/Islington borders is an old pub with a story. An all-too-familiar story in the world of the urban boozer:...

Princess of Shoreditch

Princess of Shoreditch

  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • price 2 of 4

Please note, the review below refers to a previous menu. - The Food and Drink Editors, Dec 2016 Up the spiral staircase from the bustling downstairs bar, the...

The perfect weekend in Shoreditch