Hackney area guide

In case you didn’t know, Scandinavia is cool right now. The food, the fashion, the facial hair – plus the Vikings have invaded the British Museum. All we need...

If a restaurant is named after the cured back fat of a pig, you can expect that charcuterie is among its specialities – and so it is here. But lardo itself...

Admiring the Pacific Rim postcards and tiki mask, the wall covered in vinyl inner sleeves (Columbia, Decca, ‘race records’ pioneer Okeh) and a dresser of...

Supper clubs are great. Hosted by the type of people who understand that there’s more to dining out than just food (if there wasn’t, we’d all be at home eating...

For east London’s fashionably attired food-lovers, there's no better Saturday destination than Broadway Market. Quaint cafés, pubs and indie music shops line...

Charlie Chaplin, Stan Laurel and Marie Lloyd all trod Hackney's boards during its time as a music hall. It's since been used as a television studio and, rather...

Once a mellow backstreet local, the George now swarms with rowdy, slumming-it art students in ridiculous outfits on Fridays and Saturdays, to the point where...

The staff at the Dove long ago realised that the formula of great beers, uncomplicated food and simple decor was a winner that'd stand the test of time.

One of Hackney’s hidden gems, this eclectic boozer draws a crowd of loyal locals to an interior that mixes candlelit antiques and modern curiosities.

Show up at this corner pub on a Sunday lunchtime and you’ll think you’ve walked into an estate agent’s advertisement for urban living.

A monochrome greyhound pads down the grand central staircase towards reception. She’s meant to be there: Dizzy is the hotel dog, and her casual confidence is a...

The RE London Shoreditch is a modern, air-conditioned hotel with stylish rooms and a 120-seater restaurant. London buses stop outside the hotel and reach...

Gawp at shells, skulls, taxidermy esoteric art and some truly eccentric oddities

Be part of the buzz at this perennially popular riverside brewery and pizza pub

Learn an often-forgotten art at a weaving school

Hear white-hot bands and DJs at this hip bar-restaurant-club