London Travel Guide: Eastside

The other month my fiance Joe and I did a little anniversary trip to London and I already want to go back! London was the first foreign country I traveled to when I was 20, and I had been wanting to return ever since. It was so cool to see how much things had changed since I was there before, and how much my travel style changed also!  We stayed at the Ace Hotel in Shoreditch, which wasn’t even open yet last time I was there. The eastside was definitely my favorite area of the city. Shoreditch, Hackney, and Clerkenwell are where the artists and designers tend to congregate and there was so much to do in those areas that we could have almost spent our entire trip hopping around those neighborhoods! P.S. the Westside London travel guide is coming soon…

HACKNEY NEIGHBOORHOOD

For our first stop of the morning we took the bus from Shoreditch to Hackney, and visited some shops while we got acquainted with the city. I really liked how Hackney felt local and a bit more grungy. It definitely didn’t feel like tourists go to this end, and there was a ton of vintage stores in the area too!

PALM VAULTS

I’ve been wanting to go to Palm Vaults for quite some time. I’m obsessed with the 80s vibes on their Instagram, and the interior lived up to the hype.  We stopped by in the morning for some sweets and smoothie bowls. The cafe is the cutest, and the cakes are delicious. They have juices and coffee too so it’s the perfect spot to start your day or get a little afternoon pick me up. 

SHOPPING

We made a few stops at vintage stores in the neighborhood, like House of Vintage Hackney and Retrouvé vintage. My favorite was Paper Dress Vintage because they had such a good selection of 60s dresses. Momosan Shop  is a cute little home decor shop to stop by on your through the neighborhood. I love their little ceramics! We walked through the London Fields on the way to the other end, and it was such a cute park.

THE VIKTOR WYND MUSEUM OF CURIOSITIES

We did a tour of the museum of weird down the spiral stairs, and then finished with an absinthe cocktail upstairs. The tour was pretty entertaining and funny. If you’re looking for something quirky and odd to do make a stop here.  Even if you don’t go downstairs, the upstairs bar is a cool dark spot to grab a drink.

CLERKENWELL NEIGHBORHOOD

Clerkenwell is a bit more central London and feels like a mix of professional and hip. We didn’t have time to go to all of the places I wanted to go there, but were glad we went to the spots we did. The places  we missed were Ask for Janice, Clerkenwell & Social. and Luca.

CLERKENWELL & GRIND

We stopped by Clerkenwell & Grind for drinks and I fell in love with their interior. Velvet seats, neon lights, and good cocktails. Swoon! We had a bunch of espresso martinis and hung out for a while. FYI we missed it, but their brunch menu looked really good if you want to check that out.

BARBICAN CONSERVATORY

We spent an afternoon at Barbican Conservatory It’s such a lush place! There happen to be a ceramics event that day so we got to shop for ceramics with a beer in hand and enjoy the greenery. You can check the calendar to see what’s going on when you visit here.

SHOREDITCH NEIGHBORHOOD

We stayed in the Shoreditch neighborhood and there was so much to do there almost all in walking distance. Definitely stroll down Redchurch Street for a bit and stop in some shops, and if you’re looking for the best fish and chips around you’ve got to go to Shoreditch Fish and Chips on Redchurch. Shoreditch is by far my favorite neighborhood in London, and if you’re only doing a few days I’d spend most of my time there.

THE ACE HOTEL

We stayed at the Ace Hotel and really liked the location. Everything we wanted to do was just down the street, and it was really convenient to eat breakfast there and got a coffee on our way out most mornings. The lobby tends to be full of people working from laptops all day long, but there is also a bar area to grab a drink and they have DJs playing most nights. Plus, there’s a music venue connected to the hotel with lots of fun things going on. They had a 90s R&B night when we were there!

SHOPPING

There are a bunch of shops to check out at Boxpark Shoreditch. It’s a small development of box cars and you can walk down the street, and pop into any of the store fronts that catch your eye. We also stopped in Sister Ray Records a few times and got some good vinyl, along with a huge record store called Rough Trade.

DISHOOM

Best Indian food ever. This is a must do in London. Be sure to come early because the line gets out of control, I mean it’s THAT good. We almost went back a few times. We ordered a bunch of things to share, and everything we had was amazing. I don’t think you can go wrong here!

BROOKLYN COFFEE

Stop for a coffee at Brooklyn coffee. It’s a little shop, but they had great coffee and really good pastries.

THE FLOWER MARKET

One of my favorite parts was strolling through the flower market on Sunday. It’s a bit above Shoreditch, and you can walk there in about 5-10 minutes from the main Shoreditch area. Don’t miss the flower market if you’re in town on a Sunday!

LANARK COFFEE

After the flower market we walked to breakfast at the tiniest place, Lanark coffee. It was my favorite breakfast we had. Afterwards we walked down to Cosmos Records and a cute flower shop called Grace & Thorn.

THE HOXTON HOTEL 

We almost stayed at this hotel, so we explored the lobby. It looked like a good spot to grab a drink, work from your laptop, or take a photo in their photo booth!

ATTENDANT

We got breakfast at Attendant, a coffee shop across from The Hoxton hotel . They have a few other locations too. They’re toasties are SO good! We couldn’t get over how the egg yolks in London were the most vibrant orange color. We’re used to a yellow color in the states, so I was curious about it and read that it has to do with their diet, pretty interesting!

LOUNGE BOHEMIA

On our last night, we wanted to go out for a bit before we packed. So we went to Lounge Bohemia and stumbled into this cool speakeasy filled with mid-century modern furniture. You actually need a reservation in advance, so make that here. The owner makes the craziest drinks, and it was an experience. We did the tasting menu–a series of cocktails that tell a story. I did the “Through the Woods” that was a kind of Alice in Wonderland experience, and Joe got the “Get Ready and Go” that was a getting ready for your morning theme with a drink from a bathtub (rubber duck included), and a cocktail in a toothpaste bottle to boot. Definitely make it a point to come here!

TREEVES & HYDE

A little bit south of Shoreditch is a two-story spot that I fell head over heels for. Looking for the perfect brunch spot, dinner spot, or happy hour? Treves & Hyde does it all so well. I did a full post about it here because I loved it so much! We came back a few times, I’d say it’s a must!

COPPA CLUB

Further south of Shoreditch, and on the southeast side, Coppa Club is a restaurant right on the river with views of the London bridge. We had the best pasta there, and they had these cute igloos that you could eat in too. They were all booked, but I’ve heard you can get in at certain times.

Photos by Erika Carlock