Tag: The F London

Where to eat the best oysters in London this summer

Oyster Chop House 1

For the times you just need the flavours of the ocean and you’re nowhere near one to get your fix, the Butlers Wharf Chop House is calling your name. Combined with fine English sparkling wine, Nyetimber, the two brands are bringing London what they’re calling The Oyster Shack. It’s open from 5 June – 31 August and will live in the foyer of the restaurant. They new pop up will specialise in the world-famous Colchester Rock Oysters with their meaty and firm texture, served alongside Nyetimber’s high-quality and complex sparkling wine. They’re also doing packages, of the likes of: Four Colchester Rock Oysters with a glass of Nyetimber Brut (£21.50) four Colchester Rock Oysters and two glasses of Nyetimber Brut (£32); dozen Colchester Rock Oysters and a bottle of Nyetimber Brut (£95); and a seasonal seafood platter (£46).  For more or to make a booking to visit, head to the Chophouse’s website, or find it at 36e Shad Thames, London SE1 2YE.

Save the bees by drinking cocktails in London

Honey Skylon dessert

The bar’s been decked out in flowers and summer blooms for the season, but it’s the drinks Skylon will be serving that will have the biggest impact. Benefitting most from what the bar’s doing, the bees of London will score a boost to conservation’s funding by immersing drinkers into a beetime utopia. They’re donating £1 to the Bumblebee Conservation Trust from each person’s bar bill. From the 17th June, Skylon will be launching a beehive installation transporting guests into a dripping honeycomb of dreams. As well as a visual treat, the bar on Southbank, will collaborate with Laurent Perrier to design three cocktails, each focusing on the versatility of Champagne while enhancing the unctuous floral flavour of honey. Think drinks like the Bee Old Fashioned, Honey! featuring a muddle of Bulleit bourbon, apple, hazelnut, orange, applewood honey smoke, and Laurent Perrier Cuvée to make one tasty, smoky cocktail. Then there’s the Honey Bear, made with Zacapa 23-year-old rum, amaretto, turmeric, honey, peach, citrus and Laurent Perrier Cuvée, is a delightfully refreshing drink with mild spicy notes. While the Queen Bee wraps up the spread nicely, made of Tanqueray No10 gin, Hibiscus, Pimms cup No1, wild berry shrub, honey paint and Laurent Perrier Cuvée Rose. If you’re a bit hungry, too, the menu’s also taken on a honey-inspired slant, with honey-inspired dessert to coincide with the installation, the Honey Nut Hive. It’s a textural delight, the pudding comprises a toasted walnut cake and burnt honey ice cream, topped with shards of honeycomb and bee pollen.  See more at the Skylon… Read More

LONDON: Smash gins this Saturday in style at Nine Lives for Midsummer Soltice

Hendricks cocktail

It’s summer in London and that means one thing – drinking in style. But not just anywhere, it’s gotta be done right, and there’s nowhere or no situation that calls for it just as well as Midsummer Soltice, hosted by Henricks gin. It’s all going down at Nine Lives in Southwark, giving drinkers the chance to take the party from the street, to the bar, to the basement as the sun works its gradient through the afternoon. It’s a full day thing, kicking off at 2pm and going right through to the evening’s wee-hours, complete with a playfully light yet wickedly crisp beverage, as partygoers bask in the midsummer sun (hopefully). The event will be set on the beautiful cobbled outdoor space during the day, before heading into the Victorian bar as the sun sets. It’ll put on dancers, actors, DJs and makeup artists for fans, as everyone sips on The Wickerman, a sweet-and-sour combination of Hendrick’s floral Midsummer Solstice Gin, cold-brew jasmine tea, tropical pineapple syrup and lemon; and Vivid Blooms, which comprises the celebrated gin, rhubarb and ginger cordial, aromatic lavender bitters and pomegranate and hibiscus soda.  And once the sun’s gone, the party gets a bit more hedonistic with actors playing out a ritual homage to gin as bartenders pump out the Dark Side of the Sun cocktail, made with Hendrick’s Orbium Gin, nutty Frangelico liqueur, blueberry puree and fragrant lemon verbena. It’ll be delicious regardless of your taste. See more at the Midsummer Soltice website. View this post on Instagram Three men not in a… Read More

Colicci opens The Serpentine Coffee House in Hyde Park London this summer

Hyde Park London

There’s a new cafe coming to London, right in the middle of Hyde Park. Colicci has partnered with architecture and design practice Mizzi Studio and The Royal Parks to open The Serpentine Coffee House this summer; what will be an all-day eatery on the banks of The Serpentine Lake in Hyde Park London.  On the menu is such gastronomic magic to make your visit to the park that much nicer; morning bites through to afternoon treats and freshly churned gelato. And if that’s not enough, take your pick from a deli-style menu which will feature the likes of chicken avocado piadina wraps; sourdough baguettes generously filled with either tuna, egg mayo, or salami and brie, and Puligese ciabattas.  The countertop will showcase a selection of artisanal bakery products such as gluten-free brownies, white chocolate and cranberry muffins, almond shortbread slices, carrot cake and blueberry crumble cake. There’s a tonne going on in a setting befitting even the Queen herself – she does live backing onto it, after all – so you know it’s going to be top notch. The new set up even comes complete with stunning views of the Serpentine Lake and the Princess Diana Memorial Fountain, so if good views and good food are your thing, this might be worth checking out. Find Colicci in Hyde Park.

LONDON: Immigration and Modern Britain – The Kaleidoscope exhibition at Somerset House

Somerset House Kaleidoscope

There’s a new exhibition that puts Britain’s relationship with the rest of the world and its nationalities on the map, so to speak. It’s going down at Somerset House, right in the heart of London and it’s called Kaleidoscope; exploring the identity of immigration in modern Britain. The exhibition will contain stills and video, showcasing the works of ten photographers born or based in Britain, many with family origins abroad including Hong Kong, India, Jamaica and Russia. It’ll explore what it means and how it feels to live as an immigrant, or a descendent of immigrants, in Britain today. It all stems from personal experiences to evoke some sort of emotion in visitors to the exhibition and tell the story of a nation’s wide and varied multiculturalism. Think stories of the struggles of asylum seekers and stories of second and third generation immigrants in forms that are as moving as they are engaging, all presented in the striking environs of Somerset House. See the Kaleidoscope exhibition from 12 June to 8 September 2019 on Sat – Tues, 10.00 – 18.00, Wed – Fri, 11.00 – 20.00, except for 11 – 21 July and 8 – 21 August, when daily opening hours are 10.00 – 18.00. Get tickets from the Somerset House website.

What to see at Somerset House London: Get Up, Stand Up Now

Somerset House Get Up

Celebrating generations of Black Creative Pioneers, the new exhibition at Somerset House, right in the heart of London, will put on a showcase of art, film and photography. There’ll be 100 artists represented, whose work will be presented to articulate and address the black experience and sensibility from the post-war era to the present day. The whole collection will showcase works and new commissions alongside items from personal archives, much of which has never been seen before. The whole thing has been curated by acclaimed artist Zak Ové, who’s invited each artist to exhibit on account of their significant contribution to shaping the cultural landscape.  You’ll see works from the likes of Zak and Horace Ove, Armet Francis, Charlie Phillips, Sonia Boyce and Steve McQueen and many more. See more of what’s on at the Somerset House website.

10 best Northern cities to celebrate Pride this summer

Sydney Dance Company Mardi Gras parade 1

It’s summer in the Northern Hemisphere and that means one thing: Pride. It’s the global celebration of diversity and inclusion that you know you want to be apart of, so hotels, providers, providores and basically everyone is gearing-up to either watch or be apart of this year’s celebrations. Here are the best cities and places to get amongst it in 2019. Los Angeles, California Parade Date: Sunday, 9 June Head to West Hollywood for a warm weather celebration where the neighbourhood is known for its nightlife and gayness. Tel Aviv, Israel Parade Date: Sunday, 9 June Tel Aviv has a lot to offer travellers throughout the year, but if you’re looking to step up your Pride game, the city’s celebration is worth the trip. The festivities officially start on Sunday, June 9, with events throughout the city, but be sure to stay for the parade on June 14. The parade kicks off at Gan Meir Park and weaves through the streets of Tel Aviv before making its way to Charles Clore Beach where it culminates in a giant beach party. Vienna, Austria Parade date: Saturday, 15 June Vienna plays host to EuroPride in 2019 – a European celebration that takes place in a different city each year. Events take place throughout the city from June 1 to 16, but there are a few, in particular, you should add to your calendar. Visit the Pride Village at Rathausplatz (right in front of the city hall) for four days of entertainment and celebration leading up to the EuroPride Parade on June… Read More

The Art of Persuasion at the National Army Museum, London

National Army Museum Abram Games

Abram Games was one clever dude. Talk about a guy that knew the medium, smashed the message and did so with creative, desirable, artistic flair that very few possess. There’s a brand new exhibition of him and the artwork and posters he created while he was a poster artist for the Public Relations Department at the War Office from 1941 until 1945, and it’s seriously good. Thing art deco-like posters done with taste, muted 40s/50s colour palettes and messages delivered so effortlessly, they’re hard to forget despite their nowadays irrelevant message. He was the father of wartime graphic designers and just a straight-up genius. It’s a must-see exhibition – and the National Army Museum in general, as well – that will reinvigorate your appreciation of what a horrid time WWI and II were. At a time of immense social unrest, after the ‘war to end all wars’ had left hundreds of thousands of veterans and civilians on the poverty line, the country was to embark on a second world war with National Service an unthinkable necessity. Games made the message the hero and turned some small part of it around as best he could. See the exhibition at the National Army Museum London until 24 November 2019. Head to National Army Museum,Royal Hospital Road, Chelsea, London SW3 4HT.

See the Chihuly exhibition at the Royal Botanic Gardens in London

Somerset House London

Over 33 nights this season at sunset, fans of Dale Chihuly – a glass sculptor artist – will be able to view some of his best work at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew. Showing the works in a new light, transposed against the illuminated Unesco world heritage site, the Chihuly Nights (13 April – 27 October) event kicks off in August and will kick off with specially curated music that responds to artworks, including improvised live performances from internationally acclaimed artists. It’s all about celebrating the artwork of Chihuly in a completely new light, through an exclusive after-dark experience with food, drink, and music. See more of what’s on specifically at the Kew Gardens website.

Life behind the palace walls: New exhibition tells the story of Queen Victoria

Queens Gallery

Queen Victoria was a boss. She took the throne at age 18 and made it hers from the get-go. A lot of that revolved around her moving into Buckingham Palace right in the middle of London. Three weeks into her reign, she moved into Buckingham Palace, despite the building being incomplete and many of the rooms undecorated and unfurnished. The Palace had been empty for seven years following the death of Victoria’s uncle, George IV, who had commissioned at great expense the conversion of Buckingham House into a Palace to the designs of John Nash. The King never occupied the Palace, and his successor, William IV, preferred to live at Clarence House during his short reign. The Queen’s ministers advised her to stay at Kensington Palace, her childhood home, until Buckingham Palace could be brought up to a suitable standard, but Victoria wanted to move immediately and begin her new life. Artist Thomas Sully then painted Victoria shortly after she moved in. Then after that, a whole bunch of other works were created, items and changes made that typified her reign. To celebrate, Buckingham Palace is putting on an exhibition, Queen Victoria’s Palace, curated by the historian and biographer Dr Amanda Foreman and Lucy Peter, Assistant Curator of Paintings, Royal Collection Trust. It’s all part of a visit to the Summer Opening of the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace, 20 July – 29 September 2019. The exhibition is accompanied by the publication Inside Queen Victoria’s Buckingham Palace by Dr Amanda Foreman and Lucy Peter. It… Read More