15 Ways To Actually Make The Most Out Of Your Weekend
We’ve all been there: Monday morning rolls around, a colleague asks what you got up to, and you realise your weekend vanished into thin air. If that feels all too familiar, consider this your antidote. We’ve rounded up 13 of the very best things to do in and around the capital this weekend, from fiery pop-up food collabs to cosy countryside retreats, so you can step into next week feeling like you truly made the most of it.
What should I eat?
Discover Kentish Town’s most exciting new opening
One of the most intriguing new restaurant concepts to land in north London this autumn, BUNSO is opening on Hawley Road in Kentish Town this week, and it may just be the hottest table to book right now.
A Filipino-inspired all-day spot, BUNSO operates as a bakery by day, serving pastries, pies and coffee, before transforming into a pizzeria by night. The combination of Filipino flavour sensibilities and Italian classics is the kind of concept that sounds unexpected and makes complete sense all at once. One to book ahead for before it becomes the most talked-about opening in NW1.
Where: 1A Hawley Rd, London NW1 8RP
Website: www.bunso.com
Bunso’s Filipino pizzas are an absolute must-try. It’s been a delight to see Kentish Town popping off like this, and with the continued hype around Belly, I’m delighted to have another vibe-y more laid-back offering from the team.
Flora, Senior Brand Partnerships Executive
Bite into FINK’S new autumn chef toastie series
Few lunches are as warming as a toastie when the colder weather hits, and North London bakery FINK’S, knows this better than most. This autumn, it is handing over its toastie press to three guest chefs for a series of mouthwatering comfort-food collaborations.
Kicking off this October, chef Helen Graham is serving up a Middle Eastern-inspired creation featuring melted Cheddar and mozzarella, sweet date & hawaij jam, sumac onions, and tangy amba pressed inside signature white sourdough. Running through December across FINK’s Chats, Gillespie, and Clissold House locations, future months will feature a French Tartiflette toastie in November and a festive Porchetta toastie come December.
Where: Venues across London
Website: www.finks.com
Feast on ALTA’s new Sunday lunch
Soho’s ALTA in Kingly Court has launched a new Sunday feasting menu inspired by the festive, communal dining traditions of Northern Spain’s Navarra region.
Crafted by Executive Chef Robbie Jameson, the seasonal feast kicks off with a welcoming Basque 75 cocktail alongside Spanish Bluefin tuna tartare and spiced meatballs. The star of the table is a rich main of garlic and herb-rolled lamb served with red wine sauce, accompanied by patatas bravas, grilled corn ribs, and fresh tomato salad. To top off a long, unhurried afternoon, finish with their indulgent smoked dulce de leche and chocolate.
Where: Ground Floor, Kingly Ct, Carnaby, London W1B 5PW
Website: www.alta.com
Enjoy an evening of caviar and wine tasting
This Sunday, Chelsea’s beloved seafood bar The Sea, The Sea, is teaming up with Sussex vineyard Westwell for a one-off caviar and English wine tasting evening, and it isn’t one to miss.
Running from 6:00pm to 8:00pm, the ticket includes a welcome drink, specially curated seafood canapés, and a guided tasting of three of the restaurant’s signature caviars paired with Westwell’s award-winning wines. Guests will also get 20% off all caviar and wine purchases on the night, making it a very chic way to cap off the weekend.
Where: 243 Pavilion Rd, London SW1X 0BP
Website: www.theseathesea.com
Indulge in a Duck & Dim Sum brunch
For a leisurely Cantonese feast overlooking the river, head to Yú Gé at Park Hyatt London River Thames for their new Duck & Dim Sum Weekend Brunch.
The star of the show is the restaurant’s Signature Peking Duck, carved table-side with classic pancakes and crisp duck spring rolls, alongside a delicate selection of handmade dim sum like har gau and Iberico pork siu mai. Finish with chef-signature mains like wok-fried Angus beef ho fun, and pair your meal with a 90-minute free-flowing drinks package featuring Prosecco, lychee spritzes, or Billecart-Salmon champagne.
Where: 7 Nine Elms Ln, Nine Elms, London SW8 5PH
Website: www.hyattrestaurants.com
Try this limited-edition collaboration
Starting this Monday, Sri Lankan street food favourite ADOH! is joining forces with legendary Chinese heritage brand POON’s for an irresistible one-month menu takeover.
Running through mid-November, the limited-edition collaboration sees POON’s award-winning Extraordinary Chilli Oil, packed with salted black beans for an earthy, slow-building heat, swirled into ADOH!’s Roadside Seafood Fried Rice.
Where: 36 Maiden Ln, London WC2E 7LJ
Website: www.adoh.com
Start the weekend in style here
For one night only this Friday, CORD by Le Cordon Bleu is hosting an exclusive five-course dinner celebrating the height of British game season.
Executive Chef Karl O’Dell will be joined in the City kitchen by guest chef Joshua Hunter to showcase wild, seasonal ingredients through refined classical technique. Highlights from the multi-course menu include aged Highland venison loin raviolo with game black pudding, red-legged partridge, Yorkshire grouse, and rabbit liver parfait, offering a modern, elegant, and approachable take on British game.
Where: 85 Fleet St, London EC4Y 1AE
Website: www.cordrestaurant.com
Discover this new cocktail collection
This Friday, Pine Bar at The Biltmore Mayfair is unveiling a brand-new, elevated cocktail collection designed for elegant evening sipping.
Set in a sophisticated, moody lounge setting, the menu features drinks presented with bespoke glassware and delicate finishing touches, ranging from warm amber tones to soft blush hues. Whether you’re stopping by for a pre-dinner toast or settling in for an unhurried night out with friends in Mayfair, it’s the perfect excuse to discover a new favorite tipple.
Where: 44 Grosvenor Sq, London W1K 2HP
Website: www.thebiltmore.com
Try this new set menu
Overlooking the greenery of Egerton Gardens, The Franklin Restaurant is one of Knightsbridge’s most intimate dining rooms, with just 30 seats, and it has relaunched with a new produce-first menu from Head Chef Roberto Roncolato.
Start with burrata, vitello tonnato or culatello, then move on to fresh pasta such as tagliolini with butter, lemon and rosemary. Next door, The Franklin Bar serves 1920s glamour and a new Italian-inspired cocktail list. The veal Milanese on the bone is a great choice, but Roncolato’s signature ricotta gnocchi with black truffle is also a winner.
Where: 24 Egerton Gardens, Knightsbridge, London, SW3 2DB
Website: www.thefranklin.com
What should I do?
Visit this landmark exhibition
Tate Britain has opened its most anticipated blockbuster show of the year, celebrating the chaotic, electric decade of the 1990s.
Curated by former British Vogue Editor-in-Chief Edward Enninful OBE, the exhibition charts the creative explosion that reshaped modern British culture. Expect to see groundbreaking works from Young British Artists like Damien Hirst and Sarah Lucas displayed alongside legendary fashion archives from Alexander McQueen and Vivienne Westwood. Highlights include Juergen Teller’s iconic portrait of pink-haired Kate Moss in bed, as well as striking photography capturing the raw energy of nineties youth culture and clubland.
Where: Millbank, London SW1P 4RG
Book your tickets here
The standout from the 90s exhibition is the quality of the photography. There are so many iconic moments and looks captured, and you leave fully understanding the playfulness and the creativity of the era. And, perhaps a little bit jealous that Gen Z aren’t partying as hard…
Kitty, Social Media Director
Try your hand at padel at this charity event
This Saturday, padel racquet brand Serve is taking over House of Racquet in King’s Cross for Check Your Pair, Play Padel, a special Breast Cancer Awareness Month event in support of CoppaFeel!.
Whether you’re a seasoned player or a complete beginner looking to try London’s favourite racquet sport, you can choose between a Padel Social session or a beginner-friendly Padel Taster session. Every ticket includes court time, a complimentary drink, a goodie bag, and CoppaFeel! activations, with all profits donated directly to breast cancer awareness.
Where: 22 Tileyard Rd, London N7 9AH
Website: www.servepadel.com
Try this glass skin facial
If you’ve been curious about the Korean glass skin trend and want to experience it at its most luxurious, The Lanesborough Club and Spa has just launched the treatment to book.
Developed in consultation with award-winning facialist Mina Lee London, the new K-Glass Skin Collection is a four-treatment facial menu combining advanced Korean skincare brands Civasan and Pyderin with the sought-after Korean Sculpting Massage technique to reduce puffiness, improve circulation and enhance facial definition. It’s the kind of treatment that makes a very compelling case for a spa day in Belgravia.
Where: Park Corner, Hyde, London SW1X 7TA
Website: www.thelanesboroughclubandspa.com
Celebrate Frieze Week in style
Frieze Week just got considerably more colourful, thanks to a club-wide takeover of Annabel’s by British Pop Art artist Philip Colbert.
All week long, the Mayfair institution will be transformed by Colbert’s unmistakable lobster universe, with large-scale installations and playful artworks spanning the Reception, Rose Room, The Garden and the Nightclub corridor, creating an unexpected and genuinely brilliant dialogue between Pop Art and Annabel’s famously theatrical interiors. The collaboration extends to a limited-edition Lobster and Champagne Menu available throughout the week, featuring Lobster Avocado Tacos, Popcorn Lobster and Lobster Rolls with Saffron Aioli, paired with Rare Champagne’s Rosé Millésime 2014 and Millésime 2012. One of the most immersive art experiences of Frieze Week and a very good excuse to visit one of London’s most iconic clubs.
Where: 46 Berkeley Square, London W1J 5AT
Website: www.annabels.com
What should I do outside of London?
Unwind in nature at this lakeside wellness retreat
For an autumnal countryside getaway that exchanges traditional indoor spas for nature-led wellness, head to Watersedge in Worcestershire.
Set around a serene 11-acre lake, this peaceful retreat offers cosy lakeside accommodations complete with outdoor sauna experiences, hot tubs, open-water swimming, and immersive nature activities. Whether you’re looking to brave a refreshing lake dip followed by a wood-fired sauna session or simply spend a slower weekend wrapped up by the water, it’s the ultimate UK escape to reset and reconnect this season.
Where: Bishampton, Pershore WR10 2LZ
Website: www.watersedge.com
Soak up the autumn colours at Westonbirt Arboretum
For the ultimate autumn day trip, head to Westonbirt, the National Arboretum in Gloucestershire, to catch peak autumn colours in all their glory.
Home to over 2,500 tree species from across the globe, October transforms its world-renowned Japanese Maple collection into a breathtaking canopy of fiery reds, burning oranges, and rich golds. Take a leisurely walk along the elevated STIHL Treetop Walkway for sweeping views above the canopy, wander through quiet woodland trails, and refuel with hot drinks and seasonal bites at the onsite café.
Where: Tetbury GL8 8QS
Website: www.westonbirtarboretum.com
