What To Do This Weekend: 1st-3rd July
Last weekend was pretty full on – if you went to Glastonbury you’ve probably not recovered yet so you’ll be in need of R&R in the form of a long lie in and plenty of food. And it is food galore in London this weekend, with pop-up street food markets, sushi brunches and gourmet kebab recipe testing all on the cards. If you didn’t spend last weekend covered in mud and sleep is less important then check out Art Night – the first annual festival of its kind with participating galleries and venues open till 2am. Read on for our pick of 10 of the best things on this weekend.
Waterloo Food Festival
Pesto Making Workshop and Sushi Rolling Competitions
If you’re anything like us you’ll have been a day ahead of yourself all week, so today is basically Friday. Start your ‘weekend’ accordingly with a trip to the launch night of Waterloo Food Festival. Kicking off at 5pm, the street party will feature food from local businesses and traders from Lower Marsh Market traders; Yo! Sushi, The Oysterman and Konditor & Cook (cupcakes) as well as live music, sushi rolling competitions and a pesto making workshop. If you can’t make it tonight, the festival runs throughout July.
Where: Lower Marsh, Lambeth, SE1 7AB
Website: www.wearewaterloo.co.uk
Eat Asia Night Market
Asian Street Food Party
We can’t think of many better places to head on a summer Friday than Bussey Building but this Friday there is one more reason to head to Peckham as they host an East Asian night market. Eat Asia will serve food including bao, kimchi pancakes, dumplings, laksa and bubble tea – dishes from Taiwan, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore and China. Entry is £5 on the door with ticket holders being in with the chance of winning food experiences and vouchers at Asian restaurants across London.
Where: Bussey Building, Copeland Park, 133 Copeland Road, Peckham, SE15 3SN
Website: www.eatasialondon.com
Soho Food Feast
London’s Best Restaurants Take to the Streets
Back for a sixth year, this weekend’s Soho Food Feast is welcoming some of London’s top restaurants to serve street food takes on their signature dishes. Ceviche, Hoppers, Pizza Pilgrims, Ember Yard and Nopi are among the names taking part, all helping to raise money for Soho Parish Primary School’s scheme to offer healthy lunches to pupils.
Where: St Anne’s Gardens, Wardour Street, Soho, W1D 6LB
Website: www.sohofoodfeast.co.uk
Art Night London
2am Art
Something is in the air at the moment – there seems to be more art gallery related events than ever, and all happening within a week or so of each other. If your 9-5 means so much to do but so little time, make the most of this Saturday’s London Art Night, a new annual contemporary art festival – similar to January’s Lumiere. Staying open till as late as 2am, you could find yourself on a disused platform in Charing Cross at midnight or watching a video installation in Covent Garden Piazza at 2 in the morning. Advance booking required for some events – check website for details.
Where: Various
Website: www.artnight.london.com
The French Collection at Everyman
French Boutique Cinema Festival
Everyman Cinemas, home to comfy velvet sofas, are doing things with a touch of French class this weekend as it hosts its annual French film festival. The French Collection is taking place at the Hampstead, Muswell Hill and Islington cinemas so the programme varies but we’ll be heading to Everyman Hampstead on Saturday for the UK’s first screening of the romantic ‘Summertime (La Bella Saison)’ where ticket holders will be fed and watered with Chambord cocktails.
Where: Various Everyman Cinemas
Website: www.everymancinema.com
Lucha Libre
Mexican Wrestling, Food and Tequila
Friday and Saturday in Bethnal Green will see latex-clad men (no it’s not what you’re thinking) battle out good vs evil, flying above the ring with superhero style capes and colourful masks. This traditional Mexican acrobatic wrestling is as much a performance as it is a battle – each participant is considered a Mexican superhero and local legend. Mexican food, tequila and agave cocktails complete the authentic experience.
Where: York Hall, 5 Old Ford Road, Bethnal Green, E2 9PJ
Website: www.luchalibreworld.co.uk
Transported by Design
Transport Festival on Regent Street
Think transport on Regent Street and you probably think of a standstill double decker or annoyingly slow tourists blocking the pavement. This Sunday, a free transport festival is taking place on Regent Street, showcasing the best in past, present and future transport design including a tube carriage from 1927 and virtual reality headsets to get an idea of what London might look like in 2040. The festival marks the first ‘Summer Streets’; traffic-free Sundays in July.
Where: Regent Street
Website: www.tfl.gov.uk
The Roof Gardens and Babylon
Outdoor Afternoon Tea
Make a change from the usual grandeur of a hotel afternoon tea and enjoy your sandwiches 100ft above Kensington High Street instead. The Roof Gardens are, this Saturday, putting on a full spread of scones, cakes and sandwiches in the picturesque setting of their tropical gardens. Garden games and the famous flamingos will add a touch of Alice in Wonderland-style magic to the proceedings and hopefully the weather will be on side.
Where: 6th and 7th Floor, 99 Kensington High Street, Kensington, London, W8 5SA, United Kingdom
Website: www.virginlimitededition.com
Le Bab Sunday Development Sessions
Recipe Testing at Le Bab
Kebabs but not as you know them, Le Bab serve chargrilled fillings stuffed into homemade flatbreads; everything from 15-hour pork shawarma to BBQ paneer but they are about to spice things up. In a sure-fire way of guaranteeing customer satisfaction, Le Bab are hosting bi-monthly Sunday development sessions (starting this Sunday, 12-7pm), where diners will get to have their say on a range of experimental dishes to decide if they make the permanent menu or not. The best bit? You’ll get 50% off the bill.
Where: Top Floor, Kingly Court, Carnaby Street, Soho, W1B 5PW
Website: www.eatlebab.com
Murakami
Sushi Sundays
We’re seeing a bit of a trend for ‘Sushi Sundays’ recently. Perhaps there has just been one too many bottomless brunches or sushi lovers just need a whole day dedicated to the stuff, either way we’re all ears. Diners at Japanese restaurant, Murakami can enjoy four courses chosen from any section on the menu; robata grill, hot plates, sushi bar or starters and salads, get creative. Diners will also get a glass of sake to help ease the Sunday blues.
Where: 63-66 St Martin's Lane, Covent Garden, WC2N 4JS
Website: www.murakami.london
Also, don’t miss:
Final weekend of Feast @ Fitzrovia, Brown’s London Art Weekend, Italian street food at Mercato Metropolitano, Gelato Festival’s final weekend
