What To Do This Weekend: 25th-27th November
This weekend is the last weekend before everything descends further into Christmas mayhem. So whilst we do have some excellent Christmas events we also have Scottish lunch clubs, Sunday feasts raising money for great causes, a pop-up where you can learn something new and museum lates.
Sartoria Restaurant
A Taste of the Alps
The Italian Alps probably isn’t the first thing that springs to mind when you think of Savile Row… until now. Replace the snow suits with the pinstriped variety and you have yourself the Campari winter terrace at Sartoria. Taking its inspiration from Italy’s exclusive ski resort, Cortina d’Ampezzo (well, it is Mayfair), expect flickering candles, super soft blankets and a cocktail or two. We like the sound of the ‘Vintage Negroni’ (Campari 1980’s), ‘Apres Ski’ (Disaronno and orange) and ‘Winter Daiquiri’ (a hint of cinnamon).
Launches Friday
Where: 20 Saville Row, London, W1S 3PR, United Kingdom
Website: www.sartoria-restaurant.co.uk
The Design Museum
Cutting Edge Design
Even if design’s not your thing you really can’t escape it. Even less so now that the Design Museum has relocated to ‘museum land’ aka Kensington High Street, weighing in at an impressive 10,000m2. Designed by John Pawson (no pressure), the museum cost a cool £83million to renovate and is expecting to see more than half a million visitors in its first year. Be one of the first and visit this weekend for the opening exhibition, ‘Fear and Love: Reactions to a Complex World’ complete with a 1,200kg robot and high tech fashion from big name designers.
Opens on Thursday
Where: 224-238 Kensington High Street, Kensington, W8 6AG
Website: www.designmuseum.org
Christmas at Kew
60,000 Lights
We’re not ashamed to admit that our phones are full of Christmas light snaps, #ChristmasLights #Festive – if you want to see a display of Christmas lights like no other then you need to head to Kew Gardens. Come night time it’ll be lit up with 60,000 lights – which is definitely a sight to be seen. Add in mince pies, mulled wine, a scented fire garden, Father Christmas and vintage rides and you have one Christmassy evening.
Saturday and Sunday
Where: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 3AB
Website: www.kew.org
Tate Modern
Elton John’s Private Photography Collection
Weekend already looking pretty busy? Fit your culture in to Friday night instead, with Uniqlo Tate Lates. This Friday you’ll find Elton John’s personal photography collection (Picasso, Matisse et al… not bad) alongside live DJs, a ‘selfie school’ and pop-up 10 minute art talks all night. Not a Tate fan? V&A and the Natural History Museum are also open late on Friday.
Friday night
Where: Bankside, SE1 9TG
Website: www.tate.org.uk
Novikov's Christmas Market
Christmas Market
Yes, it’s convenient but it’s not exactly festive doing your Christmas shopping online in the Black Friday deals. We’d much rather be going to Novikov’s Mayfair Christmas market which is on this Friday and Saturday. From 10am to 9pm the whole of Mayfair Place will be closed off to traffic so that you can peruse goods from some of London’s finest retailers. You’ll find the likes of Boom Jewellery; decorations and accessories from Tinker Tailor; fragrances from Sandy Bay and food from Kitchen Provisions. It’s free to go to too and unlike the internet it can’t crash. Ideal.
Friday and Saturday
Where: One Mayfair Place, W1
Website: www.novikovrestaurant.co.uk
Petit Pois Bistro
Sundays = Pie Day
If there was ever a time when you could hide away from the elements, catch up with your friends and eat beef bourguignon pie with duck fat roast potatoes, spinach wilted in butter and nutmeg cream, carrots, broccoli followed by legendary chocolate mousse and a good bottle of wine it would be now. Oh, and would you look at that, Petit Pois are introducing just that, banishing the Sunday dread, soothing the Saturday night hangover and keeping the winter blues at bay – Sunday is now pie day and we can’t wait.
Sunday
Where: 9 Hoxton Square Hackney, Hackney, N1 6NU
Website: www.petitpoisbistro.com
Sourced Market
New Foodies’ Destination
With a steady stream of venues opening in Victoria’s new Nova development, it’s worth multiple visits. The latest foodie venue of interest to open was Sourced Market, who flung open its doors on Monday. With a soft launch until Sunday not only can you pick up artisan food products to enjoy at home (Saturday night dinner party anyone?) or dine in at the deli counter – everything from artisan coffee and craft beer to cheese and charcuterie.
Soft launch with 50% off food is until Sunday
Where: Nova Building, 85 Buckingham Palace Road, Victoria, SW1W 0AJ
Website: www.novasw1.com
Wright Brothers Spitalfields
Ondine at Wright Brothers Spitalfields
Next week is St Andrew’s Day and if you’re a Scot feeling rather far from home (or just like seafood) then we have the ticket. Critically acclaimed Scottish seafood restaurant Ondine has joined forces with Wright Brothers Spitalfields for a special six course Sunday menu using the finest sustainable Scottish seafood (all the alliteration there). On the menu you’ll find the likes of potted dressed crab, crumpets, Polonaise and crab mayonnaise; butted roast cod with puy lentils, whipped celeriac and girolles and lemon pots. As to whether you don your kilt or not…well we’ll leave that up to you.
Sunday
Where: 8A Lamb Street, London E1 6EA, United Kingdom
Website: www.thewrightbrothers.co.uk
Arabica Bar & Kitchen
#CookForSyria Sunday Feast
This Sunday Arabica Bar & Kitchen in Borough Market will be hosting a Sunday feasting club as part of the #CookForSyria campaign – a month long celebration of Syrian cuisine which is also raising money for the humanitarian crisis. The menu will include a welcome cocktail, Syrian wines, hot and cold mezze dishes as well as Levantine pastries for pudding. There’ll also be an auction and raffle where you can win prizes such as a Borough Market hamper and over half the cost of each ticket will be going to Unicef’s Children of Syria fund.
Sunday
Where: Arabica Bar & Kitchen 3 Rochester Walk, Borough Market, SE1 9AF
Website: Get Tickets Here
Boom Shack
Free Jamaican Food
If you like to think that you’re in the know about new restaurants then you’ll want to be in Brixton on Saturday, when Boom Shack opens its doors. Brought to SW9 by Boom Burger founder Joshua de Lisser, Boom Shack will be all about punchy Jamaican flavours from breakfast right through to bed time. Open from Wednesday to Sunday each week, you can add it to your ‘where to go for cocktails in Brixton’ list, for a ‘Jamaican Punch’ or ‘Montego Breeze’. Oh, and even more reason to add it to your list: this Saturday and Sunday they’ll be giving away 100 dishes each day. It’s first come first served so best to head there for the 10am doors.
Opens Saturday
Where: Brixton Station Road, Brixton, SW9 8PA
Website: www.facebook.com/boomburgers
Made Presents
10 Day Pop-Up From Made.Com
Tomorrow sees the launch of MADE Presents a 10 day residency in Shoreditch from the team at MADE.Com. Throughout the pop-up you’ll be able to swing by coffee, cocktails, use their work hub to catch up on emails and attend a whole host of masterclasses from chocolate and rum pairing and makeup tutorials from Smashbox to print your own tote with Print Club London and yoga with Pip + Nut and Move Your Frame. Time to learn something new.
25th November – 4th December
Where: Dray Walk Gallery, 91 Brick Lane, Shoreditch, E1 6QL
Website: www.made.com
