Think Soho House but for bankers. This sleek hotel and member's club is located in the heart of the City of London, so it's an ideal outpost if you're in town for business.

Following the success of The Brutalist at the Oscars there’s been a renewed interest in the 20th-century approach to architecture. The Barbican Centre – part of a concrete estate with a couple of thousand prize flats and countless walkways – is one of the best places to explore it. Inside, there is world- class arts programming too: pop culture exhibitions in the third-floor gallery, Royal Shakespeare Company performances in the theatre and pay-what-you-can screenings in the cinema. Don’t skip the dystopian conservatory greenhouse.

This Victorian fish and oyster bar has been serving prawn cocktails and lobster bisques since 1889. And while restaurants all over the city are concocting brunch menus to entice more customers through the doors, Sweetings continues to open for just three and a half hours (11.30am-3pm), Monday to Friday. The homemade gravlax might come with sliced brown bread we’re pretty sure is straight out of a packet, but this is a charming microcosm of London’s financial district that feels like stepping back in time.