Anya Hindmarch

Get up close and personal with free-range animals in the heart of the city. Hackney City Farm is the place to go when cuddling with a piglet or a baby sheep is in need. Spend the day making four-legged friends and enjoy some classic Italian lunch outdoors in their beautiful garden before you head out. PD. Check out their pottery classes too, they are sublime! 

The Museum of the Home is an off-the-beaten-track establishment in the middle of Dalston. As an erstwhile alms-house, it maintains its historic integrity with free admission. Its collections explore notions of “home” and what it means to different people, whilst temporary installations are equally thought-provoking. 

Angelina is a restaurant that takes inspiration by fusing Japanese and Italian cuisine. This place carries unconventional presentations that make the experience magical and worthy. Chefs serve a Kaiseki menu, a traditional Japanese multi-course meal, featuring dishes that reflect their daily learnings and use ingredients that are at their peak freshness on that day. In Angelina, they don’t believe in rigid menus, a correct order to eat dishes, a dress code or cutlery. So, are you ready to get your hands dirty? 

Satan’s Whiskers is a quirky, taxidermy-decorated cocktail bar. After being listed in multiple Best Cocktail Bar lists, it continues to serve impressive classic drinks. Hip-hop music and amazing energy make this phenomenal spot stand out and be the perfect scene for drinks before heading out to party till sunrise or breaking the ice on a first date. If it is not one of your favorites it is probably because you haven’t popped in yet. 

It's Friday night, you're out on the town with your friends and one of you asks, "Does anyone know a good cocktail bar around here?" Well, from now on you do! This hidden gem in Dalston is about to become your new go-to spot for boozy drinks and a fun night of pool with friends.

This is the late chef and Italophile Russell Norman’s ode to a Florentine trattoria. Instantly atmospheric, the downlit restaurant has linen draped over bulbs and tables set on various levels. Red-and-white checked tablecloths are covered in plates splattered with tonnato sauce and caperberries or raw porcini mushrooms topped with shards of aged Parmesan. A restaurant with one of London’s most authentic Italian moods and menus.

A modern American bistro meets fresh & seasonal British produce. A match made in heaven? We think so. Rita's has our interior-design love satiated and our taste buds tingled!

For "friendly wines" (aka wines that can be sipped and chatted over whilst also being zero-zero) head straight to De Beauvoir Town. With its romantically whimsical interiors, tasty small plates, 2500 records and stellar list of wines, the date-night standards will be set high!