Where to drink
Rotorino
Quick disclaimer before we go any further, a lot of the places we’re about to suggest are – as the current trend dictates – as much bars as they are restaurants, and vice versa. So if you end up with a terrific cocktail over dinner, or scoffing down a fancy burger with your Chablis, you can feel free to blame us. Honestly, we can handle it. Rotorino may paint itself as a wine bar, but is actually just as much a restaurant (shock!). Lushly decorated in wood panelling and retro furniture booths, this place serves an elegant sidebar to the rowdier pubs you tend to find across most of Dalston. Come to try their excellent wine list or go one step further and indulge in the excellent menu.
434 Kingsland Rd, E8 4AA
www.rotorino.com/
Three Compasses
If you’re in the market for a ‘proper’ east London pub then the closest you’ll probably manage round here has to be the Three Compasses. Retaining all of its classic features; old bar stools, original back bar etc, this elegant old boozer blends the traditional with the new with effortless style. The ales are all typically unusual but it’s the food (again!) that helps it really stand out. Rather than employing their own kitchen, the guys here invite in pop-up merchants for guest spots serving up their own fodder. It’s not a new idea but it’s certainly one that seems to work. Check their website to see what’s in right now.
99 Dalston Ln, E8 1NH
3compasses.com/
POND
Kind of a bar… kind of a restaurant.. (you get the idea by now), but also an events space, gallery and club too. POND is brought to Dalston by the guys behind the exceptionally popular Duke’s Brew & Queue. The theme seems to be Hawaiian-tiki but it’s unlike any tiki bar we’ve been to before. The focus being more on creating quality drinks and food than it is on getting drunk and setting things on fire. Set in an industrial warehouse space, it’s worth checking ahead to see what’s going on as it seems these guys are completely quixotic and utterly changeable. Worth exploring though as the drinks are sensational.
Unit G2, Stamford Works, 3 Gillett St, N16 8JH
pond-dalston.com/
Where to eat
Voodoo Ray’s
If you’ve been lucky enough to eat at Voodoo Ray’s in nearby Shoreditch then you’ll already be familiar with what we believe could very well be the best pizza in London. Unlike the pop-up in SW9 though, this is their original home. A proper, established restaurant that serves up those same hefty slices en masse for their adoring customers. The delicious slices in question are each about the size of a pizza in their own right and yet are sold at a remarkable £4 a go. Come here later on and you can enjoy beers and cocktails to go with. Well, you can enjoy them in the day too if you like it’s just… haven’t you got to go to work?
95 Kingsland High St, E8 2PB
voodoorays.com/
Chick ‘n’ Sours
In a part of town that’s become renowned for its pop-ups, it’s a bit of a surprise to find the kings of perpetual pop-ups putting down roots with an actual restaurant. Started by the guys behind some of London’s best known temporary eateries, Chick ‘n’ Sours is their first stab at making a place that serves up the very best in everything poultry. The fried chicken here is off the scale. So delicious you’ll be hankering for more just as soon as you’re hungry again. And of course, to complete the catchy name, they also serve all manner of cocktails that are sour. Also totally delicious.
390 Kingsland Rd, E8 4AA
chicknsours.co.uk/
The Richmond
Something for the more discerning diner now. The Richmond is Dalston’s finest (and possibly only) oyster bar. Sitting on the corner of Queensbridge Road, this den of all things fishy was set up as an outlet for the owner’s Borough Market seafood stall. So unlike some inland fish restaurants, you can 100% guarantee the quality of what you’ll be eating. The menu is all about raw and cooked fish served up in new and fascinating ways. Yes, there’s a big emphasis on the separate oyster menu but is that really a problem? If it is, this might not be the place for you.
316 Queensbridge Rd, E8 3NH
www.therichmondhackney.com/
What to do
Rio’s Cinema
Roll down the ramp from Dalston Junction overground station, out onto Kingsland Road in front of you and you’ll pretty much bump noses with the stunning Rio Cinema. A Grade II listed art deco palace, the Rio has been showing the very best in Indy flicks and Hollywood blockbusters for over 100 years. It’s been repeatedly named as one of the best cinemas in London by a number of publications and it’s not hard to tell why. For a place with only one screen they have to be quite careful about what they show. Come at the right time and you may catch one of their special screenings or even festivals.
107 Kingsland High St, E8 2PB
riocinema.org.uk/RioCinema.dll/Home
Dalston Yard
Take a quick look outside… is it sunny? Is it warm? If the answer to either of those is no, then it may well not be summer. In which case you can’t visit Street Feast’s largest street food market this side of the Thames, Dalston Yard. But swing by in the warmer months and you’ll find an enormous car park hollowed out to create a weekend of proper feasting. The food stalls are remarkably diverse so there should be something here for everybody. While the bars offer up a Gin Parlour, Tiki Bar and a Whisky Den, to name but a few. It doesn’t hurt that the whole place looks like a grown-up’s dystopian tree-house either.
Hartwell St, E8 3DU
streetfeast.com/where/dalston-yard
Dalston Roof Park
Once again, you’re going to need to find yourself out in the fairer months to take advantage of this little beauty, but then what were you really expecting? The clue’s in the name. Allowing itself to be curated by any number of different hosts each year, this trendy little spot on top of a local office block is a great place to stop by to get some sun while enjoying a spot of street food and some terrific cocktails. Sound familiar? Yes, we know but unfortunately pop-ups and cocktail bars are what Dalston do best. We’re certain a delicious smoked old fashioned will help you get over it.
18 Ashwin St, E8 3DL
www.bootstrapcompany.co.uk/dalston-roof-parkfood-drink/
