Favorite Neighborhoods:
My London Home Away from Home:
The Metropolitan Hotel on Old Park Lane! I always stay there because the location is great, the staff is fabulous, Nobu's sushi is worth every penny, the Shambala spa is incredible and of course, there is The Met Bar! I am finally a member there after a decade of cocktails, dancing, shenanigans and British celeb sightings. The bartenders are always fabulous but the current crop of staff is better than ever (like my boys Dez, Lee and Alex). Try my favorite drinks Cinnamatic topped wih apples or The Rudealicious - a lusty libation based off my favorite spirit Tequila. Dez adds in some orange marmalade, chili syrup, magic and a lot of other stuff to make my favorite drink on earth!
Camden
It reminds me of the East Village/St. mark's place in NYC. It is chaotic and occasionally cheesy but still fun. It's a great place for rock music, dive bars, platform Doc Martins should you get so drunk that you feel the need to relive your late '90's club kid fashion days. Head to the Camden High Street or Mornington Cresent tube station and start making your way down the strip.
On a sunny day I live to start things off at Dingwalls on Camden Lock and hang outside in the beer garden and sometimes catch some great music.
Best live music is actually near Mornington Cresent at Purple Turtle (great drinks in pitchers) and KoKo's formerly known as the Camden Palace
Just want a pint of cider? Many places like Elephant's Head and World's End will do you just fine but if you want something more like a juke box and billiards check out the Good Mixer. A great dive!
Is it a Friday night and you did manage to get so drunk that you got the platform boots and maybe some vinyl? Well you are in luck for something to do. Head over to Electric Ballroom and dance to Nine Inch Nails and Metallica. Still one of my favorite places, even now when I am not "dressed" for it.
Chelsea/Fulham:
Start at Sloane Square and walk down Kings Road as far as it takes you. A lot of my favorite places are gone (RIP Jim Thompson's Thai and Come The Revolution Bar), but there are so many things to do if you are looking for a lazy day of shopping, pubs and watching a Chelsea match!
If shopping the high street stores like Monsoon, some crazy vintage and antique shops makes you thirsty stop into Chelsea Potter for a pint. Hungry? Some of the most talked-about restaurants like Blue Bird, Collection, My Old Dutch and Chutney Mary are all on this stretch of road. I am a big fan of the thai restaurant between the Fulham Tup and The Morrison pubs where Kings Road turns into Old Kings Road.
Shoreditch
It's the new hot neighborhood in town and much like NYC's Lower East Side, it's where the hipsters, dive bar and art bar lovers come out to play. I just wandered around and found a lot of great places, sadly most of which I don't have the names of. The epicenter of party time however is the Queen of Hoxton which was introduced to me by my good friend and king of cool, Casey Spooner of Fischerspooner after they performed in Hyde Park in 2009. DJs and dancing downstairs, games and bars on the ground floor and my favorite: the roof top patio. Best views of that "gherkin" building and the rest of the East End.
