Late-Night Venues in London
As hard as the Mayor might be trying, London just isn’t a 24-hour city – our public transport doesn’t run around the clock, it’s becoming increasingly rarer to see people have dinner after 9pm and most pubs are shutting up shop by 11pm. But, just as there are places do late-night food in London, there are venues (aside from the big-name nightclubs and those that have scored a 24-hour licence) that stay open until the early hours.
The MEATliquor crew doesn’t like turning in early; the Margaret Street branch is slinging Dead Hippies until 3am and at its newest venture BLOODsports, you can catch sports games, watch horror movies, play pool, eat hotdogs and drink boozy slushies until 2am.
Embrace the rock ‘n’ roll-ness of staying out until the early hours at dive bars like Slim Jim’s Liquor Store and the Shackewell Arms, where you’ll also be able to catch live music. Though it’s not quite what it used to be, Dalston is still a neighbourhood where you don’t have to call it a night after the pubs are done kicking out. You can throw some shapes at Ridley Road Market Bar and Dalston Superstore, or you can drink at Shapes – as well as being one of the best cocktail bars in the country, the Bauhaus-inspired bar is open until 4am.
BLOODsports is the new American-inspired ‘watching bar’ with a 2am licence from the MEATliquor team. There are 30+ screens inside the bar so you can watch sports day and night, or catch a horror movie in between games if that’s more your thing. There’s also karaoke, pool, pinball, arcade machines and a Psycho-themed photo booth to keep you entertained. During the day Hideout Coffee will be serving up coffee and doughnuts, with MEATliquor burgers, Monkey Fingers, Chicago dogs and a deep-fried bacon-wrapped hot dog hitting the menu from lunchtime. As well as beers, boilermakers and boozy slushies, the bar is doing a ‘Bloods & Drips’ menu, which includes tomato-based drinks, like Bloody Marys and Micheladas to soothe hangovers, and drips like negronis and martinis to retox with.
Having opened back in 1959, Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club in Soho is a nailed-on London institution. Over the decades, Ronnie Scott’s has hosted some of the biggest names in jazz from all over the world including the likes of Miles Davis, Sonny Rollins and Ella Fitzgerald. Other famous names to have played here include Van Morisson, Eric Clapton, and Jimi Hendrix, who played his last ever show here before he passed away. It’s definitely one of those places where you can feel the history of it as soon as you walk into the dimly lit corridor and into the main room, covered with photos of past performers bathed in the warm glow of the orange table lights. You can choose from an early or late show for most performances, and if it’s your first time, then the in-house Jazz Orchestra is a great place to start.
If you’re after jazz and cocktails, Nightjar is the one. The subterranean speakeasy bar is one of the best in town with table service and inventive cocktails, alongside all the classics. The menu is split into four sections spanning the history of the cocktail – Pre-Prohibition (1600 – 1920), Prohibition (1920 – 1933), Post-War (1940 – 2000), and Nightjar Signatures – so whether you want ancient recipes, strong serves, tiki cocktails or something modern, Nightjar can oblige. It’s proper old school, but super popular so don’t forget to book a table.
Prince of Peckham is a boozer that takes it back to the good ol’ pub days. The kitchen is run by White Men Can’t Jerk, so you can feast on their famous jerk chicken with pineapple scotch bonnet jam, and you can add on bottomless fizz or rum punch on the weekends. Rum is the star of the show behind the bar, with a large selection available by the shot and a range of rum cocktails. With everything from chess club to F1 screenings to DJ sessions (the pub is open until 2.30am on Fridays and Saturdays, shutting at 12.30am every other night), there’s plenty to keep you entertained too.
Once upon a time, there was a notorious Soho speakeasy known as the New Evaristo Club. It’s not gone anywhere (though there have been a few attempts to shut it down), it’s just more commonly known as Trisha’s now – named after the bar’s long-term matriarch, Trisha Bergonzi. Some say Trisha’s is one of the last bastions of the ‘old Soho’, others say it’s the area’s ‘best-kept secret’ (we’re not so sure about that). If there’s one thing we do know, it’s that this is one of London’s few late-night spots, making it the place to be if you don’t feel like being swept out by 11pm.
Dalston Superstore is a multitasker – it’s a queer bar, club, gallery, cafe, performance and community space, all wrapped into one. By day, there are drag brunches, queer art exhibitions and Essential Vegan cooking up burgers and sandwiches in the kitchen. And by night, regulars like Uncontrollable Urge collective and Femme Fraiche take over as the Superstore transforms into a club/performance space, pumping out disco, electro, techno and house tunes until 4am.
A bit tropical, a bit shabby chic, decor a little bit like an old office/lodge right down at the back, Ridley Road Market Bar is the definition of relaxed vibes. The booze is cheap (the five quid ginger mojitos are particularly good) and the music will get you throwing some shapes – be warned, it can get hot on that dancefloor.
A Bar With Shapes for a Name, aka Shapes, aka yellow triangle red square blue circle, is a regular on the Top 50 Cocktail Bars in the UK list. Run by Remy Savage and Paul Lougrat, it’s become beloved by regulars for its Bauhaus-inspired design, lack of branded bottles (spirits are chosen through blind tastings) and punchy batched cocktails made using lab technology. It’s open until 4am so if you’re out and about in Dalston and aren’t ready to call it a night, you can drop in here for some excellent drinks.
If you want a few beers, maybe a marg or two, a few tacos and a quesadilla, head to El Camion in Soho. If you want your night to go from relaxed dinner to big night out, head downstairs to basement bar The Pink Chihuahua. Open until 3am, it’s always a vibe in the bar, partly because it’s pretty small, partly because you need a membership to get in, partly because the music is fun but mainly because the drinks are killer. The Pink Chihuahua is the last place that legendary bartender Dick Bradsell worked and he was known for his mega espresso martinis.
If you’re after some late-night action in north London, Slim Jim’s Liquor Store is where to go. With free entry, regular live music from grassroots artists and extensive stock of whiskey (over 90 different ones from around the world), the dive bar has become a firm fave for the city’s rockers and rollers. There’s live gigs every weekend but the music never stops at Slim Jim’s, thanks to it’s killer jukebox. And it’s open all week long too, closing at 1am on Sundays, 2am on Mondays – Wednesdays and 3am the rest of the week.
If you’re after a pint and somewhere to watch the footy, the Shacklewell Arms is happy to oblige, but really this backstreet dive pub in Dalston is all about the music. It’s become one of the best venues in the city to catch alternative bands and artists before they blow up, and the club night are always a vibe (and very sweaty too). LNZRT is behind the music programming – the biz also does Moth Club and Wide Awake Festival so you can be sure it’s always on point.
Most of the week Metropolis runs as a strip club but every Saturday it turns into a night club, so the punters can also get in on the dancing action. Expect house, disco and dirty pop until 4am at Club Metropolis, otherwise look out for guest DJs and residencies from the likes of Homoelectric.
Popular Brixton spot The Prince of Wales is no more but it’s not all bad news because the site has been transformed into new venue Brixton Storeys, and it has a 24-hour music and alcohol license. The 750-capacity venue features three distinct areas; The Red Room, which boasts immersive lighting and Turbo Sound and Funktion One acoustic technology; The Boudoir, a more intimate indoor space; and The SKY Terraces, two redesigned rooftop terraces with full sound systems, a DJ booth and retractable roofs. The likes of Mas Que Nada, Got Soul, Summerized Sessions, Dazed, Up on the Roof, Cirque du Soil, Milkshake, Reggae Brunch, Wallop and Supa Dupa Fly Brunch will all be hosting residencies and events at the venue.
