Neighbourhoods
Finsbury Park
Home to the Emirates Stadium, Finsbury Park is a very important place for a certain section of North London – the red half, the Gooners, the Arsenal – but even if you’re not a football fan (or you support Spurs) there’s still plenty of fun things to do in Finsbury Park.
If you go to Finsbury Park for one thing, make sure it’s a trip to the infamous Rowan’s Bowling Alley. The old school 10 pin bowling alley is open till 2.30am with balls galore, karaoke and DJ’s. If you want to have a good feed beforehand, you could swing by Yard Sale Pizza or Vietnamese joint Salvation in Noodles both of which are close by.
Further up the hill things get even better, with great pubs and more food. The Faltering Fullback is one of London’s best pubs – making the most of the small outside space, the team transformed the beer garden into a multi-level jungle, completely taken over (especially in the summer) by plants. Not only does Max’s Sandwich Shop do some of the best sandwiches in London, as a ‘late-night sarnie shop you can get pissed in’, it’s somewhere to get the drinks in too.
Then there’s the park itself a big green space for chilling in the summer and also the site of many festivals and concerts, including Wireless, Peggy Gou’s Pleasure Gardens, the Arctic Monkeys and more. Here you can also start one of London’s best walks, the Parkland Walk, which runs along a disused railway track to Alexandra Palace. It’s an essential London experience.
Ed McIlroy, one half of Four Legs, aka founders of The Plimsoll pub in Finsbury Park and creators of possibly the best burger in London, has expanded his presence in north London with a new seafood spot on Tollington Park. Tollington’s, which has opened on the site of an old chippie of the same name, is a homage to its former resident but with an Iberian twist. The old tiling, Formica and original chip fryers have stayed put but the new Tollington’s takes inspo from the Ed’s time spent in Spain and its relaxed dining culture. That means a regularly changing menu featuring dishes like devilled crab, pickled anchovies, pollock pil pil, chips bravas, prawns on the plancha, and pork neck & broad beans, plus Estrella, vermouth and wines all available by the glass.
This postage stamp-sized restaurant in Finsbury Park is a firm neighbourhood favourite – as a result, it can be hard to get a table. Dotori is all about authentic Japanese and Korean food, both of which they do very well. The menu here is extensive and covers all the classics, from Korean BBQ to Japanese curries, as well as an impressive amount of sushi. It’s all very affordable too, with a full dinner here setting you back less than £30, and the option to BYOB which’ll cost you a £15 corkage fee. They’re walk-in and cash only, so come prepared – it’ll be worth it.
Just cos you’re out late at night doesn’t mean you have to be sat in some dingy bar or sleazy club. No, you could be out polishing your balls and hitting the lanes at Rowan’s Bowling. The old school 10 pin bowling alley is open till 2.30am with balls galore, karaoke and DJ’s.
Named after owner Leonardo Leoncini’s grandpa, cafe and wine bar Giacco’s leans into his Italian heritage with wines, charcuterie and cheese from small producers in Italy on the menu, which are joined by filled focaccia and fresh pasta. Running as a cafe and bottle shop during the day, you can pop into Giacco’s for some Terrone & Co coffee; salads; Leo’s take on the Florentine classic schiacciata ripiena, aka stuffed focaccia; Italian charcuterie and cheese; and wines to take away. Come evening, small plates and fresh pasta dishes like crudo di pesce, pappardelle al ragu bianco, and pici cacio e pepe hit the menu, alongside a low-intervention wine list featuring bottles from suppliers like Tutto Wines, Les Caves De Pyrene, Vine Trai, Ancestral Wines and Gergovie Wines. The 20-cover spot also has nice little vinyl selection and some vintage Celestion Ditton speakers, so the soundtrack is on point too – what more could you want from a neighbourhood joint?
Following a summer refurb, a tenth anniversary coming up and new head chef Eloise Dawes (ex-Kudu) in tow, it’s all go go go for Highbury Frank’s Canteen. The restaurant serves up European classics with a twist, which more often than not, was pickled items that brought a new layer to the hearty winter warmers. Don’t miss the pickled mackerel served with a potato cake muffin, apple and radish; miso Brussel sprouts, super crispy and swimming in sauce; the breaded scallops topped with trout roe, and served with plenty of Jerusalem artichoke puree; and the sea bass with earthy pickled beetroot. There are some retro dessert options, like butterscotch Angel Delight layered on top of chocolate cake and apple jelly, that’ll take you straight back to childhood.
Top Cuvée, run by Brodie Meah, is pretty much the perfect neighbourhood spot. It’s got relatively simple but very well executed dishes at reasonable prices; it’s got an interesting wine list with some excellent natural, biodynamic wines; and it’s got very friendly service by genuinely welcoming people with not a hint of ego. The menu changes regularly but you can expect dishes like burrata with pickled carrots and hazelnut, beef and smoked eel tartare with wild garlic, winter tomato tonnato, Toulouse sausage with lentils and mustard, and chocolate ganache with olive oil and sea salt.
After smashing the Four Legs residency at The Compton Arms, Jamie Allan and Ed McIlroy opened their own pub The Plimsoll, and thankfully they brought the Four Legs’ cheeseburger with them. A Dexter beef patty, oozy cheese and a McDonald’s inspired burger sauce, it’s the star of their menu. If you consider yourself a burger aficionado, you need to head here – but don’t agree to share.
Max’s Sandwich Shop, the late night sarnie shop you can get pissed in, might not serve up the cheapest sandwiches in London, but for the comedy value and the fact you probably won’t be able to move after noshing down it’s so worth the money. Expect quirky names and filthy creations. You can’t go wrong with the classic ham, egg ‘n’ chips but we also love The Original Gangster, a braised beef, sauerkraut and “incredibly slutty gravy mayo” creation and don’t miss the crispy potatoes coated in crack-like rose harissa yoghurt either.
Arguably the biggest attraction to The Faltering Fullback, just up from Finsbury Park tube, is the multi-level beer garden…staircase, beer garden staircase….it’s like a bloody maze. Admittedly weather depending, the garden offers secluded pockets of seating where you can chat into the early hours. The pub itself is a traditional one, except it does Thai food, which isn’t traditional at all, but you’ll find all your usual friends behind the bar. Great pub.
Voted London’s Best Conservation Area in 2015, this 2.8 hectare nature reserve is home to 80 species of birds, 20 species of butterflies, 8 species of dragonflies, and 200 flowering plants, with significant grasslands and lichen also on the site. As well as being a place to come and enjoy nature, the park and ecology centre hosts regular events and also offers education on sustainable living, gardening and wildlife.
This 4.5 mile stretch between Finsbury Park and Alexandra Palace is a local nature reserve and passes through some of the greenest areas in London. It follows the route of an old railway line, which is mostly demolished save for a few parts that can be seen through the trees. Now overgrown with plant life, the walk is great way to spend an afternoon!
Once dominated by Neapolitan-style pizzas, London’s pizza scene has been steadily growing to include a whole range of styles, especially from across the USA. Lenny’s Apizza (pronounced ‘abeetz’) run by Max Lewis and in residence at The Bedford Tavern in Finsbury Park, specialises in New Haven-style pizza from Connecticut. This pies are known for their thin crusts that are charred and chewy as well as being less cheesy than other pizzas – mozzarella is considered a topping rather than a standard base ingredient. As well as classic tomato, cheese & tomato, pepperoni, and sausage & onion pies, Lenny’s does specials like a potato pie and a pepperoni, sausage, bacon and hot pepper pizza.
Tesco Express this is not. Harringay Local Store is a proper good shop that sells a selection of locally sourced, organic and fair trade products. Bread, beer, meat, veg, vegan food… you name it, they’ve got it. Oh, and they also have a old and vintage vinyl records corner. Because why not.
Sebby Holmes earned his stripes at some of the best Thai restaurants in London, including Begging Bowl and a stint as head chef a the original (now closed) Smoking Goat in Soho. Now at Farang he’s cooking up modern Thai grub, with dishes like crispy duck wontons with plum dipping sauce;‘Miang’ – minced prawn in betel leaves; and braised beef cheeks with mustard greens. The weekend Drunken Noodle menu sounds pretty epic too, especially the eponymous ‘Drunken Noodles’ – a tea smoked duck breast stir-fried with pak choi, sweet basil, wild ginger, chilli, garlic and flat rice noodles.
After a lockdown bread delivery service turned into pizza nights, the four Alby’s Pizza founders moved into the world in New York-style pizza, opening a pop-up in Vauxhall in 2022. Two years on and many whopping 22″ pies later, the team has moved north of the river and taken up residence in Finsbury Park bar Someday. As well as a classic Margherita, Alby’s is also slinging pizzas like the Alby’s Hot (with Alby’s marinara, mozzarella, chorizo, sweet peppers, red onion, pickled jalapenos, confit garlic oil and Grana Padano) and the Funghi Town (with Alby’s marinara, mozzarella, garlic & parsley braised mushrooms, confit garlic oil and Grana Moravia), which you can get by the slice or as a whole pie. Don’t forget a pot of Alby’s buffalo hot sauce for the crusts.
Converted in 2013 from a miserable office block into a state-of-the-art performing space, the Park Theatre is more than just your average neighbourhood theatre. With support and endorsement from huge-name actors such as Sir Ian Mckellen and the late Alan Rickman, it aims to take on the world by providing affordable quality theatre for everyone. It also offers several courses, designed to engage the diverse local community and include those of any age or ability.
Top Cuvèe absolutely bossed the first UK lockdown in 2020 by launching their own store Shop Cuvèe whilst the restaurant was shut. What first began as a takeaway operation selling store cupboard goods, natural wines and bottled cocktails soon expanded into local delivery via bike and then on to nationwide postal delivery. The demand for bottles didn’t go away so co-founders Brodie Meah and Max Venning turned Shop Cuvèe into its own bricks-and-mortar site, just 100 yards up on Blackstock Road. As well as being stocked with hundreds of bottles of natural wine, there’s also cheese, charcuterie and pantry staples for sale.
If you’re not had Uyghur (a predominantly Muslim ethnic group from northwestern China) food before, this no-frills Finsbury Park restaurant should be one of your first stops. Dilara Uyghur, which also serves Turkish dishes, has a range of Uyghur specialities on the menu, including boiled dumplings, cumin lamb skewers, big plate chicken with belt noodles and lamb samsa, alongside Uyghur teas.
FINSBURY PARK PICTUREHOUSE
This North London branch of Picturehouse is handily located behind Finsbury Park station and just over the road from Rowan’s – ideal for cinema-bowling combo day. It boasts a large mural from British artist Dale Lewis in the lobby; a kitchen; a members’ bar, which shows trailers and shorts on the wall; and seven screens, each with a 4K projector, state-of-the-art sound system and reclining chairs, so you can kick back with extra legroom, whether you’re watching the latest blockbuster or a special season showing.
FINSBURY PARK
Finsbury Park might not be an obvious choice of where to spend a Sunday afternoon but this park offers more than just grass. There’s a free-to-use outdoor gym that’ll put you through your paces with 20 exercise stations – plus, there’s an abandoned railway line too. Once you’re done exploring, find a spot and open up that picnic.
A Yard Sale Pizza is kneaded in everyone’s life. Yard Sale set the standards high by leaving their dough to prove for 24 hours and cooking out their tomato sauce on the pizza to deepen the flavour. Whether you wanna dine in or take out these handmade beauties are available as 18-inch sharers or 12-inch pizzas. From the regulars to the guest pizzas, whether you’re holy over your pepperoni or all over the squash, Yard Sale is where to get a pizz’a the action.
Blighty Cafe is all about the community and don’t just do coffee and brunch. Oh no, these guys host life drawing classes, yoga lessons, table tennis and much much more. And if you just wanna enjoy your full English and coffee in peace, you can always chill out in their sunny garden.
This bakery has been supplying the people of north London with fresh bagels and challah since 1994. Open early doors right through until midnight, it’s somewhere for both early birds and night owls to grab a smoked salmon bagel. And if you want something sweet, it also does celebration cakes, cookies, custard slices, fruit tarts, doughnuts and more.
CAFE SALAAM & SANDWICHES
This unassuming Finsbury Park spot is a real gem. There are three Algerian sarnies on the menu – merguez, chicken breast or chicken liver, or mincemeat with egg and potatoes (aka crushed up chips) – all made with baguettes and all costing a fiver, which is ridiculous value for the size of the things. Sometimes the simplest things really are the best.
At just £5.50 for a falafel wrap filled with sauces, three falafels and salad, Baban’s Naan has got to be one of the best cheap eats in town. All the naans are made on site – varieties include za’atar, peshwari, cheese, garlic, and chilli – and you can get them filled with minced lamb Kurdish kebabs and kubba as well as falafel. Already a steal if you buy them filled to eat then and there, the breads are even cheaper if you wanna take them home, so get down there and stock up.