Time definitely does fly. It doesn’t seem like five minutes since Kitty was gracing the pages of Rock My Wedding with her spring wedding and now they’re gallivanting off to the capital to celebrate the second anniversary of becoming Mr and Mrs. Over to Kitty…
We’re staying near The O2/Docklands at end of May for our anniversary and seeing Fleetwood Mac but are staying a couple of days. Al loves a good burger and is keen to try a burger place (we figure there must be loads on offer in the capital) and I am hankering after an authentic tasting ramen as I’m having withdrawals from our trip to Japan last year. Again, I know there must be ramen bars around but ideally would like it if they were close by and I always look for a good recommendation.
We’re staying on this super yacht hotel – the Sunborn. Believe it or not it was actually cheaper than the closest Premier Inn to the o2 through a deal/comparison site! Would love to hear RMS reader recommendations and London tips.
First of all, big congrats on the upcoming anniversary, and second, a yacht?! How flipping fancy. You are going to have such a good time.
I asked a few of my friends who live in their capital for a few recommendations. They weren’t particularly forthcoming on the Japanese suggestions but had a lot to say about meat!
Ellie suggested taking the Docklands Light Railway south to Greenwich for a mooch around the market and a sample of the street food. You could even combine the ramen with the burgers at ‘Pimp my Ramen’. In Greenwich you’ll also find the Meantime Brewing Company which serves a hearty burger, and you can have a brewery tour too!
If you venture into the heart of the capital, my friend Lindsay loves the gourmet burgers (and great chips too) from Patty and Bun (54 James Street, W1U 1HE).
For a pricier treat she suggests Goodman at Canary Wharf (3 South Quay Square, E14 9RU). Think steakhouse with leather seating and dark wood panelling with low hanging pendants. Back towards the centre of London Lindsay said she’s heard great things about Flat Iron in Soho (17 Beak Street, W1F 9RW) where you can grab steak for a tenner.
If you’re willing to travel further afield then I have heard a lot of folks rave about Roxie (with locations in Putney, Clapham, Fulham and Earlsfield). This small chain specialises in meat with a South African twist.
So folks, can you help Kitty get her ramen fix in London? I’m conscious I may have got carried away on the the meat element and gone down the steak route so feel free to suggest some burger joints or any culinary mentions for places around the Docklands.
Greenwich is quite lovely but, if it’s a lovely day, I would wander down to Island Gardens (at the base of the Isle of Dogs) and use the Greenwich foot tunnel (for free) to cross to Cutty Sark. Quite wonderful as you also get the view of Maritime Museum when you’re on the Isle of Dogs.
It’s also fun to get the cable across the Thames from Royal Victoria to North Greenwich (the site of the o2).
For Ramen, I love this place: http://www.shoryuramen.com/ with branches dotted around the West End and Soho.
On the burger front, my American friend is obsessed with Five Guys – there’s a few around including one near Covent Garden.
And I know you didn’t ask for this specifically but I used to live near Canary Wharf so I’d highly recommend two pubs: (1) The Gun (http://www.thegundocklands.com/) which is probably my favourite food in all of London – it’s brilliant and the atmosphere is amazing and it has great views out to the O2. (2) is The Narrow (http://www.gordonramsay.com/thenarrow/) which is a short but v scenic walk along the river to Limehouse. Great food and great views!
On the Japanese front, while neither of these are ramen-specific, I’d highly recommend Marukami (http://katefrenchmarukami.com/). It’s quite new but the food was amaze. I’d also recommend Chotto Matte, which is a Japanese Peruvian place (!) – http://www.chotto-matte.com/. I’ve been there once and the food was really good. Both of these options are central so lots to see/do before and after.
I’m soo jealous that you’re seeing Fleetwood Mac, Kitty, enjoy!!
Wow, thank you so much RMS lovelies! We venture up to London so rarely (a crime I know when Southampton is really only a hop away!) that these tips are going to be so helpful! I think the last time we went to stay in London for Lion King (about 6 years ago) we had no idea of where we wanted to eat or go we ended up wandering around aimlessly for hours and in the end just going to a Pizza Express! Want to find some really cool places this time – that brewery tour sounds good as we do both enjoy a craft beer, especially ones from over the pond!
Glad the RMS readers have helped you out Kitty. (I knew they’d be able to help!) Have a fab time and make sure you let us know where you end up dining x
I live in London and being half Japanese I crave Japanese food loads if I can’t get my fix from my mum!
For ramen, I can’t recommend Bone Daddies enough (http://www.bonedaddies.com/peter-st-soho/) in Soho! It gets busy as soon as it opens. They have a pop up too which I went to recently which isn’t ramen but equally delicious – it’s called Shackfuyu (http://www.bonedaddies.com/shackfuyu/) – the beef is delicious, as are chicken wings and prawn toast masquerading as okonomiyaki.
I also liked Koya (http://www.koya.co.uk/) which is udon as opposed to ramen. Again it’s small and gets busy but I haven’t been in a long while.
A lot of people love Shoryu Ramen but I didn’t like it myself… maybe it was my choice of ramen as it was busy in there – they are in several locations I think.
Don’t often go out for burgers but some popular suggestions would be Shake Shack (Covent Garden), Honest Burgers, Hawksmoor and Meat Liquor (queues get long here!).
Congratulations on your anniversary!
Hawksmoor do amazing burgers. They are pricey but worth it. They also have fab cocktails. Brixton Market is great and has a lot of food choices. For burgers you could head to Honest Burgers or for Japanese food you could go to Okan. Happy Anniversary Kitty!
If you’re staying in Docklands and are after a burger, I have to give a shout out to Fatboys Diner (http://www.fatboysdiner.co.uk/) in Trinity Buoy Wharf – it is definitely worth going on a little adventure to find it!
And I’ve had great meals in both Koya and Shoryu – they both get very busy but that seemed to fit with the atmosphere. Enjoy!
If you are after burgers – Meat Liquor, The Joint (Marleybone or Brixton Market), Five Guys is ok but there city has so much better to offer!
Would highly recommend a visit to the Sky Garden that’s in the Walkie Talkie (http://skygarden.london/); amazing views of the city, cocktails, coffee and cake….plus it’s free (you just have to plan ahead and reserve tickets).
We’ve been in London for 4 years and only recently ventured to Greenwich, I loved it! The Gun is a great place (as already recommended) and would certainly say take the cable car. Perhaps do the O2 climb (I haven’t done that yet!)
I’ve heard good things about Sunborn – they also have one in Gibraltar (I work in events so always haviget promo info sent on new hotels and venues).
I second The Joint – I went to the one in Marleybone in January and it was fantastic. On a different track altogether I recommend this fab Italian wine bar called Vini Italiani – book a table if you’re going at the weekend.
My friend in London recommended I download CityMapper – it was our saviour in getting about. It picks up where you are on the map, you put in where you are going and voila you instantly get several route options including when the next bus/underground is, what platform etc AND how to get to said bus stop/underground station. Made us feel like locals and I much prefer a bus I have to say!
Ooops! Only just seen this!
Firstly….can’t believe we are all on our 2nd year! Eeek! 😀
Secondly…another vote here for Meat liquor, Dave & I really liked it there
Also, you could possibly pop up to Shoreditch. There are some nice bars and Spitalfield’s market is pretty close (just check Overground for engineering works that weekend, if there are you can always get to Shoreditch from Liverpool Street & Old Street)
Have an awesome time lovely xx