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Discovering east London hotspots

Sometimes it’s good to get off campus. East London is a great place to live and study. But where are good places to go to have fun, refuel, relax or take a break? We asked SSE Course Reps (and a few staff !) for their recommendations. All the following are within a 50-minute walk of campus (and most can be accessed more quickly by public transport). 

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Image courtesy of Jose Walbank.

Caffeine fixes 

Let’s start with an important one: good coffee. Close to campus, the Coffee Room does a decent cup, but perhaps the best comes from Forno who have a cool café and takeaway hatch (with ‘truly decadent’ pastries) fronting the Regent’s Canal at the Ragged School Museum – a great place to chill with your laptop (and did you know that Forno was started by a QM Environmental Science graduate?) One of our Reps also recommends Mousetail Coffee in Whitechapel – ideal  for people-watching! 

Good eats 

There were many food recommendations. If you want to go ‘full Mile End’ then the fried chicken (or a cheeky biryani) at Green Pepper in Stepney is a favourite among some 3rd year geographers, while the Colonel’s very own KFC just along from campus gets the thumbs up.  

The ‘Korean fried cauli bites’ at Mexican Soul (Bow Wharf) are a big hit as is the pizza at ACE Pizza near Victoria Park.  

East London has some of the best food markets: Victoria Park (Sundays); Broadway Market, where the beautiful people hang out and celebs are occasionally spotted (Saturdays and Sundays), and Brick Lane, especially the UPMARKET (everyday). If you are in the Brick Lane neighbourhood, Beigel Bake is always tasty and cheap (open 24/7).  

Head east to Hackney Wick or Stratford for many more options like Crate Brewery (top pizza) and the kitchens at Hackney Bridge. 

East End Boozers 

For those who like a tipple, The Camel pub in Bethnal Green is cosy and proper old school, while the nearby  Approach Tavern does the best pub chips (apparently).  

Oranj wine bar in Spitalfields has East End chic while the Prospect of Whitby and the Captain Kidd in Wapping have river views and a pirate vibe!  

And if you want to spot some of your lecturers, try The Lord Tredegar in Bow! 

Fresh air 

Did you know that 47% of London is made up of green space? Victoria Park is a top local pick – a great place to sit and contemplate, stroll, or run. A hidden gem is Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park – an atmospheric Victorian cemetery and wild green space close to Mile End station. Stepney City Farm is a working urban farm with a café and Saturday Farmers’ Market. 

If you enjoy ‘blue spaces’, the Regent’s Canal Tow Path will take you down to Limehouse Basin and the Thames Path for views of the river, the City, and Docklands. 

Nearby Canary Wharf has the Crossrail Place Roof Garden – a botanical glass house with exotic plants from across the world. The Canary Wharf estate is also a great place for night walks and for some invigorating nocturnal Lime-biking. 

Culture vultures 

History fans will love Mile End campus’s closest museum, the Ragged School Museum.  

And no less than three branches of the V&A are within 2 miles of the Mile End campus: Young V&A where you can relive your childhood, V&A East Storehouse, and the recently opened V&A East Museum.  

You might spot QM staff and PhD students at Museum of the Home in Hoxton as it is a close collaborator with the university. 

And finally, your arty Course Reps recommend the Whitechapel Gallery which combines visionary programming with a strong commitment to making contemporary art inclusive, as well as east London’s many smaller galleries like Four Corners on Roman Road. 

With particular thanks to Darcy, George, Leng, Leslie, Olive, Shreyaa and Tabassum for suggestions. 

 

 

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