What To Do This Weekend 09.12.21
FEEL FESTIVE: The Gingerbread City
Looking for a fun activity the whole family will love? Over 100 architects, designers and engineers have come together to create a miniature city made out of gingerbread. At the Museum of Architecture, the exhibition explores the theme of ‘nature in the city’ with a collection of eco-buildings, vertical farms, pocket parks and green roofs – all made entirely from gingerbread. Over the next few weeks, adults and children can also take part in a series of workshops to learn how to construct and decorate their very own gingerbread house. Tickets start from £8.50; workshops start from £40.
6-7 Motcomb Street, Belgravia, SW1X 8JU
Visit TicketTailor.com
TAKE THE GIRLS: Friday Fondue At La Fromagerie
La Fromagerie in Highbury has relaunched its Friday Fondue evenings. Groups of up to 14 can enjoy a selection of Alpine-inspired treats in the restaurant. For a fun evening with the girls, tuck into a classic fondue Savoyard served with crusty bread; melted raclette with potatoes, shallots, mustard and capers; French cheese boards; or charcuterie boards. Choose a bottle of red or champagne from the extensive wine list, and browse the store’s Christmas gift collection before you leave – ideal for the foodies in your life.
30 Highbury Park, Highbury, N5 2AA
Visit LaFromagerie.co.uk
CATCH A FILM: Everyman Borough Yards
Everyman Cinema is opening a branch in Borough Yards, the swanky recent development in the arches beneath London Bridge. Two screens both offer plush sofas and armchairs, with table service for craft beer or wine delivered to seats. You can also tuck into food during a film, including Aberdeen Angus beef burgers with skin-on fries, ice-cream sundaes and bags of chocolate. Not sure what to watch? Spielberg’s remake of West Side Story comes out tomorrow. Tickets start from £15.50, or you can become a member and receive up to 28 tickets per year.
Opens Monday 13th December; 3 Dirty Lane, London Bridge, SE1 9PA
Visit EverymanCinema.com
BOOK TICKETS FOR THIS: Hex, National Theatre
Hex opened this week at the National, but there’s still time to snap up tickets ahead of Christmas. Based on the fairy tale of Sleeping Beauty, the musical tells the story of a bad fairy who lives deep in an enchanted wood. She longs to bless someone will her spell, but when she’s summoned to the palace to help the princess sleep, her dream turns into a nightmare and her blessing becomes a curse. Plunged into a frantic, hundred-year quest, she must make things right before they go from bad to worse. Charming and witty in equal measures.
Upper Ground, South Bank, SE1 9PX
Visit NationalTheatre.org.uk
GO OUT OUT: Eastcheap Records
Eastcheap Records is the place to go for live music and DJs every night of the week. On Thursday nights, its new ‘Out Out’ event includes back-to-back performances from funk, soul and house singers and musicians, followed by a set until 12am from the resident hip-hop/house band. There’s also a Christmas cocktail menu to choose from, including a picante made with El Jimador Blanco tequila, agave, cucumber and chilli; and the ‘Heartbreaker’ featuring vodka, Aperol, peach, passionfruit and prosecco. On Friday 10th December, the Jump Around band will perform 90s and noughties R&B classics, while five-piece brass band Riverside Brass will take to the stage on Monday 13th December for an evening of Christmas carols and mulled wine.
20 Eastcheap, Monument, EC3M 1EB
Visit EastcheapRecords.com
STOP FOR DRINKS: Cecil Beaton At Theatre Royal Drury Lane
After an impressive £60m refurbishment, the Theatre Royal Drury Lane has a new look. Its Cecil Beaton cocktail bar now revolves around a marble bar with views of The Garden, its al fresco restaurant. Whether you’re stopping by for drinks before a show, or in between Christmas shopping, there’s a new cocktail menu inspired by artist Cecil Beaton’s life and work – each drink is dedicated to one of his subjects, a costume design, pattern work or anecdote. We like the sound of the ‘Eliza Doolittle’ made with No3 Gin, white port, creme de violette and lemon juice. The bar is open for walk-ins only.
Catherine Street, Covent Garden, WC2B 5JF
Visit TheLane.co.uk
TUNE INTO THIS TALK: Manifesto With Bernardine Evaristo
To celebrate her latest book, Bernardine Evaristo is giving a talk tonight at 7pm at Brixton Library. Evaristo made history when she became the first Black woman to win the Booker prize back in 2019 for her novel Girl, Woman, Other. In her latest work, Manifesto, she tells readers how she did it and why she refused to let any barriers get in her way. During the talk, Evaristo will discuss why she wrote each book, and what she hopes the future looks like for aspiring Black female writers. Tickets are free – register at the link below.
Brixton Library, Brixton, SW2 1JQ
Visit Eventbrite.co.uk
GO SHOPPING: Astrid & Miyu
Regular SL readers will know we love Astrid & Miyu jewellery, so we were excited to hear the brand has just opened three more London stores. Make a beeline for Coal Drops Yard or Carnaby Street to shop jewellery, book in for piercings and tattoos, and have a special Astrid & Miyu bracelet welded to your wrist. On Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th December from 10am to 4pm, the team will be offering free crêpes in Chelsea’s Duke of York Square to celebrate the opening of the third new store on the King’s Road, where there’ll be exclusive offers this weekend.
10 Fouberts Place, Soho, W1F 7P; Unit 12 Bagley Walk Arches, Coal Drops Yard, King’s Cross, N1C 4DH; 192 King’s Road, Chelsea, SW3 5XP
Visit AstridAndMiyu.com
CELEBRATE AT HOME: Pique-mas
Whether you’re hosting ‘Friendsmas’ or getting loved ones together ahead of Christmas, Pique has made things even easier with a range of festive picnic boxes. Our favourite is the ‘Festive Brunch’ box which includes praline lattes, panettone French toast with mascarpone and dark chocolate, bagels, fig and cinnamon buns, honey-glazed ham and gruyere croissants, and a choice of drink – order the spiced berry bellini for brunch with the girls. If guests are arriving later in the day, choose the ‘St Nick’s Picnic’ hamper, filled with moreish sausage rolls, burrata with pickled beetroot, turkey with roasted garlic mayo, potato salad, a cheese board, gooey chocolate brownies, and mulled pear mini pavlovas. Boxes start from £60 for two people.
Visit PiqueFood.co.uk
STOCK UP ON WINE: Specialist Cellars Garage Sale
On Saturday 11th December from 11am to 5pm, Specialist Cellars in Pop Brixton is throwing a garage sale where you can take part in wine tastings and buy a selection of discounted booze. Ticketholders can sample over 40 wines from its collection, 15 of which are award-winning reds, whites and sparklers. Talk to the in-house experts for advice on pairings, stock on festive booze, then enjoy a couple of glasses while a DJ sets the vibe on the decks. Tickets cost £10pp.
49 Brixton Station Road, Brixton, SW9 8PQ
Visit SpecialistCellars.co.uk
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