Some London neighbourhoods express their charm in winding, narrow streets and alleys you might not know to bumble along, warrens of small businesses, restaurants and pubs. But in West Hampstead, a corner of North West London’s Camden, most of the neighbourhood’s energy is centred around the main high street, West End Lane. Most of the street’s beloved businesses have been here for generations – you’ll find bakeries which opened their doors in the 1980s and bookshops which have been trading since the mid-’90s – but there’s a clutch of newer names and punch-above-their-weight restaurants here, too. This is our guide for spending a perfect Saturday in the area.
8am: morning coffee at Intermission
It’s never too early to caffeinate – especially at Intermission, the espresso-sized coffee shop at the nexus of West Hampstead’s trio of train stations. Later in the morning, queues snake outside as locals line up to wait for silken piccolos, creamy mochas and homemade cold brew, so arriving early is the smart move. The team roast their own beans, from crowd-pleasing Colombian to nutty Brazilian roasts, all available to buy in-store too (the cute pastel illustrations by Brooklyn-based artist Tomi Um, also found on the takeaway coffee cups, make packaging an art feature in your kitchen). On a sunny day, pitch up on the cheerful butter-hued tables outside and watch the neighbourhood come to life.
Address: Intermission, Unit 2 The Hardy Building, Heritage Ln, London NW6 2BR
Website: Intermission.coffee
9.30am: yoga at Flo Yoga
Head up the road to Flo, a female-founded boutique yoga studio with space for just 15 yogis to stretch out on their mats – meaning plenty of space and attention from the excellent teachers. Start the morning strong with a Power Flo session, which is strong and fiery and encourages students to get to grips with their arm balancing, or go for something more gentle like a Yin class or even a restorative sound bath.
Address: Flo Yoga Studio, Basement Studio 459 Finchley Road West Hampstead Via, Alvanley Gardens, London NW3 6HN
Website: floyogastudio.co.uk
10.45am: breakfast at Roni’s Bagel Bakery
Appetite suitably worked up from your time on the mat, it’s time for breakfast. Mini local empire Roni's Bagel Bakery can be sought out in a few NW neighbourhoods these days (including pretty Belsize Village and up the road in Hampstead proper), but the West Hampstead branch is the original, baking artisan bagels (chewy on the side, crackly on the outside) on West End Lane since 1989. The classic salmon and cream cheese bagel (£6.95) is a perennial favourite for a reason, but the team also whip up a smashing hot salt beef rye (£12.95).
Address: Roni's Cafe West Hampstead, 248 W End Ln, London NW6 1LG
Website: ronisonline.co.uk
11.30am: pick up some groceries
Just because you’ve filled up at breakfast doesn’t mean you can’t indulge in a touch of boujie grocery shopping while you’re on this end of the high street – after all, they say don’t shop when you’re hungry. That’s good advice to live by if nipping into West End Lane’s handful of top-tier food shops. At the top of the street, The Grocery Post (280 West End Lane) bills itself as a ‘Corner Shop Deluxe’. The West Hampstead branch (a younger sister to the original in Highgate) sells snacks sourced from London’s best-loved specialists – think cheese from La Fromagerie, meats from London Smoke and Cure, coffee from Monmouth and bread from St John – behind the prettiest façade in the neighbourhood. A few doors down, The Source Bulk (276 W End Lane) sells organic groceries with zero packaging, while The Hampstead Butcher & Providore (244 W End Lane) is a one-stop-shop for British free-range meat (in summer, the BBQ boxes are the must-buy here – the box for four includes rib-eye steaks, lamb cutlets, steak burgers, chicken thighs and pork sausages for a very reasonable £70). The West Hampstead Farmers Market pitches up each Saturday between 10am-2pm to round out a well-balanced shopping list with locally grown, organic produce.
1pm: lunch at Sushi Tokoro
West Hampstead is one of those neighbourhoods that seems to have more restaurants, bars and pubs than residents to fill the tables. But it’s always busy at Sushi Tokoro, a teeny-tiny Japanese spot with just a couple of tables inside (and a couple more outside if the weather is on your side). Order spicy salmon dragon rolls (£15.90 for six pieces) or a veggie nigiri set (£13.50) along with a helping of pillowy soft prawn gyoza (£5.70).
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Address: Sushi Tokoro, 2, Broadwell Parade, Broadhurst Gardens, London NW6 3BQ
Website: sushitokoro.weebly.com
2pm: indulge in a spot of retail therapy
Two words: book shopping. That’s the main order of business as you take to West Hampstead’s stores for a browse. There are two wonderful bookshops just across the road from each other: the first, West End Books (277 West End Lane), has been family-owned since 1994 and sells a lovely selection of fiction and non-fiction books, often signed, curated by staff who love reading and can point you in the direction of a title that will suit you. Across the road, The House of Books (184 West End Lane, with branches in Crouch End and Muswell Hill) has a sweet ‘Blind Date With A Book’ stand outside and recommends an ever-changing book of the week for those looking for inspiration. Also on West End Lane, second-hand lovers should kill time leafing through the letterman jackets and funky hats at Sublime Vintage (258 West End Lane), while foodies could lose hours (and much of their paycheck) at Season Cookshop (166 West End Lane).
3pm: grab a snack at Lola’s Bakery
If you can make it through a day out without stopping for a mid-afternoon pick-me-up, all power to you. If you’re anything like me, though, I recommend a pitstop at Lola’s Bakery, where all the treats are baked from scratch and free of additives. That might mean double chocolate cookies (£2.50), sticky apple cinnamon buns (£4.50) or vegan carrot cake (£4.25), best served with Belgian hot chocolate (£3.95).
Address: Lola’s Bakery, 168 West End Lane, London NW6 1SD
Website: lolasbakery.co.uk
4pm: try your hand at pottery painting
When was the last time you sat down with a brush and some paints and got lost in making something with your hands, however shoddy the end result might turn out? Art4Fun invites bona fide grown-ups to do just that. After paying a £6 studio fee, select your blank ceramic (£18.50 per piece) and settle down to decorate it however you please. You can even bring your own drinks in.
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Address: Art4Fun, 172 West End Lane, London NW6 1SD
Website: art4fun.com
6pm: stop for aperitvo hour
There is, as I mentioned above, no shortage of pubs in West Hampstead (and of them all, my favourite is Wolf Pack, although I prefer its big sister outpost down the road in Queen’s Park). But I’d recommend picking your poison between wine and cocktails and choosing your boozer accordingly. For wine buffs, bottle shop Tannin and Oak (278 West End Lane) invites customers to pick any bottle from the shelves or fridges and make their way through it at one of the sun-soaked tables outside (a £10 corkage fee applies). Back towards the stations, The Gallery (190 Broadhurst Gardens) slings out tipples such as a Scotch and Apricot Sour (Johnny Walker Black, apricot liqueur, aquafaba, lime, £12.50) and a Spicy Barrel Sour (Chilli-infused Jameson Black Barrel, triple sec, passionfruit, aquafaba, lime, £13).
7pm: dinner at The Wet Fish
Supper in an old fish shop – what could be more romantic? It might sound odd, but the charmingly named Wet Fish Café is one of West Hampstead’s prettiest restaurants, all original 1930s tiles, twinkly candlelight that flickers invitingly from the street and a gorgeous exposed brick bar. Menus are, unsurprisingly, seafood-focused and might include Cornish catch of the day with risotto, fish cakes with salad or slow roast pork belly (sourced from The Hampstead Butcher, of course). Once a month the team put on live music during dinner service, with space for just 12 tables.
Address: The Wet Fish Café, 242 West End Lane, London NW6 1LG
Website: thewetfishcafe.co.uk
9pm: catch some live music
Ah, but the night’s not over yet – just because we’re keeping things local doesn’t mean we need to be home and in bed by 9pm. West Hampstead Arts Club is a dinky (100-person capacity dinky) venue that pays homage to the neighbourhood’s often unrecognised musical past. Local music buffs know that the Beatles auditioned at what is now the English National Opera venue on Broadhurst Gardens, while now-closed club Klooks Kleek on West End Lane was pivotal during the 1960s as a venue that hosted the likes of Stevie Wonder and Led Zeppelin. Now, West Hampstead Arts Club is carrying the torch with performances from underground artists.
Address: West Hampstead Arts Club, 32 Mill Ln, London NW6 1NR
Website: westhampsteadarts.com