I want your London suggestions

[BlueChair]

In just two weeks, Red and I will be spending a few days in London. We are eager to meet up with so lack and verbal gym et al and very much looking forward to it, but for now I'd like to collect some of your suggestions.

I want to hear about the best pubs, the best indian restaurants (I want to find the best saag paneer and chicken madras in the whole of england), the best record and book shops, and other things that we shouldn't miss on our visit. Please steer clear from the tourist traps, as they are of little interest to us.

Cheers! (While we're at it, if anybody has recommendations in Bath or Santorini I suppose this is an equally good place to share them).

[Who Shot Sam?]

My uncle was in Bath a few months ago and went to a restaurant he liked a lot. I'll track down the info for you. As for London, I'll leave it to the experts.

[wardo68]

My wife and I went to London for our honeymoon (8+ years ago) and we'd love to go back. Not much advice for you except this:

-- Take the tube whenever you can. If you think it's close enough to walk, it isn't.

-- Madame Tussaud's may be cheesy, but it's a lot of fun. However, don't believe the hype on the London Dungeon. Save your money.

-- Do a Jack the Ripper walking tour, specifically one that takes you back to the initial meeting spot by the tube station. Avoid any one that doesn't take you back there, since you don't want to be wandering Whitechapel alone at night.

-- I heard the Helter Skelter bookshop closed; is that true? If so, there are still plenty of great bookshops to find EC stuff.

-- Drink lots of Guinness for me.

-- Have a great time. Wish I could join you.

[DrJ]

Holloway Road has loads of Indian restaurants and is nice and grimey. Our local (until we move next week) is the Bengal Spice, which is friendly, fresh and great value. At the Archway end of Holloway Road is the Sitara, which is a Jazz Indian. We've eaten there once, the theme is Indian Fod with Jazz music and decor and I ate the hottest Indian dish of my life there. I was amusingly destroyed for a day after. Up the road in Highgate is the very posh Kipling's renovated a year ago. If you want comfort, a live pianist, about £70 for 2 with wine, it's as luxurious as Indian restaurants get.

That's my Indian info.

The places I like to go in London are:
Smithfield & The Barbican
The Southbank: check what's on at the BFI Southbank or the RFH, loads of restaurants there
Kenwood House and Hampstead Heath: Away from the city centre, beautiful open spaces.
Hache Burgers in Camden: Best burgers in town. Up the road is...
Marine Ices: Family Ice cream place at Chalk Farm tube.
The Apple Store!
Gadget shops on Tottenham Court Road!
If you're in the city centre there are a couple of places where you can dirert off Oxford Street and the like for a nice drink, food: Marlybone High Street & Charlotte Street come to mind.

[Who Shot Sam?]

Oh, one suggestion for a record store Blue. Walk up Portobello Road to the Rough Trade shop on Talbot Road. It's just a little hole in the wall, but well worth a visit.

[Mechanical Grace]

A few days in London... that's gonna be fun, if agonizing-- akin to having just one teensy spoonful of the best bowl of soup you ever tasted.

Hard to distinguish between 'touristy' and 'unmissable/classic,' but myself, I'd recommend:

- National Gallery
- Tate Modern
- Shakespeare at the Globe theater
- Live music somewhere
- Tower of London
- Plus one leisurely neighborhood walk, just exploring, shopping and quaffing ale
- Peppered liberally with the sorts of eats Dr. J has mentioned and taking the Tube as Wardo recommends (though on the other hand, the bus system is fantastic, and also gives you a nice view of things-- don't be intimidated by the dense map, it's all very straightforward).

You'd be hard-pressed to fit that into three days, even doing the theater, the music and the Tate Modern all in the evenings...

Have fun!

Oh, and Bath is lovely, and it sort of 'does' itself due to the size and compactness of the place.

[wardo68]

Forgot to mention -- the wife and I did take the train to Bath for an afternoon. Almost as nice as the city was simply watching the green fields roll past the windows. We definitely want to do that again.

[miss buenos aires]

Best restaurant meal of my life was in London. I think the place was called Bengal Village? I took a picture of the front, which I will email to you if I can find it.

[DrJ]

I'd be interested to know where that is too!

[BlueChair]

Best restaurant meal of my life was in London. I think the place was called Bengal Village? I took a picture of the front, which I will email to you if I can find it.

Sold!

[Otis Westinghouse]

Brick Lane in the East End is the legendary mecca of London curry, though I've never been there. I'd check it out, though, and just go somewhere where there are lots of people, as it's sure to be good. (This is precisely what I did on the 'curry mile' in Manchester's

A place I really like is the Jai Krishna on Stroud Green Road, tube Finsbury Park:

http://www.london-eating.co.uk/5564.htm

As they say, great food at very low prices. I love Indian veggies.

I know this area a bit, unlike nearly all of the rest of our capital, due to a friend being there for years, and another great place in the area is La Porchetta, with some of the best Italian pizzas etc. I've had in London at a decent price. All the staff are Italian, and the waitresses are nearly all drop-dead gorgeous and very nice to children. What more can a 40something father of three ask for?

http://www.london-eating.co.uk/5564.htm

They have opened other branches due to the success of this, but I can't vouch for them.

[verbal gymnastics]

I was in Santorini last year. We stayed in a village called Oia. If you go to the end of the village it has a spectacular view when the sun sets. It really is worth going to. There are some great restaurants and cafes there too. There are also some good craft shops.

We were also in Bath last year. I don't think much will have changed since you and Red were last there. It's a beautiful city. If you like cream teas (like Mrs VG) then you will be in for a treat!

There are a lot of curry houses around in London but getting to any recommended ones may be dependent upon where we meet. London is a big place!

As far as the tourist stuff in London is concerned, I'd agree with MG. But the museums are free and if the weather is good I would recommend going on the London Eye.

If whilst you are travelling you intend to use the underground/tube a lot then it will be better to get a travelcard which will mean you can use the buses and the underground. However, much of London's tourist traps are in walking distance.

Look forward to meeting you both too.

[littletriggers]

Yep one day at least on the South Bank taking in the Eye , a cocktail a top of OXO Building not forgetting to look round the revamped Festival Hall , an ice cream outside the Globe theatre and then the Tate Modern and then just keep walking , Clink Jail , All Bar One, hoho, London Bridge , Tower Of London, you can smell the East End from hear, just kidding it's just another very long walk, and then a cab to Liecster Sqre, half price tickets and a night at the theatre. Just promise us all no Andrew Loyd Webber.
Me I will at least be in London this Friday and will try and make it along to Highgate cemetary and get along to see Karl Marx grave , have been close a few times but this would be a first, if the funds are sound look forward to meeting you in London Bluechair, depending on level of alcahol abuse it's all a question of trains and park benches , kind of gave up that 20 years ago ! Whatever, Curries I can usually knock something up indoors better than what's on offer these days, curry is curry UK style get yourself some jellied eels and roll mops and get up the Blind Begger Sunday morning and kneck a few pints of Guinness and really feel part of the Kray Fish Gang !