Hipster cool meets London chic, Shoreditch is one of the city’s most vibrant destinations. Planning to explore? Don’t miss these things to do in Shoreditch to help you discover the best of the area.
Shoreditch.
As long-time Londoners, we’ve been known to be a bit dismissive of Shoreditch in the past. At some point, the artists moved out for more obscure parts of East London, the ad agencies moved in, and we started calling it Hipsterville, or some other name that wasn’t meant to be complimentary.
We may have given it a wide berth for several years, only to be dragged in kicking and screaming for birthdays, dinners and other social gatherings we had no control over.
Guess what? We were wrong. Well, kind of.
Sure, Shoreditch is chock-a-block full of hipsters, but it just so happens to also be full of great cocktail bars, awesome street art, cool markets, traditional pubs, delicious street food, party-hard clubs, live music hotspots, the list goes on but we’re out of breath.
Anyway, who are we to judge a hipster? We really love dungarees, good coffee and edgy glasses, so…
Diving into Shoreditch is best described as a full-on sensory assault, one that will leave you dizzy and just the tiniest bit in love. Planning a visit and in need of a proper Shoreditch guide? Here’s everything you shouldn’t miss.
The best things to do in Shoreditch
Shoreditch’s thriving street art scene
Shoreditch and street art go hand in hand. This is, hands down, the best place in London to see street art, and it’s always setting the pace on the international street art scene.
There are few things we like more than spending a few hours mooching around Shoreditch to see new pieces that have gone up, lament old favourites that have disappeared, and find ever more spots brimming with murals.
Around every corner, down every alleyway, looming over car parks, on railway hoardings, underneath the arches of Shoreditch High Street Station, even on some of the wheelie bins, talented artists have turned the area into a canvas filled with colour and bold statements. Fashion Street is one of the richest single stretches for it, worth building a route around.
A walk around Shoreditch’s street art is like a tour of the who’s who of the international street art hall of fame: everyone from Banksy to Mr Cenz, Ben Eine, Dale Grimshaw, Zabou and Phlegm Art has painted, or has a piece, somewhere in Shoreditch. We’ve mapped out 17 unmissable spots in a full self-guided street art tour, a genuinely good free thing to do in Shoreditch, complete with a map.
Hint: if you want to see Shoreditch’s street art without the crowds or incessant selfies, your best bet is to get up and set off early in the morning.
Sip some very drinkable cocktails in Shoreditch’s best bars
We’ve literally spent weeks making our way between Shoreditch’s numerous cocktail bars in a bid to choose the very best (it is, indeed, a tough life).
You know, the bars that pique your curiosity, get your tastebuds going, and aren’t going to serve you a load of water and ice in a bid to convince you it’s worth £10 of your hard-earned cash.
Turns out that’s a bloody tough task, there seem to be more skilled mixologists and cool cocktail bars in Shoreditch than we thought possible. From laid-back speakeasies such as Happiness Forgets and Ever After on Hoxton Square, The Cocktail Trading Co and Found, tucked behind a discreetly marked door next to Casita, to exuberant affairs like Callooh Callay, you’re never going to be short of a cocktail bar or two.
Looking for fun things to do in Shoreditch at night? We suggest girding your liver and working your way through this list of the best bars in Shoreditch.
Munch on street food eats
You’re never going to go hungry in Shoreditch. Not only is the area home to some banging restaurants, but some lip-smackingly good street food too.
Much as we sometimes grumble about things that have changed in London over the years (don’t get us started on house prices), if there’s one thing we fully appreciate, it’s the bloom and blossom of so many indie street food stalls, people who are passionate about making really good food (turns out we’re also really passionate about eating it, win win).
So where should you go? Dinerama, Street Feast’s flagship site on Great Eastern Street, is genuinely one of the best, six street diners, six bars, five street food shacks and a DJ, running Thursday to Sunday from noon till late. It’s a short walk from Village Underground, so the two pair naturally into one evening.
Worth knowing: Boxpark’s original Shoreditch site closed for good in 2024 to make way for redevelopment. If you’ve read older guides recommending it, that’s why you won’t find it, Dinerama has picked up the baton nicely.
Shop at one of Shoreditch’s cool markets
Does Spitalfields Market count as Shoreditch?
throws firework into article and runs away
Shoreditch’s boundaries are hotly contested. Where does Shoreditch end and Hoxton start? Is Spitalfields a separate area of its own? Not in our book it isn’t, which is why we’d put Spitalfields at the top of the list of cool places to shop in Shoreditch.
Old Spitalfields Market is rammed with vintage finds, handmade items, and generally lots of things you decide you absolutely need in your life the moment you set eyes on them.
Shopping on Brick Lane is one of those things to do in Shoreditch on a Sunday that’s practically a rite of passage. Again, it’s a combination of vintage clothes, small items from indie makers, and a few bits of bric-a-brac thrown in for good measure, all to the soundtrack of the talented musicians who pitch up for a spot of busking. Perfect.
We can’t keep track of what officially happens on what day at the Old Truman Brewery, but there’s always, always some kind of market there at the weekend, whether it’s contemporary interior showcases, vintage fashion or yummy food. Best bet is to poke your head in and find out what’s on that day.
Treat yourself to a delicious meal
We told you earlier you’re never going to go hungry in Shoreditch, and we firmly stand by that. Anyone who can’t find something to their taste here either a) doesn’t eat food, or b) is lying.
If you’re looking for high-end eats, The Clove Club and Lyle’s are strong contenders, as is steakhouse The Jones Family Kitchen.
In all honesty, we’re fully obsessed with the incredible ramen and buns from Shoryu right now. Chances are that if you’ve noticed this place, it’s because it’s packed every lunchtime and dinnertime. We suggest finding some way of weaselling your way in, by hook or by crook, because their ramen is insane.
Away from fancy eats and ridiculously good ramen, other spots we’d recommend include Cay Tre and Song Que on the so-called “Vietnamese Mile” (Kingsland Road), one of the best spots for Vietnamese food in London. Both are BYOB too, so.
Listen to live music, and drink on a rooftop inside a graffitied Tube carriage, at Village Underground
Is there anything more Shoreditch than a cultural venue housed in a renovated coal house, complete with decommissioned Tube carriages perched on top? Village Underground has been holding the beacon of creativity, and setting the calendar of fun things to do in Shoreditch at night, for two decades now.
There’s something going on at Village Underground pretty much every night of the week, the music lineup is eclectic and diverse, check ahead for listings.
Here’s the genuinely exciting part: those two graffitied Jubilee line carriages that have loomed over the Shoreditch skyline for 20 years, visible from the street but never open to the public, finally are. Marking the venue’s 20th anniversary, Village Underground opened a 300-capacity rooftop terrace bar in July 2026, giving you access to the carriages themselves for the first time ever, alongside draught beer, wine and pizza from Bad Boy Pizza Society. It runs Wednesday to Sunday through summer, currently one of the best new things to do in Shoreditch, full stop.
Party all night at one of Shoreditch’s uber-cool clubs
We won’t lie, the days of partying all night are becoming less and less frequent for us. Not completely gone, just not appearing with quite the ferocity you’d have encountered a decade ago.
We’re not quite entering an age of decrepitude yet, though, and if anything can lure us out of our clubland retirement, it’s a night out in Shoreditch.
XOYO is the obvious first stop, it reopened in early 2026 under new ownership following a major refurbishment, fresh LED lighting, an upgraded sound system, and its upstairs room rebranded The Jungle, spread across two levels with an impressive calendar of local and international DJs.
Looking for more? Check out The Book Club, The Queen of Hoxton and Trapeze, all of which do their fair share to keep Shoreditch raucous and rambunctious at night. We’ve got a full guide to the best clubs in Shoreditch if you want the complete rundown.
Worth knowing: Cargo, long a fixture of Shoreditch nightlife recommendations, closed permanently in 2021 after police raised serious concerns about crime and disorder, and a later attempt to reopen the site was blocked by the council in 2025. If you’ve seen it recommended elsewhere, it’s no longer trading.
Strike a (yoga) pose at Mission
This child of a lockdown-era need to bring communities together has morphed into something massive and pretty marvellous. Mission bills itself as the largest yoga centre in Europe, 14,000 square feet including five yoga studios, treatment rooms, saunas and even a restaurant.
The founders are yoga students and instructors themselves, and have picked teachers they know and trust, ranked among the best in the country.
When you’ve stretched it out with them, a meal at the restaurant, Maene, is an excellent idea. As you’d expect, maybe even demand, from a place like this, it uses local British produce on menus of healthy food with plenty of vegan and veggie options.
Play drag bingo with Ginger
For a night of bingo with the Queen herself (nope, not that Queen), head to the Looking Glass Cocktail Club.
Ginger is always ready to party, and as host of bingo night, you’d better be ready for plenty of dancing, team games and brilliant prizes. Prepare for a few hours of outrageous campness, and lots of glitter.
Fill your boots at Bike Shed Motorcycle Club
Whether you’re a petrolhead or not, Bike Shed Motorcycle Club is a great place to hang out and dine (you can even get your hair cut here, if you fancy).
This is one of the more fun places to eat in Shoreditch, hidden under four railway arches near Shoreditch Town Hall and looking like something out of a hipster’s wildest dreams. As you’d expect, the menu is filled with hearty burgers, sandwiches and meat dishes, and the cocktails are surprisingly great too.
Worth knowing: it’s a big, popular space with a lot going on (a gallery, barbershop, tattoo studio and retail floor alongside the restaurant), and a handful of visitors have reported turning up to find it unexpectedly closed. Worth calling ahead if you’re planning a special trip.
Dive head first into Ballie Ballerson
It should be illegal to head to Shoreditch for a night out without a pit stop at Ballie Ballerson. Where else can you lose your inhibitions and release your inner child in a ball pit, all while having a few bevs? It is the pick of London’s adult soft play spots.
Prices start at just £5 a session, so if you’ve got the flexibility to go in the week, you’re getting a great deal, or pay £15 on Saturday evenings, which, for the amount of laughs you’re guaranteed, is a pretty good price.
The inside is an Instagram dream too, so make sure to snap a few pics before it gets too chaotic in there.
Enjoy a Tokyo-inspired evening at Hijingo
Escape London and head to Hijingo, a bingo experience inspired by the Japanese capital.
And if there’s one thing Japan does well, it’s food, so of course the menu at Hijingo is genuinely excellent. Hoisin duck croquettes, truffle spring rolls and pork belly skewers are all on the menu, alongside a tantalising cocktail selection.
Neon lights and a night of fun await, just remember to bring your dabber.
Immerse yourself in blooms at Columbia Road Flower Market
A million miles from the party-all-night vibe of the last few entries, Columbia Road Flower Market is the best place in Shoreditch to soothe your Sunday morning soul. An East London stalwart, it’s been going for decades.
We’ve been going to Columbia Road on and off since we were nippers, and it’s been an absolute joy to see the revival of what was starting to look like a failing market. These days you can barely move for punters hunting out something floral and beautiful to bring home with them.
After you’ve battled and bartered your way to the perfect pot plant, plop yourself down in a nearby coffee shop for a leisurely brew and brunch. It’s the true Shoreditch way.
Play table football at Bar Kick
Unleash your competitive side at Bar Kick, London’s best-known table football bar and home of the London Table Football Championship no less.
Things can get heated, if that happens, take five with a pint and shake on it, keep it friendly and fun.
Have a curry on Brick Lane
These days a curry on Brick Lane is a bit controversial. Sure, there are still plenty of curry houses lining the street, are they the best in London? Probably not.
That doesn’t change the fact that having a curry on Brick Lane is one of the top things to do in Shoreditch. The curries are still great quality, and steep competition keeps prices reasonable, you can even negotiate yourself a little deal if you pitch it right.
Over the years we’ve tried most of the curry houses on Brick Lane, there’s not a huge amount between them, though there are a few standout superstars. Aladin is the biggest and reliably good, Bricklane Brasserie and Cinnamon are a notch above the rest.
Perk yourself up with a brew from one of Shoreditch’s discerning coffee shops
We’re so thankful a few people woke up one day and decided to bring the gift of good coffee to the masses.
If all that partying, flower shopping and street food eating has left you in need of a caffeine pick-me-up, there are plenty of coffee shops in Shoreditch willing to oblige. Barber & Parlour, Shoreditch Grind, Climpson & Sons and Nude Espresso are good places to start.
Indulge in a bargain eat at Beigel Bake
Picking up a beigel and a schmear in the wee hours of the morning is one of those things so very Shoreditch that there’s no way we could leave it out of this guide.
We’re betting the staff at Beigel Bake could write a best-selling book of everything they’ve seen over years of opening 24/7 on Brick Lane. But still, they keep schtum, instead choosing to do what they’ve always done, crack out near-heavenly beigel bites, round the clock, accompanied by epic portions of salt beef, smoked salmon, cream cheese or almost any other topping imaginable. It is one of the few genuine 24-hour kitchens in London.
The queue is always long, but you’d be surprised how quickly it moves. The real kicker comes when it’s time to pay, a salt beef bagel that leaves you fit to pop for under £5? We’ll have two, thanks.
Enlighten yourself at the Museum of the Home
To hear us talk, you’d think Shoreditch was all about parties, cocktails and stuffing your face. Here’s something different to shake it up.
The Museum of the Home (previously the Geffrye Museum) is one of London’s most interesting museums, exploring the concept of home from 1600 to the present day. It reopened after major renovations back in 2021, and the newly planted gardens are still worth a dedicated look, a lovely, quiet glimpse into the past.
Spend the afternoon at an art gallery
Much as we love Shoreditch’s street art scene, it would be remiss not to note the area is packed with actual art galleries too.
The scene here is largely dominated by small, independent galleries and spaces, spending an afternoon visiting a few makes for a genuinely engaging afternoon. The somewhat under-the-radar Institute of International Visual Arts (INIVA) looks at the social and political impact of globalisation through a range of visual arts. Kate MacGarry’s gallery, Calvert 22 and Studio 1.1 are all worth a look too, though given how quickly small independent galleries can change, it’s worth checking each is still showing before you make a special trip.
Kit out your wardrobe with new garms
Shoreditch being the ultra-cool neighbourhood it is, you’ll find plenty of shops to kit out your wardrobe here. The vibe is very much a hipster one, but if you like dressing in Carhartt or Patagonia, or browsing boutique clothing stores, you’ll be in a veritable wonderland.
If you’re into independent clothing stores, pop your head into Good Hood. For great womenswear, check out Aida. If vintage clothing is more your thing, you’ll have more than enough options over on Brick Lane, one of London’s vintage clothing hotspots.
Get stuck into some shuffleboard
Ever heard of shuffleboard? It’s a game on the rise, again, and we say again because it’s got a pretty lengthy history. Would you believe King Henry VIII used to play it, he even made a rule saying “commoners” couldn’t play.
Well, it’s our time now, King Henry, shuffleboard is taking London by storm. Clubs are popping up all over town, and Shoreditch (never a place to miss out on a hot trend) has one of the best. It’s called London Shuffle, and this being Shoreditch, they’ve paired it up with some pretty delicious pizza, plenty of booze options, and even a bottomless brunch.
The London x London Take: Village Underground is now the single best example of Shoreditch doing what it does best, taking something already good and finding a genuinely new angle on it two decades in. If you only do one thing from this entire guide, make it that rooftop, live music downstairs and a decommissioned Tube carriage above you is about as Shoreditch as it gets.
Exploring Shoreditch: practical tips
- Shoreditch is a big area, reachable on a bunch of different transport. On the Underground, head toward Liverpool Street or Old Street, they sit at either end of the main slice of action, so choose whichever’s best depending on where you’re coming from or going to. Shoreditch High Street Overground station is handy too.
- If you’re on a night out, plan your exit strategy. Getting a cab or an Uber late on a weekend night can be genuinely difficult, you might be best off using public transport.
- Restaurants in this part of town are popular, so it’s wise to book rather than just rocking up. For some of the more sought-after spots, you might need to book a month or more in advance. That’s just how the cookie crumbles in London, folks.
Shoreditch, London: map
Looking for more Shoreditch guides?
- The Best Bars in Shoreditch
- The Best Shoreditch Pubs: Old School Boozers and Cool Drinking Holes
- The Best Clubs in Shoreditch: Awesome Spots for Wild Nights
- The Ultimate Shoreditch Street Art Guide: 17 Unmissable Spots + Map
- Found: Shoreditch’s Best-Kept Secret Cocktail Bar
- The Best Boutique Hotels in Shoreditch
