2arrs, 2ells - Things to do in London

Third in a series of non-comprehensive, incredibly subjective trip reports masquerading as “travel guides.”

Recommended Sights

Tate Modern: Awesome modern art museum in a cool building. Walk across the “Millennium Bridge” from central London (across the Thames) to get there!
British Museum: Fantastic history museum with crazy cool artifacts. Be sure to see parts of the Parthenon, the Rosetta Stone, and the Clock + Enlightenment Rooms.
Platform 9 and 3/4: I don’t know if you’re as big of a Harry Potter fanatic as I am, but it’s a cool photo opportunity! It’s at the King’s Cross tube station.
Oxford: I went for a day (like 9 - 6) and had a really good time checking out the different colleges, drinking at famous old pubs, and having high tea at a small hotel near the university.
Spitalfield’s Market: Open air market with clothes, posters, random hipster stuff, good food.

Barts: A super cool speakeasy, located in Chelsea in this random hotel called Chelsea Cloisters. You have to make a reservation, go through a “secret entrance,” and then you’re in this tiny bar with classic cocktails (added bonus - my friends have seen Hugh Grant here!).
Princess Louise + White Hart: Both are great places to drink near the British Museum (Holborn tube stop). Princess Louise is a classic pub, classy wood decor + atmosphere. The White Hart is also old/historic but more of a bar with good music + a bit of a dance floor.

Obika: Amazing mozzarella!
High tea: Find a classy place to get high tea (tea + finger sandwhiches + scones). We had it in Oxford, so I can’t recommend places in London, but I thought it was really hilarious + delicious.
Indian Restaurants on “Brick Lane” (“Curry Row”): This street has like 5 billion Indian restaurants, and there are guys who stand by the doors and try to get you to come in. You can ask them for discounts if you want - we ended up getting a free round of drinks and 20% off of our check, with minimal hassle.
Fast casual: There are a lot of nifty “fast casual” places (kind of like Chipotle) that we don’t have in the US. I ate at Nando’s (chicken place w/ lots of sauces) and Pret (kind of like Au Bon Pain) and they were both pretty good. You can get a meal for like 5-7 pounds, which is less than $10, so not too pricey. In a city not noted for its cuisine, I didn’t feel too bad eating at a chain.