5 amazing things to see at the Barbican’s 1996 exhibition Life&Style Ahead of the Toast the City 2026 Awards, we spotlight the venues to put on your radar this spring. Here, we look at the Barbican’s arresting new 1996 exhibition It is heralded as the peak of the Britpop era: the Spice Girls and Oasis were holding the front pages, and the country was on the brink of [...]
Toast the City winner: The Rising Sun on what makes a great pub Life&Style At the inaugural Toast the City Awards, one of the most amazing moments was seeing Sheila Dixon, one half of the husband and wife team behind City pub the Rising Sun, shed a tear as she collected our award for Best Boozer. The Rising Sun is one of those pubs where everyone feels like a [...]
Inside the Wetherpoons pub with great Tower of London views Life&Style Certainly not the most discerning watering hole in the Square Mile, Wetherspoons is nonetheless an institution. No matter what you think of it, it’s hard to argue that it doesn’t offer incredible value for money. Here’s a look inside The Liberty Bounds, one of the lesser-known Wetherspoons pubs frequented by City folk. WHAT’S THE VIBE?This [...]
Pub of the week: The Walrus and Carpenter is pints perfection March 4, 2026 “‘The time has come,’ the Walrus said, To talk of many things: Of shoes – and ships – and sealing-wax – Of cabbages – and kings – And why the sea is boiling hot – And whether pigs have wings.” So reads the most famous line in Lewis Carroll nonsense poem, after which this iconic [...]
DakaDaka review: The comfort food we all need right now January 27, 2026 DakaDaka, 10 Heddon Street, W1B 4BX | Nearest Tube: Piccadilly Circus Heddon Street has developed its own culinary microclimate. Whether by luck or design, it has become a place where you can almost guarantee a decent plate of food, with its current crop of restaurants including Sabor (superlative Spanish), Fonda (respectable Mexican) and Casa do [...]
Galvin La Chapelle launches menu to celebrate Toast award January 15, 2026 I have written about restaurants for this newspaper for some 15 years – but my latest visit to City institution Galvin La Chapelle was a first: reviewing a menu designed to celebrate winning a City AM award. Last year we hosted the first Toast the City awards, celebrating the things that make the Square Mile [...]
Galvin La Chapelle launches special menu to celebrate Toast Award win January 8, 2026 Michelin starred City institution Galvin La Chapelle has launched a special new menu to celebrate winning Best Restaurant at the inaugural City AM Toast the City Awards. The Toast & Taste menu, which is on offer until 24 February, will feature a combination of brand new dishes and returning classics from throughout the restaurant’s 15 [...]
Angler restaurant review: City staple feels both humble and flamboyant December 15, 2025 Win a chef’s table for 8 at Angler through our City Winners platform – click here to find out more! There’s long persisted a rumour that people in the Square Mile aren’t short of a dime or two. So it is strange that our local parish doesn’t have more Michelin starred restaurants. There used to [...]
Exclusive: The Ned eyes new clubs in Dubai and LA, with new rural ‘estate’ and first European venture to come November 13, 2025 Square Mile institution The Ned is pushing ahead with plans to roll out its brand across the globe, with an outpost in Europe imminent and Dubai and Los Angeles in the firm’s sights. The Soho House spin-off has embarked on an “aggressive” expansion plan, with clubs now open in Doha, New York and Washington DC. [...]
City AM crowns the capital’s best at Toast the City Awards 2025 October 23, 2025 London’s Square Mile played host to a celebration of culinary and cultural excellence last night at City AM’s inaugural Toast the City Awards 2025. Supported by five Business Improvement Districts, the Eastern City, Culture Mile BID, Aldgate Connect, Cheapside and Fleet Street Quarter, Toast the City awards was the first ever ceremony celebrating Square Mile [...]