LDNGuide
The Best Pop-Ups & Residencies In London Right Now
Check out these limited-run London restaurants, ASAP.
If you’re anything like us, then you’ll find it hard to keep track of which pop-ups are new, which ones are old, and which ones are just delicious hallucinations you created in your mind. Good thing it’s our job to remember. Here, we’ve separated the wheat from the chaff and put together the best pop-ups, long-term residencies, one-off specials, and whatever else that you should be checking out (and more importantly eating) before they’re gone.
THE SPOTS
Double Dragon
Double Dragon @ 84 Rosebery Avenue / Tues-Sat / 18 Feb onwards
Scott Hemsworth—former head chef at Freak Scene—is popping up on what used to be the site of Firebrand pizza in Clerkenwell. Double Dragon will serve things like pork belly bao buns, pizzettas, beef tataki, and a whole load of other Japanese-inspired plates. It's open Tuesday to Saturday and you can book online.
Four Corners @ Rondo La Cave / Tues-Sat / Until April
In a basement space below The Hoxton in Holborn you can now find Rondo La Cave, a wine bar, residency space, and all-round useful little den for when you're after a midweek drink and dinner. At the moment they've got Four Corners in the kitchen: a decadent, Detroit-style pizza pop-up that's as cheesy, crispy, and marinara-laden as any of your most exciting pie-related dreams.
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Supa Ya Ramen
Guest chefs @ Supa Ya Ramen / Various Dates
The cult ramen supper club and now restaurant in Dalston has invited a host of guest chefs to dish out their own signature ramen on special dates. So far they've had the like of Ixta Belfrage (co-author of Ottolenghi's most recent book, Flavour) and Spasia Dinkovski of Mystic Börek. It costs £30 for one bowl and two snacks and you can find more detail over on their Instagram.
Meedu Saad @ P. Franco / Thurs-Sun / Until March 27th
Call it a wine bar, call it a shop, call it a restaurant. It doesn’t matter. P. Franco is just an excellent place to spend your night. There has always been a rotation of resident chefs at this buzzy Clapton wine spot, but we’re particularly excited about the man who’s currently in charge of the menu. Meedu Saad is currently head chef at Kiln but for the next month or so he's going to be cooking a range of food on P. Franco's little induction hobs. The menu will draw upon his Egyptian background as well his childhood surrounded by Tottenham's Cypriot and Turkish communities. Remember, it's walk-in only.
The Jackalope
Liu Xiaomian @ The Jackalope, W1G 7EQ / Tues - Fri / Indefinitely
A long-ish term fixture that nobody should take for granted, Liu Xiaomian is Charlene Liu and Liu Qian, a duo from Chongqking who started making noodles and dishing them out at markets a few years back. The menu features three xiaomian noodles - one vegan, one pork, one pork and chickpea - all packing a Sichuan peppercorn punch, and there are daily specials plus glass noodles as well.
Tola Peckham
Passa Passa @ Tola, SE15 5DP / Tues - Sat / Indefinitely
Passa Passa, named after a weekly street party in Kingston, is an Afro-Caribbean small plates pop-up that’s taking over the kitchen at Tola in Peckham. The menu features small plates like BBQ suya skewers or cassava fries with plantain ketchup, and bigger ones like fried chicken with scotch bonnet and thyme honey. They’re in the kitchen Tuesday to Saturday.
Ling Ling’s @ The Gun, E9 6RG / Weds - Sun / Indefinitely
Ling Ling’s, Jenny Phung’s modern Chinese pop-up, is back in the kitchen at The Gun. There’s been a collaboration with Spasia Dinkovski of Mystic Börek and new on the menu is her Chinese-inspired take on a classic Sunday roast.
Belly @ The Compton Arms / Weds-Sun / Indefinitely
Although Four Legs and their much-papped cheeseburger have now left the kitchen at The Compton Arms, that doesn’t mean you’re not going to be well fed. The new face in the kitchen is Belly, headed up by Reece Moore formerly of Bao and Satsu. The menu reads not dissimilarly in that it’s made of loud delicious-sounding small plates like tomato carpaccio or beef dripping hispi cabbage, but there will bigger (also changing) dishes as well, like a giant pink t-bone steak, or a whole plaice in a caper and butter sauce. Is that your belly grumbling?
HOT 4 U x The Prince Arthur
Hot 4 U @ The Prince Arthur, E8 3BH / All week / Indefinitely
Hot 4 U are two chefs formerly of parishes such as St. John, Cub, and Silo and now the duo are taking up residence at the Prince Arthur in London Fields. Expect things like their smoked ox tongue reuben bun, a psychedelic burrata (!) and more. And if you can’t get a spot there then, FYI, they’re also over at The Plough in Homerton.
Cue Point @ The Chiswick Pavilion, W4 2SP / Thurs-Sun / Indefinitely
If the idea of a drive-thru BBQ sounds immensely appealing and also extremely messy, then head over to The Chiswick Pavilion. The enormous beer garden in west has got Cue Point in the kitchen making their British-Afghan naan-taco hybrids, smoked brisket bun, and lots more.
