Brick Lane guide

To celebrate the release of top new Britflick Brick Lane, here’s our guide to the thriving London street, so you can plan a day of shopping, eating, drinking - and more shopping.

Shopping
A Sunday in the Brick Lane area is a day well spent, mainly because of the fabulous Spitalfields market (www.visitspitalfields.com), which mixes antiques and vintage fashions with quirky homemade t-shirts, jewellery and loads more. For even edgier designs, try Sunday (Up)market at the Truman Brewery where up and coming artists sell their wares (www.sundayupmarket.co.uk). If you're after serious bargains, head to Brick Lane street market itself, where you might just find a second hand gem among all the tatty old CDs. Also keep an eye out for designer clothes warehouse sales at weekends - they tend to be well signposted.

 
Eating
Brick Lane has long been famous for its Bangladeshi curry houses, and competition means you'll find many an enthusiastic waiter trying to lure you in on the street with free drink deals and meal packages. Beware, though: the quality varies massively, so look for positive reviews posted in the windows from reputable publications like Time Out. Shampan at 79 Brick Lane is a decent one (www.shampan.co.uk) but for the best you'll have to head off the main drag. Try Tayyabs on nearby Fieldgate Street - they do amazing marinated lamb chops (www.tayyabs.co.uk). Cafe Spice Namaste on Prescot Street is good for posh north Indian food (www.cafespice.co.uk), Kasturi in Aldgate East for simpler Pakistani dishes (www.kasturi-restaurant.co.uk).

Drinking
One of Brick Lane's hippest watering holes is 93 Feet East (www.93feeteast.co.uk) where you can take in a gig, play a board game, read a newspaper, have a dance, or sip drinks in the cobbled outside area in summer. It's also worth crossing the road to Vibe Bar to check out their DJs and trendy crowd (www.vibe-bar.co.uk). If you're after a more old fashioned boozer, head to The Pride Of Spitalfields off Brick Lane, or The Golden Heart and The Ten Bells near Spitalfields market. Just don't blame us if you never leave...

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