Hoxton Travel

Start the morning from Hoxton Overground station, heading south along Hoxton Street through the Hoxton Street Market, operating since 1687 — Hackney's oldest street market, where fish sellers, florists, and second-hand clothing stalls mix with the sound of street musicians' guitars — East London's most unvarnished slice of life. Along the way, admire the graffiti works on the walls — Damien Hirst and Sarah Lucas created art events here in the 1990s, and today a new generation of street artists continue to paint colour onto the brickwork. Reach Hoxton Square, feeling the quiet side of this art square that once nurtured the White Cube gallery and Blue Note nightclub. In the afternoon, stroll along Regent's Canal, stopping at Towpath Café — a café converted from three storage rooms embedded in the canal wall — order Turkish eggs with toasted bread and sit by the canal watching narrowboats glide slowly past. In the evening, return to Hoxton Street and enjoy a traditional pie and mash with liquor at F. Cooke (opened in 1862, four generations), £4.50 for a taste of East London soul food.

Start the morning from Kingsland Road, known as "Pho Street" — home to London's densest concentration of Vietnamese restaurants. At Sông Quê Café — the bright green-fronted East London legend — order a bowl of slow-cooked beef pho (Phở Bò), the rich beef bone broth carrying thirty years of Vietnamese community flavour. On the way, visit Hoxton Hall, a Victorian music hall built in 1863 that remains a community arts centre, its well-preserved cast-iron window frames and stained glass telling the entertainment history of the working class. In the afternoon, stroll to Silicon Roundabout (Old Street), feeling the transformation from graffiti district to tech startup hub — the term "Silicon Roundabout" was coined by entrepreneur Matt Biddulph on Twitter in 2008, and today over 1,600 tech companies are based here. In the evening, head up to the Queen of Hoxton's rooftop bar, overlooking the East London skyline, enjoying cocktails in a seasonally themed garden, with weekend Drag & Waffle Bottomless Brunch and underground DJ parties to bring your two-day journey to a sleepless conclusion.