**UPDATE! I was in London for 2 weeks in August 2019 and have updated this post with more sights & eats!**

My husband and I spent part of our honeymoon exploring London in October 2018, and I’m here to tell you the best parts of London to explore!

My dad grew up in London and I’ve been several times in my life, but this past trip was a real eye opener. London has changed loads and is only going to keep changing. I organized it by my favourite tourist spots first and the best foodie finds second which you’ll see as you scroll down the page.

Tourist Must-See Spots 

• Hyde Park – Walk through this huge, beautiful park for a perfect mid-day stroll!

• St. James Park – Set right by Buckingham Palace, this park was packed because of the beautiful weather. Amazing landscaping, big weeping willow trees, and large gorgeous walking paths!

• London Eye – Basically it’s a huge ferris wheel that allows you to see the city from a bird’s eye view. Even with grey skies, it’s a beautiful thing to see! Pro tip: buy your tickets ahead of time.

• Big Ben – It was under construction (boooo) so here’s a cute pic of my husband and I.

• Westminister Abbey– “Hands down, best abbey I’ve ever seen.” I can’t help but think of Joey saying that every single time, This church is beyond beautiful, and you can actually tour the inside but the lines are loooong. Pro tip: book your tickets ahead of time. This will always be my best advice!

• Trafalgar Square – So many good things are in this Square with loads of history, statues, fountains and beautiful sights. The Trafalgar St. James Hotel Rooftop has a a great little tapas menu and beautiful views of the city. Trafalgar Square also hosts The National Gallery (see below).

• The National Gallery – Joel with all his friends. The National Gallery is huge and beautiful and hosts some of the most amazing paintings and artwork in the world. It’s FREE and you could easily spend half a day here!

• Natural History Museum – Joel with all his friends again. I looove this museum for all it’s scientific finds and nerdy exhibits. They have so many dinosaur fossils and host some of the most complete sets of animal fossils in the world. It’s also FREE!

 

• Saatchi Gallery – This contemporary art gallery is for those who are looking for something a little bit different.

• Wembley Stadium – If there’s a game going on, do your best to get tickets and head to this stadium for an awesome time. We scored some AMAZING seats for the Seahawks game and had the best time!

• Her Majesty’s Theatre – We saw Phantom of the Opera and I was in tears half the show because it was soooo magnificent. The acting, singing, and stage work was incredible. I highly recommend seeing a Broadway show while in town! There are several theatres and I liked this one a lot because it was quite small and intimate.

• Shopping on Oxford Street – You can’t leave London without visiting the classic, original and gorgeous Harrod’s. My parents used to take us here as kids and let us pick candy from their Confectionery section. It’s a beautiful place indeed.

• Portobello Market – This large outdoor market is one of my favourite quirks of London. It takes over pretty much all of Notting Hill on the weekends and you can find almost anything you can imagine. Of course, my favourite part is the street food, but there are so many great antiques, crafts, artwork and more! I picked up a beautiful silk scarf from a street vendor on this trip.

• Borough Market – Another super great market that’s ALL about food! We had this amazing ChuChi curry that I’m still thinking about… Also had a delicious raspberry bronut (brioche donut) and brought back a bottle of Croatian olive oil while out here.

P.S. We stayed at an adorable AirBnB (on our honeymoon) that was in a fabulous location (the only downfall was the noisy street). Our host (Marius) was super awesome – he didn’t have a wine opener so he went out and bought one within the hour and delivered it to the flat. Also, isn’t it the cutest?!

Fabulous Foodie Finds

Talking about the markets made this a perfect segue into the wonderfully diverse food scene in London.

• 100 Queen’s Gate – You have to make it a point to visit this hotel’s indoor oasis and enjoy a truly exquisite afternoon tea experience! The tea, bubbles, sandwiches, and sweet treats was the best way to spend our first day back in London.

• Sticks N Sushi – One of the cutest spots in Chelsea serving authentic Japanese cuisine. A few of my faves are the salmon tataki, spicy tuna roll, scallop ceviche, beef with miso butter, and hamachi collar. Exceptional service, pleasant atmosphere and fabulous dishes!

• Baba G’s – Indian fusion burgers and more from this amazing, delicious, creative spot in Camden Market. We had the lamb jalfrezi burger, chicken tikka burger, papadom nachos, and crispy paneer fries. It was an amazing feast!!!

• Leggero – 100% gluten free Italian food and boy was it good! I was so impressed by owner Francesco’s creativity and high quality dishes. We had the tomato bolognese paparadelle, the gorgonzola beet ravioli with pesto, the housemade focaccia and butternut lamb and squash meatballs! It was all so absolutely divine!

• Patri – We need an Indian street food spot like this in Austin. I had four different chaat’s, pani puri, a curry sampler platter and gulab jamun. I ate till it hurt because it was so damn delicious, and I don’t regret it. They also have suprisingly great wine pairings!

• Noize – It’s hard to pick favourites, but this is definitely one of them. I can’t stop thinking about my lunch here. This cozy French spot is beautiful, upscale and absolutely delicious. We started out with heirloom tomatoes with burrata and the veal raviolo. They also bring out freshly baked sourdough bread and gruyere profiteroles. We ordered delicious French wines (I had a rose and sauv blanc) and I was already in pure bliss at this point but we had more food to come! I ordered the squid ink risotto with perfectly seared stonebass and squash. Joel had the hake, potato salad and fresh greens. If that wasn’t enough, we split the raspberry tart with lemon custard and vanilla ice cream with espresso. It was a truly beautiful feast.

• Ooty Station – We went to the more casual version of Ooty with amazing street food like lamb dosas, chaat chicken wings, crispy paneer steam bun, lamb curry and kulfi. This is another meal that I can’t stop thinking about because the flavors were so on point and nostalgic. The owner happened to be sitting by us and I chatted with him and his friends for a little bit – so kind, humble and passionate about their cuisine!

• The Espresso Room – This quaint cafe makes benedicts, sandwiches, wraps, smoothies, and terrific coffee. I looooved the smoked salmon benedict (it was on top of the fluffiest english muffin I’ve ever had) and a huge helping of smashed avocado – Joel had the maple-espresso bacon and it was delicious. I loved the huge iced dirty chai latte, too!

• Teatulia – This tucked away spot in Covent Garden boasts delicious teas made in Bangladesh. We enjoyed several tasty cocktails including the gin sling, lemongrass mojito, and tulsi in the rye. They also have tasty little cakes (I loved the mango turmeric one). We also tried the lemongrass tea, one of their signature teas, and loved it so much we bought a tin to take home! I recommend this spot for a chill afternoon or relaxing after dinner treat.

• Hawksmoor Borough – We chose to eat here on our last night (August 2019) and I’m glad we did! Although it’s a bit pricey (as is any high rated steakhouse, it was absolutely delicious! I ordered their cheeseburger with chips and Joel and their steak frites. We enjoyed fabulous wine with our meals as well and it was a perfect way to end our trip!

• Grapes and Hoops – One of the oldest standing pubs in all of London serving delicious comfort food – we enjoyed their Sunday roast (one of my fave traditions). They also had an impressive list of gins (I discovered Silent Pool and it might be my new fave)!

• Tibet Kitchen UK at Brick Lane Market – I had the beef momo’s and veggie momo’s and they were soooo good – I wish we had truly authentic Asian food like this in Austin!

• Heddon Street Kitchen – I had it on my must-visit list to go to a Gordon Ramsay restaurant. I liked this place, but I think it’s overpriced for what you get. Also, I can’t get over that they charged me 4 quid for a tonic water and didn’t have the price listed anywhere before! I did enjoy their 6 quid aperol spritz though 🙂

• Amber – Delicious Middle Eastern restaurant with warm interiors and incredible flavors! We had the bottomless brunch that included fried eggs, olives with feta, grilled salmon with sweet potatoes, roasted eggplant, creamy hummus, and warm pita.

• Kensington Wine Rooms – We were so excited to checkout The Churchill Arms pub but it was beyond packed and uncomfortably hot inside, so we went next door to this adorable wine bar that had incredible food. It was nearly empty. It’s funny to me how people would rather be crowded in a dingy place just because it’s touristy when there’s a hidden gem just next door! We had their fish n chips with mushy peas (so delicious) and a red pepper and ricotta filled ravioli with a butternut squash sauce and capers – I’m definitely going to recreate it because it was so dang delicious! I recommend this spot if you’re near Notting Hill.

• Butterscotch London – (EDIT: This pop-up is no longer here but the bakery still is!!)
  This bakery is one of the cutest little spots in town. We visited to have their high tea and loved every minute of it! Butterscotch is nestled off a busy street in Kensington and serves tea, coffee, wine and lots of baked goods. A few of my favourite items from our high tea include the butternut squash and goat cheese tea sandwich, red velvet cupcake, and buttery scones with clotted cream!

• Albert Arms – This pub is just south of the river and just a few blocks from Elephant & Castle Station. It’s cozy and has really great pop art on the walls, but the real reason you’ll want to come here is the carefully crafted menu. They’re serving everything from classic fish n chips to vegan flatbreads and crab mac n cheese! We really loved this traditional pub with a fun, modern twist.

• The Distillery – We attended a badass 3 hour class at The Ginstitute where we learned everything you could ever want to know about gin. I felt seriously enlightened. We also got to make our own gin (and it was so freaking cool). I recommend this if you’re super into spirits or are obsessed with gin like I am.

• One Kew Road – Cute spot in Richmond for delicious gastropub dining. I was so bummed that their brunch was over at 11:30 (am I crazy or is it kinda silly to end brunch so early?) but they had three different Sunday roasts to choose from and I’m SO glad we stayed for that. I had the chicken and Joel had the prime rib. These were insanely flavorful (and came with fantastic roasted veggie sides and a huge popover roll).

• Chakra London – This was one of THE BEST MEALS we had while on our honeymoon. Chakra’s Indian cuisine was elegant, authentic, full of bold flavors, beautifully presented and all around INCREDIBLE. I wish we had a Chakra in Austin. It was impeccable and a food experience I won’t ever forget. My faves include the samosa chana chaat, tandoori chicken and seafood, and maadi dal with garlic naan.

London was such a magical, dreamy, and beautiful place to spend our honeymoon. While I didn’t include every place we saw and ate at, these are the places/things I recommend making time for while there. London is bustling with diverse culture and new places to explore – it’s one of my favourite places in the world.