There are cities where you feel at home without being able to explain why. London is one of those for me.
The first time I went, it was with school, in Year 9. I already loved it. Barely two months after the second trip, I was back for a third. That says it all. I already loved it. The second time was memorable, and barely two months passed before I went back a third time. That says it all.
It's not the beach. It's not the kind of holiday where you rest with a piña colada. But what you bring back in your suitcase is something else, ideas in every direction, a shifted perspective, something that opened up. London does that. It doesn't leave you the same.
It's funny because it's massive, it buzzes in every direction, no corner looks like another — and yet you never feel unsafe. Never lost, never out of place. Even the rain grows on you. That says everything.
The people are kind. The accent is pleasant to listen to. And what's wild is that it's two hours by plane, two hours and you've completely changed your scenery, your rhythm, your atmosphere. A city that never stops, where there's always something to discover, a neighbourhood you haven't explored yet, a place you didn't expect to find.
I'm not a Londoner. Yet I keep coming back, and every time, something feels familiar again. A state of mind, a freedom in the way people dress, eat, hang around.
Here are my addresses. Not a tourist guide, just the places I keep coming back to, and the ones I've discovered and never want to let go of.
Morning — Ozone, Shoreditch
Breakfast at Ozone is a personal institution. It's in Shoreditch, open kitchen counter, eggs benedict on bubble and squeak cakes, strong coffee.
Brunch is taken seriously here without anyone being uptight about it. Sitting at the counter watching dishes leave the open kitchen the best way to start a day in London.
Open Monday to Friday from 7:30am, weekends from 8:30am.
📍 11 Leonard Street, EC2A 4AQ — Overground: Shoreditch High Street
Brick Lane — Beigel Bake
A mandatory stop. Open 24/7. The bagels are warm, the prices are ridiculous, and the queue outside is part of the scenery. It's an East End institution — the kind of place that's always been there and that you hope will always be.
📍 155 Brick Lane, E1 6SB — Overground: Shoreditch High Street
Soho — eating, shopping, wandering
Soho holds a lot of my favourite addresses. It's dense, alive, never boring.
Polpo for a simple, well-made Italian dinner — spaghetti meatballs, carafe of red wine, candles on the tables. No fuss, just what you need. Open every day.
📍 41 Beak Street, W1F 9SB — Central or Bakerloo line: Oxford Circus
Rudy's Pizza Napoletana — thin base, puffy edges, real ingredients. Exactly what you want when you want a pizza that actually tastes like a pizza. Open every day from 11:45am.
📍 80 Wardour Street, W1F 0TF — Central or Bakerloo line: Oxford Circus
Indian gastro
Kricket Soho — this is not the Indian food you're used to. No cheese naan on the menu, no coconut chicken curry. It's almost a gastro Indian, unexpected combinations, carefully worked produce, a menu that changes. I went thinking I'd order my usual classics and ended up discovering something completely different.
Highly recommend, you won't be disappointed.
Moreover, they also have an address in Shoreditch — 35-42 Charlotte Road, EC2A 3PB.
📍 12 Denman Street, W1D 7HJ — Bakerloo or Piccadilly line: Piccadilly Circus
Vinyl, records and things you don't plan to buy
Sounds of the Universe — this is where I found my favourites. "As You Were" by Liam Gallagher, "Definitely Maybe", and "Standing on the Shoulder of Giants" by Oasis in limited edition 25th anniversary silver vinyl.
The neon sign "Music Healing Force of the Universe" at the back of the shop says everything you need to know about the place. Open every day.
📍 7 Broadwick Street, W1F 0DA — Central line: Oxford Circus
Shopping
Supreme — because you don't pass through Soho without going in. Open Monday to Saturday from 11am, Sunday from noon.
📍 2/3 Peter Street, W1F 0AA — Central line: Oxford Circus
Adidas — obviously, I couldn't not go. An entire section dedicated to the Oasis x Adidas collab, released for their 2025 tour.
When I think of London, there's one song that always comes back "Live Forever". You know who you are.
📍 425 Oxford Street, W1C 2PG — Central line: Bond Street or Oxford Circus
Ronnie Scott's — the legendary jazz club in Soho. Open since 1959, there's always something good on stage. You have to go at least once.
The kind of place that reminds you why London is a musical city like no other. Open Monday to Sunday from 5:30pm.
📍 47 Frith Street, W1D 4HT — Northern line: Leicester Square
The Tate Modern — and free museums
One thing people forget to mention about London, the museums are free. The Tate Modern, the National Gallery, the British Museum, the Victoria & Albert, all completely free. That alone is worth the trip.
The Tate Modern deserves at least half a day. Andy Warhol, Dalí, and so many others. I discovered an exhibition on Vorticism, a British art movement from the early twentieth century, cubist and angular, somewhere between Futurism and Art Deco.
Exactly what speaks to me. That kind of unexpected discovery is what I love about London, you walk into somewhere not knowing what you'll find and leave with something new in your head.
Best of all, it's open every day from 10am
📍 Bankside, SE1 9TG — Jubilee line: Southwark or London Bridge
Hackney — the market, vinyl, books
Hackney is a bit like the Marais in Paris. Small independent shops, antique dealers, English crockery like we love, books everywhere. There's a small market where I spent time digging through vinyl and books with an adorable couple who sold their finds.
Obviously, the first thing that caught my eye was the sleeve of Liam Gallagher's album "C'mon You Know". It's also where I found a Janis Joplin vinyl. She gives me shivers every time, an incredible voice, sounds you rarely hear, instantly recognisable. Ball and Chain is one of my favourite songs.
The perfect place to find originals, real gems. They also recommended the David Bowie exhibition, I didn't have time that visit. Next time.
The kind of neighbourhood where you lose two hours without noticing and leave with things you never planned to buy. In other words, perfect.
📍 Hackney — Overground: Hackney Central
Camden — Modfather
For vintage, Modfather in Camden. A serious address for anyone looking for vintage pieces with personality. Not the kind of shop where everything is sorted by colour for Instagram, real finds, if you take the time to look.
And if you're lucky, you might leave with a Starter jacket with your name written inside.
Open every day, 10am to 6pm.
📍 37 The Stables Market, Chalk Farm Road, NW1 8AH — Northern line: Camden Town
Rain Dogs — Bethnal Green
A Guinness at Rain Dogs. There's always a small concert on, the kind of bar where live music is part of the deal, not an afterthought. The perfect place to end a day in the East End.
Additionally, if you're there on a Sunday, it's also the chance to try a Sunday roast, the great British Sunday tradition, roast meat, vegetables, Yorkshire pudding.
In short, a must at least once. Closed on Mondays.
📍 120 Bethnal Green Road, E2 6DG — Central line: Bethnal Green
The Dover — Mayfair
A place apart. The Dover is a New York Italian restaurant in Mayfair, behind heavy velvet curtains, low lighting, walnut panelling, vinyl on turntables.
In fact, you could be in a private members' club in 1970s New York, except you can actually book a table.
The atmosphere is chic without being cold, the crowd is beautiful, and the lasagne was very good. French and Italian classics on the plates, dishes you know, well executed, without trying to surprise for the sake of it.
That, ultimately, is the charm of the place. You go to have a good evening, and that's exactly what you get.
That said, the lasagne was very good!
That same relationship to atmosphere, I found it at Hôtel Amour Nice too. Same density, different city.
Evening only booking recommended. Closed on Sundays.
📍 33 Dover Street, W1S 4NF — Jubilee or Victoria line: Green Park
And tattoo in all of this
London and tattooing go way back. Evil from the Needle in Camden, opened in 1986 by Bugs, a French-born tattooist specialising in cubism, Art Deco and classical art, is one of the studios that helped build London's tattoo culture. He eventually moved to Los Angeles, but his influence is there, in the DNA of the city.
Jason Butcher is still in England. Realism, black and grey, large formats. The kind of artist that makes you want to work in that ecosystem.
That same focus on construction is what I took from the Shane O'Neill seminar at Graphicaderme in Avignon.
A city that takes tattooing seriously
London is a city where tattooing has been taken seriously for a long time. Not as a trend, as a craft.
I work at Graphicaderme in Avignon on Art Nouveau and Art Deco projects. A city like London, with that tattoo culture and that level of demand, I'd love to bring that work here for a guest spot. If that sounds like something, let's talk.
Ozone in Shoreditch. Open kitchen counter, eggs benedict, strong coffee. Open from 7:30am on weekdays. 11 Leonard Street, EC2A 4AQ.
Kricket in Soho or Shoreditch. Not your usual Indian — almost a gastro. No cheese naan, no coconut chicken curry. Go with no expectations. 12 Denman Street, W1D 7HJ.
Sounds of the Universe, 7 Broadwick Street in Soho. Reggae, soul, funk, disco, rock — serious curation. Open every day.
Ronnie Scott's for jazz — 47 Frith Street, Soho, since 1959. Rain Dogs for a Guinness and live music — 120 Bethnal Green Road. The Dover for a great New York Italian evening in Mayfair — 33 Dover Street.
Yes. The Tate Modern, the National Gallery, the British Museum, the Victoria & Albert — all free. The Tate Modern alone is worth half a day.
Two hours by plane. And when you come back, your head is full of ideas. That's all you need to know.
