London


<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/Untitled-design-205.jpg" alt="Jamie Poulton Randall &amp; Aubin Soho London" class="wp-image-1401" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/Untitled-design-205.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/Untitled-design-205-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/Untitled-design-205-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/Untitled-design-205-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<p>Co-owner of Anglo-French brasserie <a href="https://www.randallandaubin.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Randall &amp; Aubin</a> and a director at Soho&#8217;s ground-breaking, celebrity-laden <a href="https://www.broadwicksoho.com/">Broadwick Soho</a> hotel, Jamie Poulton has been part of the Soho community for over 20 years. So, naturally we&#8217;ve picked his brain to find out the best places to scoff, quaff and generally have a great time in London&#8217;s iconic party district. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-best-places-to-eat">Best places to eat </h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1024" height="804" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/88961776_2688581241191542_6231891894595485696_n-1024x804.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-1299" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/88961776_2688581241191542_6231891894595485696_n-1024x804.jpg 1024w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/88961776_2688581241191542_6231891894595485696_n-300x235.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/88961776_2688581241191542_6231891894595485696_n-768x603.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/88961776_2688581241191542_6231891894595485696_n.jpg 1376w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Jamie&#8217;s restaurant Randall &amp; Aubin which he co-owns with chef Ed Baines</figcaption></figure>



<p><a href="https://www.randallandaubin.com">Randall &amp; Aubin</a> of course! Even if it wasn&#8217;t mine I&#8217;d eat here and at <a href="https://www.broadwicksoho.com/dear-jackie">Dear Jackie</a>, our Italian restaurant in the basement of the <a href="https://www.broadwicksoho.com">Broadwick Hotel</a>. When I&#8217;m not at work I like Asian inspired cuisine, I enjoy eating by myself and like places like <a href="https://tarorestaurants.uk/locations/soho/">Taro</a>, a little Japanese place on Brewer Street, and <a href="http://www.assakorean.com">Assa</a>, this laidback Korean kitchen on Romilly Street, which are both great value and serve super tasty, authentic dishes. I also love <a href="https://www.banhmikeu.co.uk/soho">Banhmikeu</a>, a Vietnamese on Poland Street, they do amazing filled baguettes stuffed with salmon and pickled veg &#8211; I&#8217;ll probably get one for lunch today now I mention it! <a href="https://www.fortydeanstreet.com">40 Dean Street</a> is another good shout for Italian food, it&#8217;s family run, authentic, delicious. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-favourite-bars">Favourite bars?</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="572" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/2314-bsh-low-res-041023-2-26.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-1293" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/2314-bsh-low-res-041023-2-26.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/2314-bsh-low-res-041023-2-26-300x172.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/2314-bsh-low-res-041023-2-26-768x439.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Flute terrace bar in the newly opened Broadwick Hotel</figcaption></figure>



<p>There are too many cool bars in Soho! My favourite cocktail is a Classic Negroni so I&#8217;ve worked my way round the area trying them. <a href="https://www.barlina.co.uk">Bar Lina</a> in the basement of <a href="https://www.linastores.co.uk/locations/greek-street-restaurant">Lina Stores</a> on Brewer Street is a great speakeasy, it&#8217;s hidden away you have to go through the store to access it, it&#8217;s a nice looking space with an edgy underground feel to it. Then there&#8217;s the <a href="https://thethinwhiteduke.london">Thin White Duke</a> on Great Windmill Street they do lovely cocktails, and I tried the <a href="https://www.instagram.com/wacky.wombat/?hl=en">Wacky Wombat</a> on Manette Street recently, great cocktails and they play really good music &#8211; if you&#8217;re making a night of it, <a href="http://www.threesheets-bar.com">Three Sheets</a> is just opposite which is another good shout for post dinner, late night drinks. And, of course, there&#8217;s the <a href="https://www.broadwicksoho.com/flute">Flute</a> on top of the Broadwick, amazing vibe guaranteed and the wraparound terrace offers unrivalled views over Soho.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-about-cafes">What about cafés?</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="725" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/332215808_159915373573570_173569989895384449_n.png" alt="" class="wp-image-1294" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/332215808_159915373573570_173569989895384449_n.png 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/332215808_159915373573570_173569989895384449_n-300x218.png 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/332215808_159915373573570_173569989895384449_n-768x557.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Breakfast at Dishoom</figcaption></figure>



<p>Back in the day for a hangover cure it was always <a href="https://www.instagram.com/barbruno101/">Bar Brunos</a>, it&#8217;s a classic greasy spoon – you know, English breakfast with all the works – been in Soho for decades. Nowadays I like <a href="https://www.dishoom.com/carnaby/">Dishoom</a>, not a traditional café but they do a cracking breakfast, if traditional is what you are after then try <a href="https://balans.co.uk/locations/soho-no-60/">Balans</a> on Old Compton Street and <a href="https://www.thesohosocial.co.uk">The Soho Social</a>. For coffees it&#8217;s got to be <a href="https://flatwhitesoho.co.uk">Flat White</a>&nbsp;on Berwick Street.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-best-new-openings">Best new openings?</h2>



<p>Obviously Broadwick Soho! <a href="https://www.devonshiresoho.co.uk">The Devonshire</a> is a new-ish old-fashioned pub, everyone raves about the Guinness there so you have to try it when you go. Next on my hit list to try is <a href="https://www.singapulah.co.uk">Singapulah</a>, a cool Singapore restaurant on Shaftesbury Avenue – there&#8217;s always such a queue outside, I&#8217;m intrigued. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-favourite-theatre">Favourite theatre?</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="563" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/432998996_299084713208509_1925963021326826080_n.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-1295" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/432998996_299084713208509_1925963021326826080_n.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/432998996_299084713208509_1925963021326826080_n-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/432998996_299084713208509_1925963021326826080_n-768x432.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Underbelly Boulevard Theatre is Jamie&#8217;s hot pick for comedy</figcaption></figure>



<p>There&#8217;s <a href="https://sohotheatre.com">Soho&nbsp;Theatre</a>, still a great pick for comedy. I went to the new <a href="https://underbellyboulevard.com">Underbelly Boulevard Theatre</a> recently – that&#8217;s a great place – they show a mixture of hot cabaret acts, variety shows, music and comedy. I saw John Bishop there who was amazingly funny and even funnier Kevin Bridges, the tickets were really reasonable too. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-soho-nbsp-institutions-you-love-nbsp">Soho&nbsp;institutions you love?&nbsp;</h2>



<p>For me, Soho has always been about interesting people and acceptance of all walks of life. It&#8217;s creative, individual, a big cool melting pot and though it is slowly becoming more gentrified it&#8217;s places like <a href="https://theboxsoho.com">The Box</a> nightclub, The Midnight Lounge on Brewer Street and the <a href="https://www.sunsetstrip.co.uk/the-bar.html">Sunset Strip</a> (not that I&#8217;ve ever been) that act as a reminder of what Soho used to be all about, that proper Soho character. Oh and Randall &amp; Aubin, of course.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-about-shopping">What about shopping?</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/266255129_439922167662037_5995313080036674973_n.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-1297" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/266255129_439922167662037_5995313080036674973_n.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/266255129_439922167662037_5995313080036674973_n-300x300.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/266255129_439922167662037_5995313080036674973_n-150x150.jpg 150w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/266255129_439922167662037_5995313080036674973_n-768x768.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/266255129_439922167662037_5995313080036674973_n-500x500.jpg 500w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A selection of goodies from Camisa deli</figcaption></figure>



<p>For clothes I like Champion for their sweatshirts, and I used to get my suits made by <a href="https://www.markpowellbespoke.co.uk">Mark Powell</a>, he&#8217;s another big Soho character. I am not a big shopper so the rest is food and drinks related. <a href="https://algeriancoffeestores.com">Algerian Coffee Stores</a> for coffee, the shop is like a hundred years old and another Soho stalwart. We use this authentic Italian Deli on Old Compton Street for the restaurant called <a href="https://www.camisa.co.uk">Camisa</a>, but they do great sandwiches there too which I like stuffed with bresaola, rocket and cheese. And across the street is <a href="https://www.gerrys.uk.com">Gerry&#8217;s Wine and Spirits</a> which we use for booze, it&#8217;s another business that&#8217;s just part of the fabric of Soho which is why I like it.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-haircut-nbsp">Haircut?&nbsp;</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="780" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/Image-1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-1301" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/Image-1.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/Image-1-300x234.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/Image-1-768x599.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Cuts giving off old school barber vibes</figcaption></figure>



<p>I still go to <a href="https://www.wearecuts.com">Cuts</a>, it&#8217;s a proper old school barbers that&#8217;s been in Soho for over 30 years. They used to cut everyone&#8217;s hair back in the day (Goldie, Boy George, Bowie) they have a book with all their famous customers in. It&#8217;s very relaxed in there, your barber may wander off and take a phone call half way through doing your hair but it&#8217;s all good. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-where-do-you-take-your-mum">Where do you take your mum?</h2>



<p>Errr, Randall &amp; Aubin and Broadwick Soho! Seriously, she doesn’t want to go anywhere else. She&#8217;s our biggest fan and always orders off menu. Her favourite dish at Randall &amp; Aubin is the seafood risotto so we always run that as a special when I know she&#8217;s coming in and it always sells out.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-where-do-you-take-your-kids">Where do you take your kids?</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/The-Duck-and-Rice-restaurant-.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-2821" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/The-Duck-and-Rice-restaurant-.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/The-Duck-and-Rice-restaurant--300x300.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/The-Duck-and-Rice-restaurant--150x150.jpg 150w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/The-Duck-and-Rice-restaurant--768x768.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/london/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2024/04/The-Duck-and-Rice-restaurant--500x500.jpg 500w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Chinese food and pints &#8211; Duck and Rice has something for everyone</figcaption></figure>



<p>They really like Chinese food so I take them to <a href="https://theduckandrice.com">Duck and Rice</a>. This is Soho Chinese, not Chinatown Chinese, so it&#8217;s really quirky it&#8217;s in this former pub and they do really good beer there as well as top class food.   </p>


The insider’s guide to Soho: restauranteur Jamie Poulton

You may also like