The back story
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The back story
Soho and Covent Garden: the back story
From a royal hunting ground and a fruit and flower market to London’s Theatreland: the story of Soho and Covent Garden.
Neighbourhood guide · the West End
Soho & Covent Garden: Our Favourites
The heart of the West End: theatres and the opera house, jazz clubs, historic pubs, Bombay cafés and tapas counters, and the shops of Seven Dials and Covent Garden.
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What to see and do
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Food hall in a banana warehouse
Seven Dials Market
A food hall over two floors in a Victorian warehouse once used to ripen bananas, with independent traders and bars.
Earlham Street, WC2H 9LXExplore View on map
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A colourful hidden courtyard
Neal’s Yard
A tiny courtyard of brightly painted shopfronts between Monmouth Street and Shorts Gardens, with cafés and the original Neal’s Yard Remedies.
Neal’s Yard, WC2H 9DPExplore View on map
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The heart of Covent Garden
Covent Garden Piazza and Market
The square and the 19th-century market building at the heart of Covent Garden, with shops, cafés, market stalls and street performers.
Covent Garden PiazzaExplore View on map
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Buses, trams and the Tube
London Transport Museum
A museum of London’s buses, trams, trains and Tube in the old flower market on Covent Garden Piazza, with a shop famous for its posters.
Covent Garden Piazza, WC2E 7BBExplore View on map
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Gerrard Street and its gates
Chinatown
London’s Chinatown, around Gerrard Street and Lisle Street, full of restaurants, bakeries and supermarkets under red lanterns.
Gerrard StreetExplore View on map
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Royal Ballet and Opera
Royal Opera House
The home of the Royal Ballet and Royal Opera, on Covent Garden’s Bow Street, with the glass Paul Hamlyn Hall and a terrace over the piazza.
Bow Street, WC2E 9DDExplore View on map
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Photography in Soho
The Photographers’ Gallery
A gallery devoted to photography, just off Oxford Street, with changing exhibitions, a bookshop and a café.
16-18 Ramillies Street, W1F 7LWExplore View on map
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A palace for the arts
Somerset House
A great 18th-century building between the Strand and the Thames, now an arts centre with exhibitions, a fountain courtyard and a river terrace.
Strand, WC2R 1LAExplore View on map
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Impressionist masterpieces
The Courtauld Gallery
A jewel of a gallery in Somerset House, with famous Impressionist and Post-Impressionist paintings.
Strand, WC2R 1LAExplore View on map
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A historic West End theatre
Theatre Royal Drury Lane
One of London’s oldest theatre sites, home to big musicals in a grand restored auditorium.
Catherine Street, WC2B 5JFExplore View on map
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Home of English National Opera
London Coliseum
London’s largest theatre, on St Martin’s Lane, home of English National Opera and English National Ballet seasons.
32-35 St Martin’s Lane, WC2N 4ESExplore View on map
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Booksellers’ Row
Cecil Court
A Victorian pedestrian lane between Charing Cross Road and St Martin’s Lane, lined with antiquarian bookshops and print dealers.
Cecil Court, WC2NExplore View on map
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On Charing Cross Road
Phoenix Theatre
A West End theatre on Charing Cross Road, opened in 1930, staging major musicals and plays.
Charing Cross Road, WC2H 0JPExplore View on map
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On Shaftesbury Avenue
Sondheim Theatre
A Delfont Mackintosh theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue, renamed in 2019 in honour of Stephen Sondheim.
51 Shaftesbury Avenue, W1D 6BAExplore View on map
Where to eat
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Bombay comfort food
Dishoom Covent Garden
A homage to the old Irani cafés of Bombay, serving all day from breakfast to late, a few steps from Seven Dials.
12 Upper St Martin’s Lane, WC2H 9FBExplore View on map
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Theatreland seafood
J Sheekey
A classic seafood restaurant in a lane between the theatres, with panelled rooms and a famous fish pie.
28-32 St Martin’s Court, WC2N 4ALExplore View on map
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Established in 1798
Rules
Covent Garden’s grand old dining room, known for game, pies and puddings beneath walls of paintings and cartoons.
35 Maiden Lane, WC2E 7LBExplore View on map
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Theatreland since 1917
The Ivy
The original Ivy on West Street, a Theatreland favourite since 1917, with stained glass and a long central bar.
1-5 West Street, WC2H 9NQExplore View on map
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Clay pots and charcoal
Kiln
A narrow Thai grill on Brewer Street, cooking over charcoal and in clay pots in front of the counter.
58 Brewer Street, W1F 9TLExplore View on map
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Tapas at the counter
Barrafina Dean Street
A Spanish tapas bar with counter seating on Dean Street, where the cooks work right in front of you.
26-27 Dean StreetExplore View on map
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Sri Lankan hoppers
Hoppers Soho
A small, lively Sri Lankan restaurant on Frith Street, named after the bowl-shaped rice pancakes it serves.
49 Frith Street, W1D 4SGExplore View on map
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Press for Champagne
Bob Bob Ricard Soho
A glamorous, gold-and-blue dining room off Brewer Street, with private booths and a “press for Champagne” button at every table.
1 Upper James Street, W1F 9DFExplore View on map
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Fresh pasta in Soho
Lina Stores Greek Street
A small pasta restaurant from the historic Italian delicatessen, with handmade pasta and a pistachio-green look.
51 Greek Street, W1D 4EHExplore View on map
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A Seven Dials institution
Monmouth Coffee Company
A small, wood-lined coffee shop on Monmouth Street, where the roaster first started out in the 1970s.
27 Monmouth Street, WC2H 9EUExplore View on map
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Soho since 1887
Algerian Coffee Stores
A tiny coffee and tea merchant on Old Compton Street, trading since 1887, with a takeaway espresso counter.
52 Old Compton Street, W1D 4PBExplore View on map
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Est. 1871
Maison Bertaux
A tiny, much-loved French pâtisserie on Greek Street, founded in 1871, with cream cakes, croissants and an upstairs room.
28 Greek Street, W1D 5DQExplore View on map
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Soho since 1949
Bar Italia
A family-run Italian coffee bar on Frith Street, open since 1949 and serving espresso from early morning until the small hours.
22 Frith Street, W1D 4RFExplore View on map
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Global kitchens at Centre Point
Arcade Food Hall
A food hall of chef-led kitchens and bars at Centre Point, by Tottenham Court Road station.
Centre Point, WC1AExplore View on map
Bars and nightlife
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Jazz since 1959
Ronnie Scott’s
London’s most famous jazz club, on Frith Street, with nightly shows and dinner served at tables by the stage.
47 Frith Street, W1D 4HTExplore View on map
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Soho’s French pub
The French House
A small, much-loved pub on Dean Street, with French wine, beer served by the half-pint and no music, television or phones.
49 Dean Street, W1D 5BGExplore View on map
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Espresso by day, Negronis by night
Bar Termini
A tiny Italian bar on Old Compton Street, serving coffee by day and Negronis by night.
7 Old Compton Street, W1D 5JEExplore View on map
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1940s underground
Cahoots Underground
A cocktail bar in Kingly Court styled as a 1940s Underground station, with vintage décor and live music.
13 Kingly Court, W1B 5PWExplore View on map
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Bangkok Chinatown style
Speedboat Bar
A loud, colourful Thai bar and kitchen on Rupert Street, inspired by the bars of Bangkok’s Chinatown, with a pool table upstairs.
30 Rupert Street, W1D 6DLExplore View on map
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Cocktail history
The American Bar at The Savoy
The Savoy’s celebrated Art Deco cocktail bar, where cocktails have been mixed since the 1890s, with a pianist in the evenings.
The Savoy, Strand, WC2R 0EZExplore View on map
Shopping
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Tudor-revival landmark
Liberty London
A much-loved department store in a Tudor-revival building made from the timbers of two old warships, famous for its prints and fabrics.
Regent Street, W1B 5AHExplore View on map
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Seven streets, one sundial
Seven Dials
Seven streets meeting at a sundial pillar, lined with independent shops, fashion and beauty brands, cafés and restaurants.
Seven Dials, WC2H 9HDExplore View on map
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A great London bookshop
Foyles Charing Cross Road
A huge, bright bookshop on Charing Cross Road over several floors, with a café at the top.
107 Charing Cross Road, WC2H 0DTExplore View on map
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Maps and travel since 1853
Stanfords
The famous map and travel bookshop, founded in 1853, now on Mercer Walk in Covent Garden.
7 Mercer Walk, WC2H 9FAExplore View on map
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Swinging Sixties to today
Carnaby Street and Kingly Court
The pedestrian streets around Carnaby Street, famous since the 1960s, with fashion brands, independent shops and Kingly Court’s three floors of restaurants.
Carnaby Street, W1FExplore View on map
Where to stay
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Firmdale glamour in Soho
Ham Yard Hotel
A colourful Firmdale hotel around a tree-lined courtyard just off Piccadilly Circus, with its own theatre, bar and bowling alley.
1 Ham Yard, W1D 7DTExplore View on map
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A quiet mews in Soho
The Soho Hotel
A stylish Firmdale hotel in a quiet mews off Dean Street, with a brasserie, bar and screening rooms.
4 Richmond Mews, W1D 3DHExplore View on map
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Seven Dials townhouse
Covent Garden Hotel
A townhouse hotel on Monmouth Street, steps from Seven Dials and the theatres, with a wood-panelled drawing room.
10 Monmouth Street, WC2H 9HBExplore View on map
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On the Strand since 1889
The Savoy
A legendary grand hotel between the Strand and the Thames, opened in 1889, home to the American Bar and the Savoy Grill.
Strand, WC2R 0EZExplore View on map
Share your Soho & Covent Garden tips
Been there? Share your experience and tips with other visitors.
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