Manchester
This eclectic little bar – with its oddball furnishings, wacky tunes and anti-establishment crew of customers – is a Northern Quarter stalwart and the…
Must-see nightlife in The United Kingdom
Glasgow
Atmosphere in spades is the call sign of this easygoing West End bar. An ornate wooden ceiling overlooks two levels of well-mixed cocktails, seriously…
Plymouth
Plymouth's arty crowd loves this characterful combo of hip boozer, social-enterprise visionary and cultural hub. Amid its Edwardian-meets-modern decor you…
Oxford
Oxford’s one and only gay club has an all-inclusive vibe. In action for just a few nights each week – Tuesday’s especially for students – it stays open…
Cornwall
This small-scale distillery makes small batches of its two spirits, Tarquin's Gin and aniseed-flavoured Cornish Pastis in a flame-fired, copper pot still…
Kent
A ramshackle pub about as far onto the beach as it’s possible to get (it’s been washed away several times by high tides) with cosy winter window seats and…
South Cornwall
Fowey has lots of pubs, but you might as well go for the one with the best harbour view, named after notorious 'free trader' (otherwise known as smuggler)…
Belfast
Piped-in birdsong and flowery murals set the scene as an industrial lift takes you up to the Perch, a rooftop bar in the rafters of a Victorian building…
The West End
This abandoned Victorian public toilet got a flush of new life when this coffee shop opened here in 2013. The restroom has been sensitively restored (and…
Glasgow
Relaxed and friendly bar that starts out publike and gets louder with gay anthem DJs as the night progresses. Entry is free and it serves food until 9pm,…
London
The Hack & Hop is the best place for craft brews this side of the City, usually pouring pints for suited Fleet St workers after 5pm. Friendly staff can…
Southeast Wales
Every spare wall of this large hip-looking cafe/bar is covered in vintage mirrors, murals and kooky framed pictures (we particularly like the young Tom…
Cardiff
Cardiff's main brewery's unlikely contribution to the craft-beer revolution, this charming old-style corner pub serves 18 draught taps and a rotating…
Glasgow
With an easily missed entrance between a Spanish and an Italian restaurant, this basement bar is a friendly LGBT pub with a pool table and regular gigs at…
Clerkenwell, Shoreditch & Spitalfields
Simple yet elegant oak decor, an astonishingly comprehensive wine list and amiable service make this a popular choice with suited City workers and local…
Clerkenwell, Shoreditch & Spitalfields
It doesn't look like much from the outside, but shuffle into this eastern Mediterranean–style cafe-bar and you'll find an Aladdin's cave. Upstairs is…
The Midlands & the Marches
The more real ales and local ciders you knock back in this traditional pub, the more you may believe the tales of resident ghosts from the site's history…
Edinburgh
Tucked in a basement, the Bailie is a Stockbridge stalwart – a dimly lit, warm and welcoming nook with a large circular island bar, a roaring fire in…
Cambridge
A dozen pumps dispensing real ale, 50 gins, a roomy beer garden and a friendly, unreconstructed vibe make this red-brick pub popular with the locals. That…
Clerkenwell, Shoreditch & Spitalfields
Part of the Old Truman Brewery complex, this venue has a courtyard, two big rooms and an outdoor terrace that gets packed with a cool crowd on sunny…
County Antrim
Carrickfergus' most traditional bar – formerly the Joymount Arms, dating from 1846 – has a cosy interior complete with snugs, fireplaces, a beer garden…
Clerkenwell, Shoreditch & Spitalfields
Part of the great Antipodean takeover of London cafes, this distant outpost of a New Zealand brand serves perfectly crafted coffee from its neat-as-a-pin…
Clerkenwell, Shoreditch & Spitalfields
Just far enough from Hoxton Sq to avoid being overrun by weekend blow-ins, the Red Lion has a local-pub vibe – but given this is Hoxton, the locals are…
Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Set up by a trio of brothers as 'an alternative to Newcastle's boozy scene', this hip Hungarian-style teahouse with postindustrial decor has over 100…
Belfast
Drop in for a Dropper Hopper coffee made with Central and South American beans roasted at their premises near Crossgar in County Down. On weekends, Drop…
Scotland
Grab a pint of real ale and settle in among the leather booths and vintage curios at this Victorian local, which offers speciality beers, whisky and rum…
Clerkenwell, Shoreditch & Spitalfields
Frequently crammed with a hip teenage-and-up crowd, this scuffed corner pub’s edgy credentials are courtesy of Vice magazine, the bad-boy rag that owns…
Kirkwall
Tucked away in the Orkney Hotel, this refurbished bar is best visited for its fabulous selection of single malt whisky, with over 800 different bottlings…
Southern Highlands & Islands
This friendly hotel has one of Scotland's best whisky bars, the perfect place to learn more about the Campbeltown distilling tradition and to taste the…
Edinburgh
This spectacular bar, with its huge, chunky beer-hall tables, leather-sofa booths and polished black-and-white tile floor, makes a grand setting for the…
Southern Scotland
In Robert Burns’ poem 'Tam o’ Shanter', Tam spends a boozy evening in this pub, which now bears his name. Opened in the mid-18th century, it's an…
Leith
A cosy warren of timber-lined nooks and crannies housed in a single-storey red-brick building (once a waiting room for ferries across the Firth of Forth),…
Derry (Londonderry)
From the posters of Che to the Free Palestine flag to the fairtrade coffee and gluten-free beer, this relaxed cafe-bar exudes a liberal, left-wing vibe…
Clerkenwell, Shoreditch & Spitalfields
Housed in a striking little round building, this hip cafe serves top coffee, cooked breakfasts (until a decadent 5pm and all day on weekends) and then…
Canterbury
Canterbury’s best city-centre nightspot has a supercool, 21st-century interior with urban and retro elements. The weekly program is a mixed bag of rock…
Glasgow
Unlike many Irish pubs, there's actually something rather authentically Irish about this place, which has an aged wooden floor, unusual booth seating, a…
South Cornwall
The beer-buffs' choice in Falmouth: a cosy spit-and-sawdust pub, with scuffed wood floors and a copious choice of real ales chalked up above the bar,…
Northumberland Coast
Over 30 different varieties of loose-leaf tea are on offer at this 'tea brewery', whose name means 'lovely' in the local Northumbrian dialect. Teas are…
Canterbury
Built in 1370 on Roman foundations, Canterbury’s oldest boozer has a snug, beam-rich, slightly upmarket pub downstairs and a much-lauded dining room…
Chester
Chester's oldest timber-framed building is this 1664 pub, which is more modern inside than its exterior suggests – there was no carpeting, darts boards or…
