Eye Of The Beholder

Bellanger, (9 Islington Green, Islington; +44-20-7226-2555), from London culinary giants Chris Corbin and Jeremy King, is full of old-fashioned charm. The interior looks as if it was plucked out of turn-of-the-century Paris, with wood paneling, brass design details and mirrors placed everywhere. Light fixtures evoke a stunning art nouveau aesthetic.

The menu focuses on eastern French flavors with house specialties like sweet and savory tartes flambées—delicious with a glass of Crémant d’Alsace—and hearty Alsatian choucroute.

Drinks are served in green-stemmed glasses, which adds to Bellanger’s vintage charm, and are part of the attention to minute detail that has made Corbin and King establishments throughout the city so legendary.

Tucked into the attic of St. Thomas' Church, a 300-year-old herb garret houses the oldest surviving operating theater in Europe, which dates back to 1822. The Old Operating Theatre Museum (9a St. Thomas St., Southwark; +44-20-7188-2679), gives visitors a look at the outlandish medical practices of the past, before the advent of modern medicine. It wasn't until 1956 when historian Raymond Russell was researching St. Thomas' Hospital and investigated an opening in the attic, that the space was discovered, restored and reopened to the public as a museum in 1962. Part of the macabre draw? A weekly demonstration, staged on an old wooden table, and using original instruments, recreates a 19th-century operating theater, where students would sit in observation stands and witness surgical procedures being performed without anesthetics or antiseptics. Not for the faint of heart.

It's one of Greg Blee's dreams to refurbish a pub, and in South London’s Camberwell neighborhood, there are opportunities aplenty. The Camberwell Arms (65 Camberwell Church St.; +44-20-7358- 4364) is the latest addition to the area.

It’s a cozy, welcoming neighborhood spot, with chandeliers and sconce lighting adding a warm glow to the modern gastropub interiors. The menu is hearty and adventurous, as in the spit-roast chicken, chopped rabbit, and barbecued partridge dishes, and there is an ever-changing roster of ales on tap for those looking to explore new suds.

Upstairs, the space is more serene, with an after-dinner digestif list, craft beers, cocktails, and a selection of organic and biodynamic wines, perfect for cozying up on the couch in front of the fireplace.

Sometimes it’s the simplest places that are most worth the visit. And so it goes for Silk Road (49 Camberwell Church St., Camberwell; +44-20-7703-4832), a hidden gem specializing in the flavors of northwest China’s Xinjiang province, that has become a go-to for the neighborhood art students and local hipsters. On the menu? An abundance of lamb dishes typical of the Uighur kitchens in Xinjiang, and street food specialties like fried pork dumplings made in-house all the day, and cumin-spiced lamb skewers with a healthy dose of chilis.

Blee recommends the chicken and potatoes simmering in a chili-flavored broth. When you are almost finished with the dish, a waiter dutifully arrives with a heap of thick, house-made noodles to dip into the aromatic broth and to soak up the sauce, creating yet another delicious course.

A parking lot isn’t the most obvious place to gather for an after-work cocktail, unless you happen to find yourself at Frank's Café and Campari Bar (95a Rye Lane; Peckham). Then it makes perfect sense.

One of London’s original pop-up restaurants, the space is a muti-sensory celebration of visual art, architecture, music, food, and drink with unmatched views of the city from its rooftop vantage point. Part of the Bold Tendencies sculpture project, which has taken the multi-story car park built in the 1980s and transformed it into an immersive arts space, see the Norman Foster designed Gherkin, the London Eye, and the Shard among the Central London skyline, while sipping one of Frank's Campari cocktails.

Be sure to plan the outing accordingly though. Because of its open-air location, Frank's is only open during the warmer months of the year.