25 Best Nightlife in London, England

One of the United Kingdom's most ubiquitous pizza chains also runs an acclaimed jazz venue in Soho. Established in 1976, the dimly lit basement restaurant hosts both established and emerging British and international jazz acts every night, with food and pizzas available about 90 minutes before stage time. The thin-crust pizzas are always popular, but it's the intimate live jazz sets that draw in London's hip jazz aficionados.

Named after a collier ship, this is one of London's oldest riverside pubs, dating to around 1520. Although a regular for Dickens, Pepys, Samuel Johnson, and the American artist James Whistler, once upon a time it was called The Devil's Tavern because of the lowlifes—sailors, smugglers, footpads, and cutthroats—who congregated here. With a 400-year-old flagstone floor and ornamented with pewter ware and nautical objects, this much-loved boozer has a terrace with views of the Thames, from where boat trips often point it out.

Named after renowned London-born artist and caricaturist Gerald Scarfe (whose work adorns the walls), the Rosewood’s seductively glamorous bar is one part Edwardian gentleman's club to two parts Downton Abbey drawing room. Recline on sofas by a roaring log fire or sink into velvet armchairs and explore the bar's impressive collection of fine wines, cocktails, and spirits (there are more than 180 single malt whiskies alone to choose from). Bar snacks are restaurant-standard dishes, and there's complimentary live music six nights a week.

One seat never looks like the next at this downright extraordinary collection of esoteric living-room bars off Savile Row. The exclusive Parlour, a patisserie during the day, exudes plenty of rarefied charm; the intimate East Bar at the back is reminiscent of a sci-fi film set; the Gallery is a golden-yellow wonderland; and in the Glade it's permanently sunset in an enchanted forest. The space-age dinosaur egg–pod-shaped restrooms are definitely London's quirkiest.

A step from Blackfriars Tube station, this spectacular pub has an Arts and Crafts interior that is entertainingly, satirically ecclesiastical, with inlaid mother-of-pearl, wood carvings, stained glass, and marble pillars all over the place. Under finely lettered temperance tracts on view just below the reliefs of monks, fairies, and friars, there is a nice group of ales on tap from independent brewers. The 20th-century poet Sir John Betjeman once led a successful campaign to save the pub from demolition.

Read the list of famous ex-regulars, from Charles II and Nell Gwyn to Ernest Hemingway and Dylan Thomas, as you wait for a beer at this smart, comely, and popular 16th-century Thames riverside pub on the Upper Mall towpath in Hammersmith. If—as is often the case—The Dove is too full, stroll upstream along the bank to The Old Ship or The Blue Anchor.

Loved by Londoners and owned by the well-respected St. Peter's Brewery in Suffolk, The Holy Tavern is one-of-a-kind: small, historic, atmospheric, and endearingly eccentric. Antique Delft–style tiles meld with wood and concrete in a converted watchmaker and jeweler's shop dating back to the 18th century. The beer, both bottled and on tap, is some of the best available anywhere in London. It's often busy, especially after work, but is closed on weekends.

This refreshingly ungentrified 17th-century pub was once known as "The Bucket of Blood" because the upstairs room and front yard were used as a ring for winner-takes-all, bare-knuckle fights—a popular form of live entertainment back in the day. Now it's a much friendlier place, serving British food and real ale. It's on the edge of Covent Garden, up a hidden alley off Garrick Street.

The beauty of this sublime old chapel and its impressive multicultural not-for-profit programming make this spot one of London's best musical venues, especially for acoustic shows. A variety of star names have played here in recent years (including Elton John, Björk, and Coldplay's Chris Martin) along with alternative country, world music, and jazz performers. There are also poetry and literary events, film screenings, and stand-up comedy gigs. Tickets are only available online.

Located between the British Museum and the West End, this pretty Victorian-era pub with its stained-glass windows and varnished wooden floors and paneling is the perfect place for a pit stop. Legend says it was the final watering hole for condemned criminals en route to Tyburn gallows at Marble Arch. There's a good selection of pub fare and beers on tap.

A huge selection of bottled beers and quirky twists on classic cocktails are the big attractions at this bar and diner next to Notting Hill's famed Electric Cinema on Portobello Road. Run by the people behind the members-only Soho House, the place exudes the same effortless mixture of posh and cool, but it is open to anyone and everyone. Sit in the window and watch the world go by or opt for one of the luxury takes on classic diner fare at a booth in the moody, vaulted interior.

Across the street from the British Museum in Bloomsbury, this friendly and classy Victorian pub makes an ideal resting place after the rigors of the culture trail. Karl Marx unwound here after a hard day in the British Museum Library. If he visited today, he could spend his kapital on its excellent selection of craft beers and spirits.

This fine pub, popular with academics from the nearby British Museum and King's College London, is an exquisite museum piece of a Victorian interior, with glazed tiles and intricately engraved glass screens that divide the bar area into cozy little annexes. There's an excellent selection of real ales on tap, too.

This boho-chic Irish pub is all about the Guinness and the superb, if pricey, seafood. Whether you're in the unpretentious downstairs saloon bar or the more formal dining rooms upstairs, the atmosphere is always warm, welcoming, and buzzing. It's also been a favorite haunt of fashion glitterati such as Stella McCartney, Victoria Beckham, and Alexa Chung.

With 37 beers on tap and 350 more in bottles (one brewed exclusively for The Craft Beer Co.), the main problem here is knowing where to start. Luckily, friendly and knowledgeable staff are happy to advise or give tasters—or why not sign up for a guided tasting session? A huge chandelier and a mirrored ceiling lend antique charm to the interior, and a smattering of tourists and beer pilgrims break up the crowds of Leather Lane workers and locals. As is the case with many pubs in this neighborhood, they are closed on weekends.

A beautiful example of a High Victorian pub, The Dog and Duck has a majestic interior overflowing with thousands of ornate glazed tiles, etched mirrors, chandeliers, and polished wood, although it's often so packed it can be hard to get a proper look. There's a fine selection of real ales at the bar and a restaurant serving superb pale ale–battered fish-and-chips with mushy peas. Originally built in 1734 and patronized by painters and poets like John Constable and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, the cozy upstairs dining room is named for writer and Dog and Duck regular George Orwell.

This is the sort of friendly flower-decked locale you might find on some out-of-the-way backstreet, except that it's right in the middle of town, between Trafalgar Square and Covent Garden. As a result, The Harp can get mighty crowded, but the squeeze is worth it for the excellent beer and cider (there are usually 10 carefully chosen ales, often including a London microbrew, plus 10 ciders and perries) and a no-frills menu of high-quality British sausages, cooked behind the bar.

Charles Dickens and his contemporaries drank here, but today's enthusiastic clientele make sure this intimate and eternally popular pub avoids the pitfalls of feeling too old-timey. One interesting feature: for private chats at the bar, you can close a delicate etched-glass "snob screen" to the bar staff, opening it only when you fancy another pint.

Queen Charlotte, the wife of "mad" King George III, is said to have stored food for him here in the basement while he was being treated nearby. The interior of this tiny pub preserves its antique feel, with dark wood and old posters, and in the evenings fills up quickly with office workers, medics, and students from the nearby hospitals. It's located on the corner of pleasant Queen Square; if the weather's good, grab one of the outside tables.

Perched on top of Richmond Hill, The Roebuck has perhaps the best view of any pub in London. The most sought-after seats are the benches found directly across the road, which look out over the Thames as it winds its way into the countryside below. Friendly and surprisingly unpretentious, given its lofty surrounds, it is well worth the long climb up the hill from the center of Richmond.

Although the number of bells in its name has varied between 8 and 12, depending on how many bells were used by neighboring Christ Church Spitalfields, this pub retains its original mid-Victorian interior and tiles, including a frieze depicting the area's French Huguenot silk-weaving tradition on the north wall and particularly fine floral tiling on two others. Urban legend says that Jack the Ripper's third victim, Annie Chapman, had a drink here before meeting her gory end. The pub is also depicted in Alan Moore's acclaimed graphic novel From Hell.

Hidden off the side of 8 Hatton Gardens (and notoriously hard to find), this cozy pub's roots go back to 1546, though it was rebuilt around 1782. Originally built for the staff of the Bishop of Ely, whose London residence was next door, it remained officially part of Cambridgeshire until the 20th century. Elizabeth I was once spotted dancing round a cherry tree here with a dashing young beau. Now it's a friendly little labyrinthine place, with a fireplace, well-kept ales, wooden beams, and traditional bar snacks.

This busy corner pub has been rebuilt at least three times since 1666. One of its incarnations was as the drawing office for Sir Christopher Wren, who used it while building nearby St. Paul's Cathedral. The ground floor is a laid-back pub, while the upstairs houses an atmospheric restaurant, complete with wooden beams and trestle tables, offering a basic English pub menu, such as fish-and-chips and Gloucester old-spot sausages.