Where exactly is Clerkenwell? Borough-wise, the boundary between the City and Islington runs right down the middle of Goswell Road. It’s a happy medium between Soho and the east, blending the old and the new. The butchers of Smithfield and the jewellers of Hatton Garden work alongside architects, publishers and a new wave of post-Shoreditch tech companies.
It’s a design hub, too – creatives are drawn to the shadow of the mighty Barbican and the thrills of Clerkenwell Design Week, which fills the cobbled streets with installations and pop-ups every May.
Links to the West End and City are excellent, and when the Elizabeth line opens, Farringdon will be one of the best-connected stations in the country.
Live Nation, the US firm behind Ticketmaster, is based in the famous Farmiloe Building (as mentioned above). LinkedIn lives at 119 Farringdon Road in a redeveloped building that was once home to The Guardian.
We’ve wandered through Leather Lane market enough times to know you’ve got to be strategic – it’s easy to do six laps without making a decision. We like the King of Falafel for drama – no one commands 10 wraps in a row like this guy. And the Department of Coffee and Social Affairs is the spot for breakout meetings and knockout flat whites. You’re spoiled for market dining round here: iconic Exmouth Market has epic lunchtime risottos, curries and pastas.
Lots of people know you can get a transcendent pork chop and glass of wine at Quality Chop House, but not everyone knows about the treasure they sell in the shop next door (fancy parmesan, pork pies and coffee beans). Upgrade your lunchtime Pret with one of the shop’s roast meat sandwiches. If you’ve got time for a long lunch and a carafe of wine, try another local icon: St John Smithfield, Fergus Henderson's original home of ‘nose to tail eating’. And if you need to duck out of bad weather, Zetter Townhouse is a Georgian townhouse hotel with a grand old cocktail lounge that does the best kind of meeting food.
We’ve been fans of Frame since their first fitness studio opened in Shoreditch in 2009, with classes like 80s aerobics, barre and dance cardio designed to make exercise fun again. Frame Farringdon is smaller than the original, but well located less than a minute’s walk from the station, with early morning and lunchtime class options. There’s also a Gymbox and a PureGym, and there’s a Virgin Active with a pool at Barbican.
Quality Chop House – dine in beautiful retro style
Just outside is the renowned Exmouth market
Eat and drink alongside local designers and architects
AVERAGE
£491
Private office
£475
Fixed desks
£317
Hot desks
Want to see what the wider neighbourhood has to offer? Why not read our guides for the nearby areas.
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