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Party in style in SE1
By Chris Beanland 19.06.09
Hot: SE1 is building a reputation as a new party postcode
Bermondsey: the place to be
Think of a buzzing area for nightlife and you'd be forgiven for overlooking SE1, nestled unobtrusively on the south side of the river.
While the streets around London Bridge have become familiar to in-the-know clubbers, they've been sparsely populated by individual, occasional club nights, put on in stark, warehouse-style venues. But all that's changing.
The many disused railway arches are increasingly being transformed into swish clubs like Cable, which opened last month, and, thanks to its proximity to Borough Market, Bermondsey Street is becoming the centre of a cool new bar and restaurant scene.
Here's our pick of the great new venues making SE1 the hottest, freshest party postcode...
1. Cable
Cable is the most important club launch in London since Matter and it's got some cracking music lined up.
Legendary indie label Heavenly has already put nights on, Simian Mobile Disco headlines Bugged Out! here tomorrow night, while electroclash supremo Jerry Bouthier hits Cable on 25 June.
A cool crowd of fun-loving enthusiasts makes up the core audience partying under the railway arches.
Bermondsey Street Tunnel, SE1
(020 7403 7730, cable-london.com). Beer, £4, G&T, £4
2. The Arches
The Arches is coming up in the clubbing world, thanks to the fact that it has snared some super-hot nights.
We Fear Silence is on each Friday with drum&bass and dubstep high on the agenda and we saw Hot Chip DJ here earlier this month.
51-53 Southwark Street, SE1 (020 7403 9643, the-arches.com). Beer, £3.60, G&T, £3.60. We Fear Silence, £15, £12 adv (wefearsilence.com)
3. seOne
With a capacity of 3,000, seOne is easily one of the largest clubs in the capital.
It has previously hosted hip indie-dance crossover events like the Insomniacs Ball.
But now it is taking more of a hard dance and rave tip. It holds nights like Moondance, New Beginnings and Ministry Of Dub, and often showcases underground sounds like gabba and happy hardcore.
41-43 St Thomas Street, SE1 (020 7407 1617, seone-london.com). Beer, £3.50, G&T, £4
4. Shunt
One of the most innovative nights out in London, Shunt combines a nightclub with avant-garde theatre and live performance.
The boho set that comes here sees everything from burlesque to a recreation of the Sixties hippies the Merry Pranksters.
Joiner Street, SE1 (entrance in London Bridge station, ground level) (020 7378 7776, shunt.co.uk). Beer, £3, G&T, £5.50
5. B2 Bar at Bermondsey Square Hotel
Those who know what Bermondsey Square was like 10 years ago would never imagine it would get named by Vogue as the place to go in south London in 2009.
The B2 bar has two bars — one for private members, the other for you and me.
As well as guys in suits, there's some rock'n'roll spirit: a nearby recording studio has done a deal so musicians who are recording tracks can stay at the hotel cheaply.
Bermondsey Square, off Tower Bridge Road, SE1 (0870 111 2525, bermondseysquarehotel.co.uk). Beer, £3.50, G&T, £4.80
6. More
More is so new the paint has hardly dried. It's a low-key bar and restaurant, designed for grown-up after-work drinking and eating.
It serves tasty beers from Greenwich's Meantime microbrewery and caters to an affluent but relaxed crowd.
104 Tooley Street, SE1 (moretooleystreet.com, 020 7403 0635). Beer, £3.95, G&T, £2.50
7. Village East
Village East can be credited with kicking off this area's transformation.
It remains highly praised for its food and drink.
Cool and low-lit, but with quirky décor, VE is trendy without trying too hard to impress.
It's open until the wee hours at weekends and is a great spot for starting your night.
171 Bermondsey Street, SE1 (020 7357 6082, villageeast.co.uk).
Beer, £4, G&T, £3.70
Reader views (1)
The entertainment industry's newspaper, The Stage, is based right there in Bermondsey Street, having moved out of Covent Gafrden some years ago. So the spotlight should already be on this area as an extension of the South Bank arts scene: showcasing the potential for many more clubs, music venues and fringe theatre. Adding one or two more floating pubs to compliment those on the opposite side of the river, perhaps?
And the ferries are a good transport substitute when the curtain really does go up!
- Peter Seekings-Foster, Mildenhall, Suffolk.
