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Alfresco in Vauxhall. Where to go?
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Alfresco in Vauxhall. Where to go?
With lockdown finally eased, we’re all looking forward to more outdoor meetups in Vauxhall with friends and family. If you’re making the most of a summer heatwave or you’re just feeling a bit safety-first, outdoor dining is the order of the day. We’ve rounded up some of Vauxhall’s top spots for sipping and nibbling in the London sun.
Located a short distance from Vauxhall station, the Riverside serves up panoramic views of the River Thames, the London Eye and Battersea Power Station. It’s been a tough few months for Dale and his team but on July 20th they reopened the doors to one of Young’s pubs best riverside spots.
They are serving top-notch eating and drinking with a reduced contact experience now to keep you safe, plus the option to pre-book your table. Visit the website and download the Young’s on Tap app to nab your spot in the sun.
Enjoy a delicious cocktail at this enviable riverside location, featuring an indoor restaurant and rum shack bar with additional seating on the sunny river-facing outside terrace. Cottons are London’s longest-running Caribbean restaurants and rum shacks, and their Vauxhall location is ideal for those wanting a taste of the Caribbean on banks of The River Thames. They are ready for action post-lockdown with full protection measures in place for staff and customers. We highly recommend taking advantage of their ‘Jerk Madness’ nights on Monday’s & Tuesdays, with 50% off the Jerk Grill, or for the more daring amongst you, their tropical bottomless brunches that are running every weekend!
If a sun-kissed terrace isn’t enough for you, how about a sun-drenched converted 1930s Dutch barge to sit upon and enjoy a prime London sunset? Tamesis Dock is permanently moored between Lambeth and Vauxhall Bridge and has been converted to a walk-on neighbourhood bar, live music and events space.
Tamesis nights now have the added joy of ordering via an App which you can download, book a table and enjoy a safe spot for a beer, an Aperol Spritz or a choice from their excellent pub grub menu.
Delicious oyster bar and grill Darby’s has a glass front that opens entirely, looking out onto a large, sun-trapping courtyard with a trickling pool at its centre. If the entrance sounds impressive, just wait until you see the menu. While readjusting to the ‘new normal’, the restaurant is open for lunch service on Wednesdays through to Sundays, and dinner services on Wednesdays through Saturdays. Chef Robin Gill and the team have transformed their hatch into a deli, butchers and bakery featuring the best fresh produce from their favourite purveyors for you to pick up whilst dining, too!
Italo Café is back in business and aren’t we glad to see their doors open! As a community-based shop and café in the heart of Bonnington Square, it is one of the longest-running cafés in Vauxhall. Very much aiming to reflect the values of the community; despite its growing reputation for the food which comes out of the kitchen, and the quality of its stock, it has remained what it always intended to be – a corner shop for all the folk in the neighbourhood. You may have to strike lucky to secure a sunspot here, so we always recommend a morning visit!
The RVT has reopened with outdoor seating! James and the team have worked very hard to make sure they can reopen his iconic LGBTQ+ venue within all government restrictions and boy haven’t they done a brilliant job! Table service and app ordering is the key, but you can now enjoy one of Vauxhall’s most famous late-night haunts in the sunshine. Fancy heading to the Pleasure Gardens? They are now offering takeaway for cold beers too!
