Summer is in full swing and miraculously, the hot weather is showing no signs of leaving us any time soon. Did you know, many of London's roof top bars serve up a programme of fun, seasonal events as well as their tipples? Whether you're looking for fancy cocktails with exquisite views, or secret sky-high gems, here's our round-up of the best rooftops to drink on in the capital.
Pergola Paddington is back for a second year, offering revellers one of the largest and prettiest rooftop bar settings in London. Tucked away in Paddington’s financial district, the bar reopens on 26 April with a line-up of popular food stalls including Patty & Bun and DF Mexico, and summery cocktails of the frozen margarita variety.
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The Gardening Society was a new addition to the London rooftop scene last spring. Situated on the rooftop of John Lewis, Oxford Street, last year it was decked out with a bird-feeding wall, plants and a water feature. The restaurant offered a rotating line-up of food stalls, while the on-site watering hole took the form of a pop-up pub, The Gardener’s Arms. Details of this year’s offering are yet to be announced, but if last year’s schedule is anything to go by, we can expect yoga, wellbeing workshops, gardening masterclasses and tea parties.
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A rooftop bar with exquisite views of central London, the bar terrace at OXO Tower is a lovely spot to watch the city sparkle from. Paulius Patumsis is the mixologist at the helm, serving up new and exotic flavours as well as old favourites.
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Known for being less about the view and more about the booze, this popular late-night date spot is open all year round and hosts DJs every weekend.
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Head up several flights of stairs in what is, at first sight, a typical boozer and you’ll find a hidden gem of London’s rooftop scene. Open all year round, in winter the bar is covered and is a peaceful haven to escape up to from busy King’s Cross below. While in summer it’s more buzzing, with music and a rooftop barbecue.
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This picturesque pub is iconic with greenery shrouding its exteriors and creeping across the rooftop garden. Not one for the views – you’ll find yourselves practically hidden here – it’s a tucked-away spot with communal seating where you can enjoy a game of pool or wile away an evening with friends and family.
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Those looking for a laugh with their tipple should head to Abbey Tavern, a rooftop bar serving up comedy and open mic nights as well as food and drink. Lit with fairy lights, it’s a chilled-out pub, popular with locals.
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It’s all about the music at this famous spot perched on Camden Lock. Stars including Amy Winehouse have played here in the past and there’s live music or DJs playing most nights of the week. Less talked about but worth the trip alone in the summer is its roof terrace – a spacious place to enjoy a drink overlooking the iconic Camden market. You’ll feel in the heart of it here.
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Popular with the party crowd, this fun-loving rooftop opened as a bar last year to largely positive reviews. Offering communal tables and an extensive drinks list – including ‘big jug’ cocktails, potent smaller concoctions, and the usual array of hipster beers and wines – it’s the ideal spot for after-work drinks or weekend celebrations of the boozy variety.
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If you’ve walked past PoW in the evening, chances are you will have seen the steady queues outside. That’s because this multi-floored bar, club and roof terrace happens to be one of the best nights out south of the river. And now that Brixton Beach – the other local rooftop offering – has closed its doors, summer parties here are likely to be even more popular. If you’re a lover of funk, house, soul, disco and hip-hop, it’s well worth waiting in line.
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Summer wouldn’t be summer without a trip to Frank’s Cafe in Peckham. Whether or not you’ve been, chances are you’ve seen an Instagram post of its iconic pink stairwell, or a panoramic sunset shot of London’s skyline taken from its quarters. Located on top of a multi-storey carpark, a mere stone’s throw from Peckham Rye station, Frank’s is one of the largest public rooftop spaces in London and a trip there is as much about hanging with the ‘in crowd’ as it is about the reasonably-priced drinks: classic cocktails for around £7 a pop and a small selection of beers and wines from around £4.50.
Almost next door to Frank’s is the Bussey Building. More intimate a space than its vast competitor, the venue is also part of the Rooftop Film Club and has an exciting 2018 season coming up, starting with a screening of Lady Bird on 3 May.
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Self-described as a youth club for adults, the Exhibit is arguably the coolest space in Balham, boasting film nights, speed dating events and a hirable roof terrace with its own private bar that accommodates up to 120 people. If you live south south, it’s a trendy alternative to the yummy-mummy brunch spots Balham’s better known for.
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You’ll be hard-pushed to find a more iconic view of the London skyline than that from the Southbank Centre’s roof garden. Created in 2011 – and originally a partnership with Cornwall’s Eden Project – the garden is maintained by Grounded EcoTherapy: a group of volunteers who have experienced homelessness, addiction and mental health problems. It’s free to enjoy the garden and there’s a cafe bar serving drinks sandwiches and snacks. Sit among fruit trees and wildflowers, and enjoy views of the London Eye and central London beyond.
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Despite having its own name, this south London boozer belongs to the Alexandra pub below. It’s an unpretentious spot with a burger menu, colourful tables, a decent selection of beers and sheltered areas to hide away on rainy days.
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Launching in 2017, Skylight made a name for itself last summer as a rooftop destination offering more than just drinks and bar snacks. Fans can rejoice, because the bar’s back from 3 May for a second year, boasting three floors of booze, street food, live entertainment and DJ sets. There’s also sports aplenty, including a croquet lawn, pétanque and World Cup screenings. For those looking to enjoy the views of London by day, Skylight will also host wholesome, daytime events including rooftop yoga.
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Rooftop favourite the Queen of Hoxton is reopening this spring. Exchanging last year’s ‘Neverland Adventure’ for a ‘Lost Vegas’ theme, the east London hotspot promises an overgrown Little Vegas Wedding Chapel, a yellow school bus serving drinks, loaded vegan hot dogs (amongst other treats), and vending machines serving boozy coolers, wedding rings and even divorce certificates… erm, okay.
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This tucked-away spot in Shoreditch is the perfect roof terrace to book for an event of 10-40 people, or to simply enjoy an intimate evening on. Dotted with palm trees and protected by a retractable roof, the bar offers happy hour two-for-one cocktails, buckets of beer and house wine for under £20. Popular with the glam crowd, the bar even featured on TV series Made in Chelsea.
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Those in search of a rooftop that prioritises beers over cocktails should look no further than The Fox. Serving real ales, craft beers and ciders, this sky-high pub offers an antidote to the city’s smarter spots – and the crowds that come with them. Have your photo taken in the photobooth, or order a drink from the novelty vending machine.
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Once a members-only space, this quirky take on the typical rooftop bar has been open to the public for the past five years and is popular with hipsters and creatives looking for something a little more inspiring than your typical icy beverage. Past years have seen the expansive space host art events, communal hot tubs, workshops and rooftop yoga classes and while this year’s line up is yet to be announced, we’re confident it’s going to be equally exciting.
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The Culpeper is opening its rooftop doors again this spring, with the intriguing theme of ‘preservation’. Cocktails, dishes and workshops will all feature pickles grown on-site, so you can bite into a gherkin while looking at views of the Gherkin.
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Following in the footsteps of Frank’s Cafe in Peckham, this rooftop on top of a car park is as much an adults’ playground as it is a bar. This year they’re back, but with a circus theme. From hip-hop-inspired lawn bowls to rooftop yoga, crazy golf to the Rooftop Film Club, it’s all going on at Roof East… and that’s before we get onto the various bars and food stalls dotted across the site serving beers, icy cocktails and street food favourites.
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This east London hangout began as a community allotment, but has since grown into a popular summer rooftop space that’s as much about the socialising as it is about the booze. The roomy space is an inviting place to lounge on a summer’s evening, and if you become a ‘friend’ of the bar, you can help out with the garden and on-site events which include film screenings, talks and DJ sets.
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Another popular rooftop watering hole returning this spring is the west London branch of Pergola. While the views might not be the finest in town, the history of the location certainly makes up for it. Based a’top the Television Centre – the former headquarters of BBC Television – this Grade II listed building has been operating as a rooftop bar since 2016.
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The roof garden of the Lyric Theatre in Hammersmith is a great space for private hire. Here you can host events for up to 120 people, with catering available from the venue in canapé, buffet or barbecue form. You can also secure a smaller area if you’re looking to celebrate with friends, or simply pop up in the summer to bask in the sun, play garden games, and enjoy some casual food and drinks from the bar inside.
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