London: 2 hangouts offering events, crafts, drinks and more

Hanging out at Drink, Shop & Do. Photo: TillyVanilly

By Lara Kavanagh in London—

Sometimes it’s great to have everything in one place, without having to trek around town. Here are two great London venues with a multi-purpose approach to entertainment, including some fun free activities.

Drink, Shop & Do
9 Caledonian Road, N1 9DX
Open: Tuesday to Saturday
Tel: 020 3343 9138
Web site

This quirky little meeting place is a craft haven located just around the corner from Kings Cross station, and offers pretty much what the name suggests: drinks, shopping and tons of stuff to do.

Drinks range from tea and coffee to bottled beer, wine and cocktails, and there’s a low-key menu including quiche, crumpets and a host of sweet treats, including brownies and flapjacks. You can buy pretty much everything you see, including furniture, jewelry, greetings cards and a load of cute stuff for the home.

There’s also a fun calendar of events to keep you entertained once you’ve shopped and drunk your fill. Try out Knit Night, Scrabble Sunday and the Dot-to-Dot disco–best of all, most events are free to join. Watch out for the special Valentine card-making event on Thursday February 10, 2011.

The Victoria
110 Grove Road, E3 5TH
Open daily
Web site

This super-hip laid-back joint in the East End, formerly a boxing pub, is another great multi-tasker. It offers a small American-style diner menu, live music, regular art exhibitions, open-mic nights, life-drawing sessions, knitting groups and high-quality jumble sales (every first Sunday of the month from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.).

The Victoria also offers – wait for it – a hair parlour, of all things (haircuts Tuesdays and Sundays, check dates on Web site). And as if that wasn’t enough for you, there are free film screenings on Sundays from 8 p.m. Get there early to bag a seat.