It was 5pm on a Thursday afternoon. I felt like I'd slipped between two worlds of people being at…read morework and those still travelling home. Nobody was in The Gallery but me. So I sat back and made myself comfortable. Aesthetically the place is beautiful. There is a long shotgun bar, a huge seating/roaming area, and a decent cocktail menu to keep me interested. The decor is a mix of light wood and chrome, with the odd plasma screen showing football. The bartender and I got chatting as he made me a cocktail off the menu. It was a martini but he offered to make it long on the rocks for me to suit my manly appearance. Tee hee! I could see he wasn't happy with the balance, making the concoction several times. For keeping me waiting he refused payment. Nice touch! The cocktail was still good. I decided to ask to be shown around. There is a club and restaurant on site. The restaurant is very suave and endearing in a classic way. As you walk up to the club you can't help but notice the opulence of the artwork and interior design. The club itself is a simple hall with a VIP room off to the side and another bar. Taken as a whole The Gallery is an impressive building and this helps distract from its problem. Who goes partying in Hendon? There isn't much else in the area to draw in London's socialites and it is known that the locals aren't the most chic group in the city. To battle this, new staff and management have been brought in to give The Gallery the right vibe. I enjoyed my quiet cocktail, time will tell whether I enjoy the clientèle.

If you love art then the Gallery Restaurant is the right place to dine in. Since it was opened in…read moreNovember 2005 it has certainly earned a formidable reputation as fabulous dining retreat,snazzy night-club and an attractive choice of venue for celebrations:-like weddings,birthdays so on and so forth. Other than relaxing in the elegant and ambient setting,you can linger and peruse the works of 30 or more artists which include many well-known names. The names on exhibit at the Gallery include artists like Michael Solomon,legendery photographer Cecil Beaton,Damien Hirst,Rob Carter,Nick Carter. The interior of the establishment showcases many original art-works from Britain's popular young talent. The multitude of paintings on display depict a broad-range of techniques like:-Surrealism,Abstract,Expressionism,Pop-Art,Minimaland Conceptual Art. The food was absolutely fabulous-preparedby the award winning chef Stephen Englefield. The menus are very innovative,regularly reviewed with an insistence on fresh ingredients. The Crab-on-Confit of Leek and Potato,followed by braised Cumbrian Lamb shoulder with a Champagne and Lamb sauce was just perfect.

For a local place it has a good selection for Sisha and even though i do not smoke i do go with…read morepeople who do and its a nice relaxing place with lots of space and never too crowded. Friendly staff and try to help as best they can Food however is nothing special so i would say mainly a place for Sisha and some snacks.

This used to be called "Go East Cafe" but it has changed hands and has been decked out, rather…read moreattractively, as a Moroccan cafe. There is a large outside area at the front where you can smoke those special North African water based pipes. The food is Anglicized so is not as spicy as true Moroccan food. Also the tables inside the coffee bar are European hight, rather than the low North African tables. They have Wi-Fi for their patrons and tea and coffee is the same price at £1.85. The most expensive in Finchley, but the benefit is it is never full so an ideal place if you want to hold a mini-meeting.

JJ was very helpful and enthusiastic, great service and food would come back for a drinkread more

This is my local. It is not the closest pub to where I live and I pass 6 or 7 pubs to reach it and…read moreI will tell you why.. From the outside the Elephant Inn looks like a typical pub and nothing special. It does however had a large courtyard which is heated so you can sit out on cold evenings. The only problem with the courtyard is when busy it is full of smokers. As a non smoker I am always put off by sitting outside amongst the smoke filled air. If quite the courtyard is a nice place to park yourself with a beer and watch the people passing by. What makes this pub for me is the inside. It is fairly small but cozy with a real fireplace and a fire burning throughout the day and evening. There are several leather sofa's to lounge on and a friendly warm atmosphere for a town pub. The bar serves fullers ales including London Pride, London Porter and my favourite EPA. They have a thai restaurant upstairs which I have yet to try. You can however order from the thai menu in the bar area. They also offer a special thai lunch menu (12-4pm) where the prices are reduced and very reasonable. This place is a hidden gem right in the heart of North Finchley opposite the Tally Ho Bus Station.

Very poor service booked to do quiz they failed to reserve a table. When i went to speak to bar…read morestaff ignored me and was chatting to his colleague socially. I questioned why he is ignoring customers that this is very poor customer service. I was speaking calmly, staff very rude and unprofessional. Do not go to bald faced stag very poor customer service. Plenty of other nice pubs in east finchley save your money.

This is a fun pub. It's got a local flavour but a stylish approach. The seating is comfortable, the…read moredecor is sweet, and the live music can be a treat. Happy to go back there.

Maddens is a traditional Irish style pub…read more its not only for the preserve of Irish locals, I have been there three times and during every visit it seems to be filled with a pretty lively atmosphere and a mixed crowd. The inside decoration is interesting, with the front section being a traditional looking bar and the back being a newer lounge area, with candles and couches. When you add a great choice of ales into this mix, you get a pretty good night. They also boast some occasional live gigs in true Irish style on some Sundays although I have yet to get to one.

Maddens is a genuine, independent family-owned local. The front bar is narrow and deep with an…read moreeclectic mix of seating, and of sports memorabilia for decor. The back is wider with wooden tables and chairs, a couple of squashy sofas and small performance area for live music about once a week. They serve London Pride and a changing selection of guest real ales, well kept. The staff have a nice quiet friendly way about them, and there's a reasonable menu of Thai food if you get hungry. Yes it shows sport but the volume is silent or low, and it adds to the banter and atmosphere especially if Arsenal have a big match. The kind of place that has loyal regulars but remains welcoming to all, I'm more than happy that it is my local.

If I were reviewing any other experience I've had at the Boogaloo, it would be 5 stars across the…read moreboard. My housemates and I love coming down for quiz night, and it's been my favourite pub to take visiting friends or a casual date since I moved to the area 10 months ago. I've been looking forward to going to the Bonanza queer nights and attending a Sunday blues brunch. However, after an incredibly unpleasant experience on the door last Saturday, I will never be setting foot in the place again. I arrived around 11.15pm with a group of 8 people, celebrating my birthday and out for a good boogie to end the night. Two people in our party put their cups on a windowsill before approaching the door, understandably the manager was irritated by this and I told my friends to remove them and find a bin instead. Despite apologising for this and resolving the situation, the manager then refused us entry, coming up with every excuse under the sun: we were too late to enter, there was a guest list, there was a private event, we had 'bad juju', I was aggressive. None of these things were true. A friend of mine who was alread inside with a different party told me that the place had actually cleared out, it was a quiet night, and this manager was heard bragging about turning away '35 or 40' people that night already for no reason. After we went on to a different pub, she text me that she had spoken to the manager and he would let us in if we got there before 12am. So back we went, only to realise that our new price of entry was to metaphorically get on my hands and knees and lick the manager's boots in apology for my 'aggressive behaviour'. I cannot make it more clear that this whole time I had not been aggressive, I was asking pointedly why we were being refused entry. If there are cameras on the front door, you are more than welcome to review the footage and see for yourself. However, under no circumstances would I prostrate myself and beg forgiveness for something I hadn't done so that this manager could play king of the castle on his little power trip. The bouncer also got involved in this charade and was of no help whatsoever. Perhaps the manager would do well to take a sexism awareness training course if he thinks a young woman asking him questions makes her 'aggressive'. His manner and behaviour was confrontive and disgusting, and I will not be returning. [Cross-posted review]

It's my party and I'll cry if I want to. But why would I do that when there was so much fun to be…read morehad at the Boogaloo on Saturday nights? Tonight it's my birthday night out and the Boogaloo fits the bill perfectly. No entry fee, no pressure to get your money's worth, no stress, no massive walk to the tube - just good ole fun dancing times. Perfect for a 20 *cough cough splutter* something who can't hack staying up past 2am. It's the start of November and the place is packed with Halloween revellers looking for a boo-gie - that's a ghost's favourite type of dance by the way. Spooky costumes are abound, but it's actually a rock'n'roll night. The first Saturday of every month, aka this night, is called 'Hot Dog' where DJ Jimi Laff spins 50s. 60s and 70s tunes. Different evenings have different DJs and themes but I have a feeling that nights at the Boogaloo don't vary too much musically from this retro affair. But Hot Dog, Hot Damn! What fun we had! The hits kept on coming and we danced hard. Hours and hours on the floor, I had to drag myself away to rest my tired feet. Not all the club nights here have free entry, but I believe if you get there when it's still in 'pub' mode you can circumvent the entry charge. But once it hits 10pm they dim the lights, and it transforms from social club style pub to party party party. The only negatives about the Boogaloo, and I hope I do not sound like an old woman writing this (but it's my birthday so maybe I am now), is the PA system was a touch too loud, and felt ear splitting at points. Plus it's not a proper club, so there's no decent ventilation - it gets stupidly hot. Also I completely understand security have a job to do, but can't they be a touch friendlier. Sometime's a bit of politeness goes a long way. Luckily there's a beer garden, and some quiet lounges at the back to get away for a respite when it gets too much. But I am coming back, there's more nights to be had, plus swing dance earlier on Saturdays, and nudey life drawing Sunday daytime. Boo-galoo? More like Woo-galoo!