Really adorable tiny tea and biscuit shop. Great ambiance, super friendly staff, and delicious…read morecakes (vegan options too!) and tea & coffee. It's tiny so seats can be at a premium, but we really enjoyed it.

This adorable little coffee shop is beautifully quirky and everything I was looking for on a Sunday…read moremorning. The arty decor with the decadent red couches and the vinyl records creates a very relaxing atmosphere and the beverages complete the cosy feeling that gets created. The hot drinks are served in pretty vintage looking cups and they taste great. The staff were very friendly as well and happy to help. I enjoyed the general atmosphere inside the shop and I would gladly go back if I'm in the area again.

This is a great gallery space located at the back of the Old Truman Brewery. You reach it via a…read moreshop, bar and cafe' lined alley right off Brick Lane. It's a big, open, industrial space that is particularly suited to photography exhibitions. It can be cold in there during winter, but well worth checking it out.

This is a fantastic little art gallery which shows exciting art by contemporary artists such as…read more DFace, Mr Jago, Meryl O'Donoghue and many other great up and coming and established artists. The gallery space itself is quite small. The staff are very friendly and always wiling to help. Private views are usually on a Thursday night here. It's located just off Brick Lane. check it out the next time you are in the East End.

This is the first gallery I went to as a new resident to London - and, as a total street/guerrilla…read moreart enthusiast, I was really impressed. The gallery is in East London's bustling Brick Lane, sitting quite contentedly in a dank, graffiti-covered alley that on gallery opening nights is filled with hip-looking young folk (many who are also surreptitiously brandishing paste-up materials and paint pens, bent on tagging every open space when no one is looking). The night I went here was the RSVP preview of Stolen Space's "Wild Fantasies" show, which features several posters of the "Dont Panic" tradition - many of which were created by our generation's most well-known street artists, from D*Face to Banksy to Shepard Fairey of OBEY/Obama poster fame. Free drinks abounded and the place was packed to the rafters. Overall, it's obvious that this gallery has a true appreciation for the ethos and philosophy behind street art - many of its founders are street artists themselves. Squabbles about the rammifications of the commercialization of street art aside, this is a reputable spot to sample the work of respected urban/street artists with a political, street-originated bent. A tip: be sure to grab a Don't Panic promo package on your way out. They're free and distributed around the city, but this gallery is the source. They're filled with flyers and posters for London street/nightlife events coming up.

Well, what can I say, this place just ticks all the boxes for me. Vinyl Deptford is tucked away in…read morea quiet side street off busy Deptford High Street, apparently one of the few streets to survive the Great Fire of London a few centuries ago, with an old-fashioned butcher's and pie shop at the corner. The records inside are not quite as old, but you get that lovely record store vibe with people flicking through a great collection of old favourites and random treasures. The walls are given over to artists from time to time, while the basement doubles up as a venue for experimental music and sound art. But you don't even have to be a culture vulture to fall in love with this place, they also make the best smoothies and strong coffee, served alongside the best cakes - and not just any cakes but vegan cakes!! My dream of a gallery/cafe/shop space come true, and well worth the trek across town ...

SPACE has become somewhat of an institution for artists and art lovers, and I've been to a fair…read moreshare of events here. Just got back from the closing day of the Salon des Refusés, an annual event celebrating all those artists whose application for inclusion in the Royal Academy's Summer Exhibition wasn't successful. And just as at the posh bigger sister's, paintings, drawings and prints of all shapes and sizes are presented alongside each other to make a colourful collage of different styles, just a bit more anti-establishment perhaps ... mind you, some artists have paintings included in both shows! Today, the exhibition was further enhanced by some sonic art presented by Brighton Uni - perfect backdrop and escape from Brexit hangover. #Sundaysanctuary The gallery is the public face of SPACE, but the complex also includes printmaking and artists studios. Watch out for the next Open Studios event - they throw a great party with free booze and snacks, and most importantly great art direct from the creators.

Space Studios' mission is to provide artists with some 'space to create' by offering affordable…read morestudio space for innovative and emerging artists. It provides a dynamic space and community that is always ready to offer support. It also offers a variety of media & training opportunities and a big exhibition space. Space has a great reputation for supporting artists at their beginnings and help them create a name for themselves. Artists such as Bridget Riley, Mark Wallinger, Chila Burman, and Peter Sedgley are just a few of the artists who were able to use Space Studios during their early hey-days. The space itself it is great and very bright. It often hosts exhibitions from the artists which are always worth a look. I once came here for a big, fundraising opening and it was great. There was music, djs, Mexican and Spanish food and drinks aplenty. If you are an aspiring or emerging artist needing to spread your wings and find a decent studio space, this is definitely a place worth considering.

Follow a creaky staircase leading up to the rafters of this quaint old repurposed church, (making…read moresure you love on Lolly, the gallery dog, along the way,) and you'll instantly be rewarded with one of the coolest little galleries in London. The fine ladies at Vyner Street have devoted their gallery to showcasing and selling UK student and graduate art, and making this art accessible to the new art buying public such as myself. It's really just a win-win situation for the novices in the art world on all sides, and it's certainly one of those "hey... why didn't I think of this" experiences. I'd highly recommend popping by during the first Thursday of each month, where the reward at the top of the creaky staircase is bound to be something of the sweet and/or alcoholic nature. Affordable art + booze + a loving gallery pup? Sounds like an adventure waiting to happen!

One of my friends in London lived at the end of Vyner street across from Victoria's park. So for…read morehe and his girlfriend, this was pure stomping grounds. I guess periodically they have art openings on this street, where everyone seems to converge. One part Chelsea and one part williamsburg, you'll find plenty of free beer, wine and snacks to choose from. Afterward, a quick walk along the canal will take you to Broadway Market, and as I recall a carlsburg special in hand I was feeling no pain... We went to a gastropub on that block, though I don't recall the name...

With the multitude of galleries in E2, it's difficult to know which to visit. I really like Maureen…read morePaley gallery, plainly because it has some really great exhibitions. Ok, so the space is small and not all that interesting but surely it's all about the art, no?! So, I'd recommend checking the website for their exhibitions; I saw a great Wolfman Tillmans (prominent photographer) exhibition here earlier this year, as well as a fantastic Bank Violets show, an artist famed for his collaboration with drone band Sunn o))) back in 2006. I'd really recommend checking Maureen Paley out if you're doing an E2 art crawl.

Being one of the first galleries to present art in the East End, the Maureen Paley gallery has been…read morea pioneer of the current scene. The gallery represents the likes of Wolfgang Tillmans, Gillian Wearing and Rebecca Warren. The gallery itself is hidden down a side road near Bethnal Green, a larger gallery than some of its tiny east end competitors. The recent Wolfgang Tillmans show made good use of the space, the downstairs room used for his photographic installation and upstairs was divided for the screening of some of his films. As with the rest of the East End galleries, its always hit and miss unless you know and like the exhibiting artist, but the Maureen Paley is one to look out for, I'm always prepared to make a significant detour to fit it into a gallery day.