The sun’s out (and it looks like it’s sticking around), so it’s time to map out your July diary. Below, check out Broadsheet’s top picks for what to do around town this month.
Peckham Weekend
Eat your way across SE15 as part of Mr Bao’s Peckham Weekend. For three days, 19 restaurants are offering £10 specials (with £1 from each going towards Peckham Pantry, which supports low-income families) in a big celebration of the local food scene. There’ll be pork belly banh mi from Lai Rai, a glass of wine and plate of cauliflower fritti at Forza Wine, Wagyu brisket-stuffed bagels at Rye Lane Bagels, a rhubarb Paloma at Shorty’s and barbecue mackerel with lime yoghurt and pickled cucumber at Mr Bao. Other diners taking part include Taca Taco, Ba Ba, Maiz and Bara.
From July 24–26; mrbao.co.uk
Toast Australia at Milk Beach
Australian-inspired restaurant Milk Beach is on a mission to prove there’s more to Australian wine than the cheap bottles at your local off licence with its wine dinners, which spotlight a different winemaker every month. For July it’s invited 160-year-old Victorian winery Tahbilk into its Soho dining room to walk just 14 guests through its drops, accompanied by a three-course meal.
July 28; sevenrooms.com
Project a Black Planet at the Barbican
Right now, until September, the Barbican is hosting Project a Black Planet, a season digging into Pan-Africanism’s influence on contemporary arts and culture. The programme includes a major exhibition studying how Pan Africanism’s influence has stretched beyond African communities and diaspora to impact visual arts and culture – and how artists have shaped Pan-Africanism itself. On July 5, Congolese artist Sammy Baloji will perform, and there’s also a line-up of films that explore colonialism, memory and liberation.
Until September 6; barbican.org.uk
At the Docks at The Royal Docks
As the mercury soars, we’re heading waterside – and At the Docks, a summer-long season of events is giving us a good excuse to go east. For a start, there’s a free lido. Then, there’s a bunch of electronic open-air music festivals at Silverworks Island, including a set by veteran group Above & Beyond and Wah in the City, a huge drum’n’bass takeover. Also on? The two-day Certain Blacks Ensemble Festival of circus, dance and physical theatre.
Until September 13; royaldocks.london
Summers Series at Somerset House
The dramatic Somerset House courtyard turns into a live-music venue throughout July, with a genre-spanning slate of artists taking to the stage. US-born French Haitian singer-songwriter kicks off the programme on July 16, followed by the likes of US soul trio Thee Sacred Souls, indie group The Cribs and beloved psych-rock band The Flaming Lips, who won’t have a support act – instead, they’ll perform two sets in one night.
From July 16–26; somersethouse.org.uk
Khao Bird at The Culpeper
The Culpeper’s verdant rooftop will set the scene for a two-day pop-up by Soho’s northern Thai restaurant Khao Bird. Khao Bird’s head chef and co-founder Luke Larsson will pluck ingredients from the rooftop garden to conjure dishes like pork fat toast, tom saep (pork rib toast) and more. If you can’t make the pop-up, one dish will stay on the menu for the remainder of the month. Book here.
July 17 & 18; @khaobird
Paired at The Magazine, Serpentine North Gallery
Food and music meet at the latest edition of Paired, a collaboration between Charlotte Street restaurant Carousel and electronic music conference organisation Ava. On July 18, Paired will take over The Magazine at Serpentine North Gallery. The evening kicks off with a multi-course menu by Portuguese chef Leo Carreira (who helped reboot Luso), soundtracked by legendary DJ and producer Richie Hawtin. Sake pulled from Hawtin’s private collection will be on the pour, and once the meal is finished the room will be cleared for a set by Hawtin to just 180 guests.
July 18; events.carousel-london.com
