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Whether you're a night-shift worker who deserves an after-work pint, or a deeply jet-lagged visitor to the city whose body clock is wayyyy out of whack, here are a few choice locations for a drink in the dead of night.
Booking Office, St. Pancras (opens 6.30am)
Booked on an early-morning train from St. Pancras? Start your trip as you mean to go on with a tipple at the Booking Office, in the iconic and oh-so-sophisticated St Pancras Renaissance Hotel. Then continue the partying once you get to your destination, you trouper, you.
The Fox & Anchor, Smithfields (opens 7am)
You might think that a boozer which opened at 7am would be full of characters sketchier than those in the darkest recesses of Dickens’s imagination, but the Fox & Anchor – just round the corner from Smithfield Market and its crack-of-dawn traders – is positively delightful. Pristine mosaic tiling, etched glass and pewter tankards are strongly atmospheric, while its commitment to local brews mean that craft-beer aficionados won’t have any cause for complaint (apart from sleep deprivation).
The Dead Dolls House, Islington (open until 4am)
The Dead Dolls House was once a Hoxton pop-up but it’s now found a permanent home in a three storey building on Upper Street. Wander through its many eclectically decorated rooms, which offer late-night revellers endless cocktails, live jazz and resident DJs.
Keystone Crescent, Kings Cross (open until 4am)
Tiny hidden cocktail bar Keystone Crescent is like Don Draper’s living room – all classy mid-century furniture and moody lighting . The only drawback is that you’ll need to pay a one-off membership fee of £35 to get the secret code...
The Dogstar, Brixton (open until 4.30am)
Brixton is changing, but vibrant local institution The Dogstar remains. With the title of being London’s first ever DJ bar, its music policy includes everything from hip hop to drum ’n’ bass and funk. If you can dance to it, they’ll play it.
The Dolphin, Hackney (open until 4.30am)
Hackney watering hole The Dolphin is as famous for its hilarious Twitter account as its no-frills partying. Open until the wee hours, it blasts ’90s R&B, plays at least one R Kelly song per hour and is grotty in exactly the way you’d want it to be.
Bar Italia, Soho (open until 5am)
‘And now it’s morning there’s only one place we can go. It’s around the corner in Soho where other broken people go.’ So sang Pulp about Bar Italia, the legendary West End café which turns out some of the best cappuccinos in the city, even at 4am.