1. Discover your true north (it’s in the pub): The Three Compasses
Dalston, London
There are three pubs by this name in London, so please ensure it’s the Dalston bar you visit, otherwise you will be sorely disappointed when, upon arrival, you find that you cannot order the best burger in the East End. Yeah, we said it. Fight us.
It isn’t much of a looker on the outside, but inside, The Three Compasses is a traditional East End boozer. Wine-red walls decked out in old Guinness posters, sticky wooden floors, and round wooden tables and stools – if you haven’t already been, all we can say is, trust us. It’s our job to know all the best spots in town.
The craft beers and cocktails, the DJ nights, the Filthy Buns burgers, pub quiz, and drag bingo – it has everything you come to Dalston for minus a dance floor, but the covered terrace and burgers more than make up for it.