One of the pleasures of running the hotel is to welcome back returning customers year after year. Mrs Khenifi of the Lycée Corvisart Tolbiac in Paris has been bringing groups of students to stay at Kent Hall since 2011 and it's always enjoyable to find out what the students are looking forward to most during their stay.

The Lycée's location in the 13th Arrondissement of Paris is an area with which I'm familiar from days at the Bibliothèque Nationale and I find that it's very similar to our own situation here next to Finsbury Park. I vibrant area in easy reach of the main tourist areas but retaining the atmosphere of a real neighbourhood. And of course it's easy to travel between our neighbourhood and theirs with the Eurostar terminal at St Pancras just ten minutes on the tube from Manor House.

Many thanks to Mme Khenifi and her students for sending us this charming photo from their 2018 trip. We're looking forward to seeing a fresh crop of youngsters in 2019.

Customers often ask where there are good options to eat that are within walking distance of the hotel. Fortunately I like to dine out a lot so I have a lot of recommendations. The options lie for the most part in two directions - up Green Lanes to Harringay or down Seven Sisters Road to Finsbury Park. So I've split this blog into two parts. Now, Finsbury Park.

All of the places that I mention are based on my most recent experience of eating there (within the last year) and none of them have influenced in any way the opinion that I have. Except through the quality of their food and service of course!

Season

The cover star, as they've recently spruced up their exterior. At the fine dining end of European food but you won't pay fine dining prices. The room is homely and the cooking on its day is as good as you'd get in the West End.

Osteria Tufo

One of the few Italians in Finsbury Park not to be a pizza joint Osteria Tufo serves very good Italian food and plenty of it. The desserts are special, as is their selection of Grappa. Go to my personal blog for a more extended review.

La Porchetta

But if it's pizza you're after La Porchetta is my favourite. Generously sized pizzas attract a busy evening crowd and the staff are always really friendly. It's worth walking that little bit further to get there. My review is here.

Q&T Vietnamese Kitchen

A relative newcomer but very welcome. They do all the usual Vietnamese favourites very well. The room is quite canteen-y but if you want a quick bite at a good price then Q&T is a more exotic option than Nando's across the road. My review is here.

Petek

Not one I've reviewed but I've been there a lot. Make sure you're hungry and go easy on the lovely warm they dish up on arrival and you're still unlikely to manage the amount of fresh Turkish cuisine they dish up. Big on grills and stews they also usually have a fish of the day if you want something lighter. Their Turkish coffee always arrives with a little lokum and those with a sweet tooth shouldn't miss out on the baklava.

La Fabrica

Saving the best till last, I gave La F 9/10 at the beginning of last year and it was well deserved. Serving Spanish food as good as I've eaten in London (and I've eaten a lot) they also have a really interesting wine list. Sophisticated décor makes it a great place for a date or a treat. For the review go here.

So those are the recommendation - of course if you want to know more just email us, Finsbury Park has a wonderful variety of food to suit most tastes and budgets and it's right on our doorstep.

Customers often ask where there are good options to eat that are within walking distance of the hotel. Fortunately I like to dine out a lot so I have a lot of recommendations. The options lie for the most part in two directions - up Green Lanes to Harringay or down Seven Sisters Road to Finsbury Park. So I've split this blog into two parts. First, Green Lanes.

All of the places that I mention are based on my most recent experience of eating there (within the last year) and none of them have influenced in any way the opinion that I have. Except through the quality of their food and service of course!

Devran

Harringay is renowned for it Turkish cuisine and for my money Devran is the best. You get a generous amount of food at a good price, all cooked fresh in front of you at the grill. Go to my personal blog for a more extended review.

Autograf Grill

If you're very hungry go to Autograf for authentic Polish food. It's big and hearty and gets very busy in the evenings so get there early if you haven't booked. My review is here.

Indika Kitchen

If you feel the need for spice Indika is a good option. They don't have a licence so make sure you pick up something to drink on the way to cool off the heat from their excellent curries. My review is here.

Hanoi Phø

If you fancy something informal and quick Hanoi Phø do excellent bowls of Vietnamese goodness. See the review here.

The Salisbury

Not one that I've reviewed it but I have eaten there a lot. They do high quality pub food at pub prices, much better than you'd find in most West End pubs. If you want a standard fish and chips or burger it's a good option and they always have something interesting for the veggies. They also have an extensive range of British and international beers on tap.

So those are the recommendation - of course if you want to know more just email us, Green Lanes has a wonderful variety of food to suit most tastes and budgets and it's right on our doorstep.

Mention Finsbury Park to the average Londoner and it's probably unlikely that culture, still less theatrical culture, is the first thing that will come into their head. But thinking locals know that the Park, only established in 2013, is already proving to be one of the most interesting off-West End theatres in London. 

And the added bonus for our customers is that it's within walking distance of Kent Hall Hotel.

Their mission statement says:-

On this mission I think they deliver. In the last few months I've been to a play about the modern supermarket industry and its effect on its suppliers, workers and management (honestly, it was funnier and more thought-provoking than that rather dry description makes it sound!) written by a first time playwright. And just this weekend we went to see a revival of a neglected piece by the twentieth century writer J. B. Priestley - a very funny and relevant drawing room comedy from the 1930s.

An added bonus is the excellently appointed café/bar where you'll often find yourself rubbing shoulders with the cast or if you're lucky even with some theatre royalty - on Friday night we were supping wine in the company of Sir Derek Jacobi! I should add that the bar is open outside theatre hours if you just fancy somewhere to have a quiet drink and a nibble.

So if you're coming to London to soak up some culture you don't necessarily have to go into the West End. Save yourself a tube journey (and about 50 quid, the tickets are much more reasonably priced round our way) and go to the Park. You won't regret it.

Follow this link to find out more.

One of the things that people who stay with us are often unaware of is just how much there is to do in the park across the road. Rooms at the front of the hotel have a view across busy Seven Sisters Road to a place where you can play, chill, dine and stroll or just get away from the business of London for a while if you need 10 minutes peace to yourself. So to encourage visitors to follow in my footsteps I walked through the park and took a few pictures along the way. Here's what I saw ...

This is your gateway to the park from the hotel. Cross Seven Sisters Road and stroll on through to the verdant acres. 

Breakfast is included in the price of all rooms at the hotel and runs from 7-9.30 a.m. But if you slept in, or you're looking for somewhere to chill and prepare for your day why not sit in the garden of the Park Café? It's a very civilised spot and the smell of freshly cooked food is quite tempting when I'm walking home from work.

The Carriage Drive in Finsbury Park runs around the park and dates back to when it was first opened in the nineteenth century. This section runs down to the Finsbury Park gate and the grass along the left hand side is popular for casual soccer matches and sports training of all kinds. Often at weekends there'll be a charity 10k providing some colour and music and when there's not organised races there are always plenty of joggers going rahnd and rahnd and rahnd. You might even see some dirty pigeons.

Sunbathers like to stretch out on the grassy slopes at the centre of the park but for those of us who like to be more demure in the sun a bench by the flower beds is a quiet spot for a good ten minutes of getting some vital Vitamin D.

Those seeking a bit of leisurely exercise could do worse than hiring a boat and rowing around the lake for a while. You'll be accompanied by a variety of feathery friends but watch out for pirates. Right next door there's a big children's play area with water fountains and climbing frames plus another friendly café.

Past the lake you come to a series of sports areas with a little something for everyone. There's a skateboarding track next to the tennis courts. Just rock up and play if you can find a free court.

Further north there are volleyball and basketball courts that get really buzzy at the weekends.

From time to time film crews take over sections of the park for film and television production. Who knows which star you might stumble across as you stroll around? Nearby Crouch End is well-known for being the home of many London-based stars and of course the park is famous for its music festivals like the now sadly defunct Fleadh and the very much still going Wireless Festival. Did you know that Pharrell Williams once stayed in room G6 at the hotel?! 

If you have the time and the energy why not continue your stroll up the Parkland Walk? This footpath picks a traffic-free way through the city via Crouch End to Highgate and Hampstead beyond. You'll be in the company of joggers, dog-walkers and cyclists in an easy-going, nature-loving ramble. 

We're proud to be within walking distance of the Emirates Stadium and it's a real pleasure to welcome Arsenal fans from all over the world. One question I'm often asked by our overseas visitors is where to go for a pint before the game and mix with real Arsenal fans. So leaving aside questions of authenticity in football fan culture here's a personal guide to pubs I go to with friends when we're going to the match.

One of my favourite pubs, not just around Finsbury Park but of all time! A staple of the week for over twenty years our football team takes part in and sometimes runs the Monday night quiz. It's a family run boozer and if you want to watch sport on the big screen the back room of the FB is the place for you. The famed Ewok Village is a smoker's paradise and there are nooks and crannies if you want something a bit quieter. There's a decent selection of beer, including a couple of real ales if you want something typically English.

But what about match day?

Match day gets busy with local fans and though the barstaff are seasoned pros expect to have a bit of a queue at the bar if you want to get served. Arrive early for a table or join fellow fans in the street. But do try and be civilized - remember people live here too! It's a 20 minute stroll to the ground or you can take the tube from Finsbury Park to Arsenal if you're in a hurry. 

A relative newcomer but a favourite of late. Another Irish-run place and in my opinion the beer is superior to the FB (don't tell Pat I said that!). As well as the usual lagers and good range of real ale there's craft beer and good food. There's a small garden out front if the weather is good and even on match day the bar isn't so busy that you'll have to wait an age to get served. It's tucked away on a side street so popular with locals - you're guaranteed to be in a retro shirt paradise. Again, it's about a 20 minute walk to the ground or a short cut via the tube. Oh, and they have free wi-fi if you want to keep up with the scores.

Nearer the ground so you'll have to drink out of a plastic cup but a good atmosphere. Oodles of beers to choose from and some decent bar food. They have live music at weekends so not a bad place to go after the match if you want some noise.

Sometimes you want to combine the match with a bit of sightseeing in the morning. Or you may be meeting friends coming from the north. Or you might want to mingle with fans of other clubs coming to see their team play in London. These are a few option that you can go to that will still get you to the Emirates after a ten minute tube journey.

Newly reopened after spending years as a strip club the Stores is a hipster-ish venue for an ever-changing stock of beer. On the intimate side so you'll likely end up chatting to fellow football fans if you like. It's a short stroll to King's Cross tube.

Inside King's Cross station so handier than the Stores but convenience comes at a price - the beer is more expensive. It is however a roomy place and you can get a bite to eat while surrounded by railway memorabilia.

Like the Parcel Yard it's in the station, this time St Pancras. Superior food to the PY but again relatively pricy. You can stay inside where there's a warren of rooms or take advantage of one of their two outside terraces. Out front you get a spectacular view of Gilbert Scott's Victorian masterpiece, the Midland Hotel while at the back you sup trackside to the glamorous Eurostar terminal. Ignore the snoggers statue if you can.

Just around the corner from Euston station so handy for the Victoria Line the Bree Louise is a beer afficianado's venue of choice in this area. The added bonus is being a stone's throw from Drummond Street where you can get excellent Indian food at rock-bottom prices. It's what Brick Lane is meant to be but isn't.

So that's a quick guide, if you have other favourites get in touch and maybe I'll check them out and add them to the blog! If you want to see where I'm talking about go to the Google map below ...

https://drive.google.com/open?...

So thanks to our friends at Enovate Design we have a brand new website. We asked them to help us to create a site that is clear and simple to use that will help our existing  and potential customers to find out about what we have to offer.

But we want to offer more than that. We're a local business and our management team have lived in the area for over twenty years. Which means that we care about our local community and want to tell the world about the great things that are happening around Manor House, as well as in London as a whole.

For up to date local and London news you can follow our Twitter feed or look up our Facebook page. But we'll also be posting regularly entries in our blog to tell you about where to eat and what to do around London to help you make the most out of your stay with us.

Today's image is of Manor House station, our nearest tube stop. For over twenty years now it's been our gateway to all of the great things London has to offer - from Premier League football to world class music, from shopping in the West End to great street food in Camden Town. If you're staying with us and you want us recommend somewhere to make your trip to London memorable why not mention it in your enquiry and we'll do our best to come up with something off the tourist grid that you can tell your friends about when you get home.

This is a beautiful new sculpture in St Paul’s Churchyard by Nigel Boonham. The statue fits in very well with the general sprucing up of the landscape to the south of the Cathedral and is a noble addition to an area which is perfect for a sandwich break if you’re tootling around the City (in good weather, of course!).

Donne was Dean of St. Paul’s in the 16th Century and had a fascinating life which included being locked up for eloping with his wife, fighting against the Spanish at Cadiz and of course giving some hell-fire sermons in church.

What he’s most famous for now is his poetry. You may not know his poems individually but many of his phrases have seeped into the everyday fabric of the English language.

No, you can’t see it in this photo as the picture was taken from the bell-tower of the Cathedral. Not to be confused with the Abbey, Westminster Cathedral is a beautiful building close to Victoria Station.

As well as visiting the church, which is the focus for the Roman Catholic community in London, you can ascend the bell-tower in a lift that dates back to 1929. While not as high as the view one gets from the London Eye or the Shard it is unusual in being situated in the west of London and gives great views over royal London and the Houses of Parliament , as can be seen above. And it’s a bargain at £5 too (£2.50 for children).

If you do go up you’ll be following in the footsteps of the hero and villain of Alfred Hitchcock’s film, ‘Foreign Correspondent’ which features a struggle to the death in the bell-tower. Fortunately there are barriers in place nowadays to prevent sightseers from suffering a similar fate.

While summer hasn’t exactly started yet in London the cricket is nevertheless in full swing. This was Lord’s on a beautiful Sunday afternoon with Middlesex playing Somerset.

With no Olympics this summer Middlesex will be playing lots of matches at Lord’s, meaning that there’s a great opportunity to visit the world-famous ‘Home of Cricket’ and take in a typically English scene.