Simon Willison’s Weblog

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54 items tagged “london”

2019

London Silver Vaults on Niche Museums. I’m keeping up my streak of posting a new museum I’ve visited to niche-museums.com daily—today’s entry is the London Silver Vaults, which I think are one of London’s best kept secrets: 30 specialist silver merchants in a network of vaults five storeys below Chancery Lane. # 12th December 2019, 2:40 am

2017

Where do you like to eat in London?

I adore Ya Hala next to Paddington station—Lebanese food (so lots of veggie options), open until midnight, really good tea as well. It’s my first stop in London whenever I’m visiting, since you can get directly there from Hearhrow on the Heathrow Express train.

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2016

Difficulty level: Eating dumplings

When I lived in Islington a few years ago I really liked New Culture Revolution for dumplings. It was never busy, not very expensive and the food was great.

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2015

How can I negotiate a free conference venue in London?

The two top options in my experience are universities (including student unions) and private companies with good meeting facilities.

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2013

What are the best ramen places in London?

The big four are Bone Daddies, Tonkotsu, Shoryu and Ittenbari, all in or around Soho. You can find them all on my foursquare list here: Ramen in London

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Does Facebook fly you to London when you apply for this office or are the interviews done remotely?

If they are anything like Google (which I expect they are) they will do the initial interviews remotely and then fly promising candidates to the London office (or even to California) for in-person interviews.

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What are some of the best offbeat attractions in London?

Camden Passage antiques market in Islington (near Angel tube) should be right up your street. It’s full of fascinating characters and intriguing shops, including bits and pieces of WWII memorabilia.

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What are the most “New Yorkers” experiences you can do in London?

There’s a Shake Shack (legendary NY burger chain) in Covent Garden now.

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Which investors would consider a natural language processing startup in London?

I don’t know the answer, but I know how you can find it: track down as many London-based AI/machine learning/NLP startups as you can and look at who their investors are.

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Where is Twitter’s office in London?

Just off Great Portland Street.

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How can I find short-term work experience at a startup in London?

Take a look at www.enternships.com—lots of London startup intern opportunities listed there.

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What are the cheapest ways for a single man to eat in London without cooking?

24 hour fried chicken joints are a relatively cheap source of calories if you want hot food and don’t want to cook.

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Which companies in London are using Python?

We use Python/Django for http://lanyrd.com/—we’re based in London.

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What things can you find in London but not in New York City?

A train that will take you directly to Paris.

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Where can I get Korean alcoholic soju yoghurt in London?

We found somewhere! Han Kang near Tottenham Court Road https://plus.google.com/10738855...

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Where do I find out about interesting upcoming events in London?

I’m a big fan of Ian Visits: London Events Listings Guide for finding out about some of the more obscure events going on. Ian is an excellent curator with impecable taste in cultural events, and frequently lists guest lectures, guided walks, tours and other events that you may not hear about anywhere else.

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Which restaurants in London serve orange or lemon sorbet served in a hollowed out orange or lemon?

Thanks to Twitter I’m informed that Ciao Bella on Lamb’s Conduit Street has the lemon version.

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What are some hidden gem restaurants in London for trying food from different countries, aside from the plenty of Indian, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Italian restaurants?

I’ll throw in a few of my favourites...

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What should one bring on a trip to London?

Bring an unlocked smartphone (Google Maps is essential, it has excellent public transport directions—don’t trust Apple Maps). You can get a pay-as-you-go SIM when you arrive, provided your phone is unlocked (check that you will be able to put a UK SIM in it).

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What is the best food in London for under £20?

In terms of chain burger restaurants, Byron is excellent—much better than GBK.

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2012

What are some great things happening in London in January 2013?

Keep an eye on the events calendar on Ian Visits: London Events Listings Guide—it doesn’t have much for January yet but closer to the time you can guarantee Ian will have tracked down some fascinating, obscure and worthwhile London events. He’s amazingly good at tracking down the weirder side of London—parades, one-off openings of private houses, guest lectures, guided walking tours and so on.

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What’s the best free online newspaper in the U.K?

The Guardian. (OK, I used to work there, but I would say the same even if I hadn’t. It’s a world class newspaper with a truly excellent website) http://www.guardian.co.uk/

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What communities and interest groups in London should software developers get involved in?

The monthly Hacker News London Meetup Group (held near Old Street) is a great opportunity to meet up with entrepreneurial-minded hackers—the talks are usually a good combination of technical and startup/entrepreneur material, and it attracts a really interesting crowd.

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What recommendations are there for conference venues in London for between 50-100 people?

The Magic Circle offer a small, intimate venue with some great history. They are just behind Euston Station. They can seat 150 people. http://themagiccirclevenue.co.uk/

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What are some fun things to do in Camden Town, London?

Check out Brew Dog http://www.brewdog.com/bars/camden—excellent craft beers and really good (and interesting) burgers.

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What are the few must-do things in London before one leaves this place for good?

In terms of museums, it really is worth checking out the big four: the British Museum, the Science Museum, the Natural History Museum and the V&A. They’re all exceptional (and free to enter). Here are some highlights...

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What are the best tech networking events / meetups / conferences in London?

Our startup Lanyrd helps people discover professional events, and we have a very healthy userbase in London. If you sign in to http://lanyrd.com/ with your Twitter account we’ll show you events the people you follow are tracking or plan to attend—knowing that someone you respect plans to spend the time to go to an event is a very strong form of recommendation. You can also browse our full list of events in London here: http://lanyrd.com/places/london/

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What are the coolest things to do in Dalston Junction (London, UK)?

That’s about 20 minutes from Broadway Market (at the south end of London Fields) which is very nice at the weekend.

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For a first-time visitor but longtime Anglophile, what’s essential to see and do in London?

Don’t spend too much time on the tube. It’s fast and convenient (and a marvellous piece of Victorian engineering) but its often better to walk if your journey is less than three stops. London is a delightful city to walk around, and you’re certain to see all sorts of interesting buildings on a 10 minute walk through any area. Get a data SIM for your phone and use your maps app to avoid getting lost and you’ll have the freedom to explore all kinds of interesting streets that most tourists who stick to the tube for everything completely miss.

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How do I get inside Battersea Power Station?

I think it’s available to hire as a venue—there was a conference there called the PowerOfOne last year.

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