Written by Becky Lima-Matthews
The inner-city district of Somers Town is connected to three major railway stations, Euston, King’s Cross, and St Pancras. It’s a great place to explore some of London’s hidden gems. The area itself is quite small, and rolls into both King’s Cross and Euston. And as with many London areas, boundaries can be moved and contested, so for the purposes of this guide – we’re lovingly connecting Euston and Somers Town together.
This part of London is home to some of the city’s most interesting museums, as well as great places to eat, drink and wander. For a glimpse at what the area looked like pre the St Pancras Eurostar terminus build, check out Shane Meadows 2008 film Somers Town. From ancient artefacts to hidden tunnels, and lots of great food and drink options – here’s our hidden London guide to exploring Euston and Somers Town.
Getting to Euston and Somers Town
All of the locations in this article are fairly close together, so you can get to the area via all three of the major stations above which serve both mainline railway and London Underground.
On the underground, King’s Cross St Pancras is one stop that connects two major train stations, and it’s on the Victoria, Northern, Hammersmith & City, Piccadilly and Metropolitan lines.
Euston station is one of London’s busiest railway stations, in fact it’s the 10th busiest train station in the UK. It’s the station closest to the museums such as The Wellcome Trust, so head there if you want to start off with some exhibitions. In fact, Euston technically has two underground stations practically next to each other, Euston which is on the Victoria and Northern lines, and Euston Square which is on the Circle, Hammersmith & City, and Metropolitan lines.
Visit Grant Museum of Zoology
The Euston area is home to University College London, and one of the great things about London’s universities is that they often have small museums and galleries that are open to the public.
Grant Museum of Zoology is one such museum. It’s free to visit, and is home to around 68,000 zoological specimens and has been used by UCL students since 1828. It was opened to the public in 1996, and these days, you can peruse interesting exhibits pop in for lunchtime talks,
The university also runs several other museums nearby, including UCL Art Museum, UCL Pathology Museum and The Petrie Museum of Egyptian and Sudanese Archaeology.
Explore free science and art exhibitions at The Wellcome Collection
The Wellcome Collection museum and library is another great, free place to visit near Euston station. It has an emphasis on science, health and how they connect to being human.
One of the permanent exhibitions is even called Being Human, which invites visitors to explore the human experience in the 21st century, and explore genetics, climate activism, and an epidemic jukebox (packed full of infectious melodies, perhaps).
As well as the library and permanent exhibitions, The Wellcome Trust is full of interesting interactive collections and events, and very much rewards curious minds.
Eat Indian food on Drummond Street
Drummond Street is a quiet side street close to Euston and Warren street stations, and a hidden gem, especially for Indian food. There are restaurants in the area that have been running since the 1960s, including London Cheapo favourite Chutney’s.
At lunchtime, it’s all about the veggie buffet for around tenner per person and Chutney’s also has a great selection of dosa. If you’re visiting in the evening, it’s BYOB (bring your own bottle).
Other restaurants in the area include Shah Tandoori, Diwana Bhel Poori House, Drummond Villa and Taste of India.
Take a subterranean tour of some lost tunnels
What could be more hidden than a tunnel? Well, a lost tunnel, it turns out. One for history nerds, architecture geeks, transport enthusiasts and anyone interested in wandering a labyrinth of secret tunnels deep beneath London’s underground network.
You’ll need to book ahead for this one, and tickets cost £45.00 for a 75 minute tour run by London Transport Museum. It’s a rare chance to explore a truly hidden part of London. You can also use the ticket to get half price entry into the museum.
Tour highlights include preserved, disused parts of Euston tube station including the old posters and ads that adorned the walls when it closed in 1967 as well as original architectural features and secret passageways.
Check out the independent restaurants and galleries on Chalton Street
Chalton Street is arguably the heart of the Somers Town community, and it’s also home to a free street festival every July. But it’s always worth a wander, whatever the season or unpredictable British weather.
If you didn’t fill up on Indian food in Drummond Street, there’s no shortage of great places to eat at this nearby street including Mai Sushi, Italian food at Albertini and Chinese food at Dashuo. There’s also plenty of street food on Charlton Street Market on Wednesdays to Fridays. And if pub grub is your thing, check out the sprawling, yet someone still cosy, The Somers Town Coffee House which is a great neighbourhood spot.
Chalton Street is also home to some small, independent galleries including P21, which is dedicated to Arab art and artists, and Somers Gallery, which is a small, contemporary art gallery.
Watch live music at St Pancras Old Church
Once you’ve explored the streets of Somers Town, you can wind down with an atmospheric gig at St Pancras Old Church.
The tiny church hosts regular shows from musicians from all over the world including folk singer songwriters and international artists including Marlon Williams, and Sunflower Thieves. Definitely more of a soothing, sit-down after a day of walking than a rowdy gig vibe. But we can recommend plenty more small music venues if that’s what you’re looking for.
