Looking for 10 things to do in London? Luckily, there’s lots to do in this city for cheap in 2025! At least… there is now.

Metro has teamed up with Time Out to bring you the best deals across the capital.

Every Friday, 10 new deals will drop, available in the Metro newspaper, on Metro, and on our socials. You’ll also find them in our weekly London newsletter, The Slice, in your inbox every Wednesday.

Save over £50 on a Tapas Fiesta spread, and indulge in luxury tapas on Goodge Street. Spanish-Italian fusion offers an exciting flavour blend you don’t want to miss.

Or, get your hands dirty and enjoy BYOB pottery at Token Studio, for just £23 each. Why not release your inner creative while having a couple of drinks.

If it’s relaxation you’re craving, head to the The Spa at Athenaeum Hotel. 5-star luxury, minus the hefty price tag, as right now you’ll get 40% off.

It’s all here and more in these 10 incredible offers, discounts and deals.

Things to do in London this week

Experience three courses and a cocktail at Dear Jackie, Broadwick Soho for £33

Broadwick Soho landed in 2023 with instant West End swagger and hasn’t looked back since. Inside, Dear Jackie is its seductive Italian dining room, glowing with Murano glass, red silk walls and plush booths made for lingering. The menu delivers refined Italian comfort, from standout pasta to polished classics, while Bar Jackie warms things up with expertly mixed cocktails before dinner. With this exclusive Time Out offer, enjoy three courses and a cocktail for less, a perfect pre-theatre stop or the start of a Soho night that’s unlikely to end early.

GET THE OFFER

The Idler at The July Hotel Victoria: Enjoy up to 25% off set menus

The Idler has already made a strong impression in Victoria, thanks to its polished look, relaxed atmosphere and a menu that balances comfort with craft. It works for date nights, solo dinners at the marble-topped bar and quick plates between meetings, giving it an versatility. Choose from two or three courses and expect crisp, seasonal dishes with a Mediterranean lift. With up to 25% off, it’s a smart way to enjoy a space that feels both calm and considered in the middle of the city.

GET THE OFFER

35% off three courses and bubbles at Art Yard Bar & Kitchen, Bankside Hotel

Art Yard Bar & Kitchen brings a bright splash of creativity to Bankside, buzzing with colour, murals and the kind of atmosphere that makes you want to hang around. Led by Chef Adam Takac, the kitchen takes seasonality beyond the plate, treating every colour, texture and flavour as a canvas for the senses. The bar keeps things lively with cocktails inspired by the neighbourhood’s stories, alongside clever zero-proof mixes and a tidy wine list. Just next door, the Makers Studio adds an extra spark, with resident artists creating work on site and occasionally inspiring special dishes and drinks of their own.

GET THE OFFER

Three sharing courses and a cocktail at Gouqi by Tong Chee Hwee for £35

Chef Tong returns to London’s dining scene at Gouqi, bringing his acclaimed expertise from Singapore, Malaysia, and Hakkasan. Enjoy top-tier dining for just £35 per person (down from £45) , featuring a Supreme royal dim sum platter, Taiwanese three-cup chicken pot, or Claypot silken egg tofu with seasonal vegetables and steamed jasmine rice. Experience elevated Chinese cuisine that delights!

GET THE OFFER

Get 25% off bowling, pizza and drink at the world’s best bowling alley*

Experience bowling like never before at Vintners Lanes, Greenwich’s newest boutique hotspot, where industrial-chic design meets vintage charm. Recently crowned Best in the World at the 40th Annual Bowling Centre Architecture and Design Awards, this six-lane stunner serves up more than just strikes. With this exclusive offer, score 25% off a game of bowling, a fresh pizza, and your choice of pint, glass of wine, spirit and mixer or soft drink. Just fancy the lanes? You can grab a bowling session on its own from just £8.95 — the perfect reason to gather your mates and bowl the night away.

GET THE OFFER

60% off the ultimate BYOB pasta making class at Ann’s Smart School of Cookery

If your idea of pasta-making is tearing open a packet, it might be time to level up. Ann’s Smart School of Cookery has been running for nearly two decades, teaching thousands of Londoners (and beyond) how to turn out restaurant-worthy dishes in a laid-back, hands-on setting. For this class, you’ll be guided by professional chefs through an Italian-inspired menu: fluffy focaccia with balsamic dip, fresh spinach and ricotta cannelloni in a proper tomato sauce, and a creamy asparagus risotto with rocket. You’ll cook, taste and pick up kitchen tips you’ll actually use back home. Whether you fancy showing off to mates at your next dinner party or just want to sharpen your skills, this is a delicious way to spend an autumn afternoon.

GET THE OFFER

Save over £50 on a Tapas Fiesta menu to share at Salt Yard Goodge Street

Goodge Street Savour Spanish-Italian fusion with a mouthwatering small-plate feast at Salt Yard for just £30 per person (was £81). Enjoy dishes like padron peppers, poached chorizo picante, and truffle arancino, all crafted by Head Chef Panajot Prifti, plus cinnamon-dipped churros to finish. Don’t miss this unbeatable dining experience!

GET THE OFFER

Save 20% on a Fragrance Design Experience at The Perfume Studio

Step into the world of perfumery at The Perfume Studio’s Shoreditch experience and discover the magic of fragrance mixology. You’ll sip bubbly, explore scent families and blend a fragrance that’s entirely your own. From sparkling citrus to deep amber, you decide what goes in your bottle, and what it’s called. Walk away with your signature scent from this fun and unique fragrance experience.

GET THE OFFER

Unwind with a five-star luxury experience for two at The Spa at Athenaeum Hotel

Do you feel that? It’s the feeling of a long-awaited self-care day on the horizon! Invite a friend or partner to escape the hustle and bustle of central London and share a five-star luxury experience at Mayfair’s Athenaeum Hotel Spa. Spend a relaxing hour in the wet area, sauna, steam rooms and hot tub, then take your pick from a facial and body wrap treatment or massage. All this with a glass of bubbly for 40% off – you’ll find it hard to say no.

GET THE OFFER

Get the ultimate BYOB pottery experience from just £23 at Token Studio

Unleash your creativity at Token Studio with a fun 90-minute session! Try your hand at the potter’s wheel, create miniature pottery, or learn hand-building techniques. Prefer design? Opt for pottery painting and customize a mug, plate, or bowl. Plus, bring your favourite drinks to enjoy while you craft!

GET THE OFFER

MORE: You will now have your face scanned by live recognition cameras at London Bridge station

MORE: ‘My son was stabbed to death after being groomed – I’ve lost faith in the system’

MORE: Eastpak’s bold Keith Haring collaboration is perfect for kids, commuters and travellers

Angelenos were excited to see a taco cart in Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime show from Villa’s Tacos in Highland Park. 

It’s a taqueria with three store locations across LA. Locals are proud of its success. 

But few trolleys make the transition from street vendor to brick-and-mortar stores. And our local government isn’t making it any easier.

LA County just announced that it will be purchasing new equipment to give away to street vendors — “free.”

The “free” carts will be paid for by the taxes of LA County businesses — including brick-and-mortar restaurants, which are often in direct competition with the vendors. 

Some argue: hey, that’s just capitalism. Any restaurant worth its salt should have no problem competing with a little hot-dog stand next door. 

The problem is, it isn’t the big restaurants vs. the little vendors. It’s the struggling restaurants facing government taxes and fees, on the one hand, versus the nimble vendors who can evade those regulations, on the other.

In California, businesses pay state income tax, sales tax, unemployment insurance, and disability tax. Those taxes are on top of federal income, sales, and unemployment taxes, not to mention Social Security and Medicare taxes.  

In some states, restaurants can deduct what servers make in tips from their taxes. Not in California — where if a restaurant puts a required tip on the bill for a larger party, the owner has to pay taxes on the tip that goes to the server.

The City of LA adds its own sales tax, bringing the state and local total to 9.75%. There is also a city business tax, based on a percentage of what the business makes. 

Moreover, if a business operates out of a facility owned by the city or county, the business pays a “possessory interest tax,” which is essentially a property tax on a property you don’t own. The restaurant also has to pay liability insurance for the government property.  

LA City also charges its businesses an extra occupancy tax. There is even an “unsecured property tax” on any equipment the business owns or operates on government property.

Restaurants in California also have to pay for licenses from the health department and the fire department. They pay extra for a license to serve alcoholic beverages, or soft serve ice cream. They even pay a disposal fee and a fee to be connected to the sewer line.

While restaurants slow-boil in taxes and fees, their street vendor competitors don’t pay rent, or extra taxes on any facilities. They are not required to have hot running water, or provide a bathroom. And now, instead of being charged an unsecured property tax on their equipment, they are getting their carts for free from LA County.

Vendors rarely have employees, or they pay them under the table, so they don’t pay unemployment insurance or worker’s comp, while licensed restaurants in California pay some of the highest minimum wages in the country. Restaurants operating out of government spaces pay an even higher living wage. 

Restaurants, like all businesses in California, also deal with some of the worst laws for business owners, leading to frequent and frivolous law suits. One law, for example, says that an employee can sue her employer if she does not feel sufficiently protected from sexual harassment by a customer.

LA restaurants have had it particularly hard in the last few years. They faced some of the most stringent COVID rules and lockdowns, while street vendors were largely left alone. The COVID lockdowns also accelerated the trend towards delivery — and delivery companies often charge the restaurants 20-30%. 

The Palisades and Altadena Fires displaced entire communities, and while street vendors can pick up and move to better locations without much cost, brick-and-mortar restaurants are left to struggle with sky-high rents and declining business in new locations.

My father opened his first hamburger stand in LA in 1977, after immigrating to the U.S., and within a few years, he had three more. 

Back then, it cost him roughly fifty thousand dollars to start a new business. Today, it costs a new restaurant twenty thousand dollars just to connect to the sewer line.  

According to my dad, the entire process of starting a new restaurant costs around half a million. 

The truth is that the state and county’s policies aren’t even helping immigrant street vendors. Many of them find themselves trapped in small operations with low profit margins, unable to start a real business and begin building generational wealth.

Nothing in this world is ever free. Well before the socialists “eat the rich”, they will eat the dreams of the little immigrants, and destroy LA’s amazing restaurant culture for all of us.

So while we’re all happy for Villa’s Tacos, the cart is more useful as a halftime prop than as a business policy.

Lisa Cusack is Chairwoman of the California Republican 44th Assembly District and comes from a family of restaurateurs.