This week saw the launch of a £2m marketing campaign for the capital, spearheaded by the Only in London 100 – a bounteous list of largely predictable tourist favourites, punctuated by occasional gems. Alongside the London Eye, the O2 Centre and, erm, Heathrow, the list includes a Chinese art deco cinema in Southall, the world's oldest surviving music hall, and the Regency splendour of the riverside Trafalgar Tavern in Greenwich.
But for a slightly more leftfield list, we turned to five London experts for their personal picks... that didn't make the list.
York Hall boxing, by Chloe McCloskey, Managing Editor, le cool London
For a true taste of British boxing, you can't do better than a visit to York Hall on fight night. This 1200-capacity venue is a pivotal feature in the history of fighting in the East End's once-gritty (now slightly gentrified) Bethnal Green. The hall opened in 1929 and was mainly home to amateur matches until the mid-1960s when neighbouring Shoreditch Town Hall closed its doors to the sport. From that point on Bethnal Green became the focal point for those going toe to toe in the ring and it's still one of the best arenas in the country - it has hosted the likes of Lennox Lewis and Joe Calzaghe - with an atmosphere like a lion's den.
• 5-15 Old Ford Road. Further info about forthcoming events.
Snooping through socialite mansions, by Diamond Geezer
Eltham Palace is unique. It's a curious hybrid of medieval palace and art deco mansion, fused together in the 1930s by banking socialites Ginny and Stephen Courtauld. Their portholed lounge looks like it belonged on a luxury ocean liner. Their elaborate marble dining room looks like it came straight from an episode of Poirot. And their Great Hall, complete with hammerbeam roof, looks like somewhere that Tudor courtiers might have spent Christmas ... which in fact they did. This is an extraordinary house with an intricate surprise around every corner, none more so than the centrally heated cage on the first floor landing where the Courtaulds kept their pet lemur. From the ornamental moat to the gold-tiled en-suite, the entire building reeks of cultured decadence.
Cycling towards an Olympic vista, by Dave Hill, The Guardian's London blogger
The site of the 2012 Olympics stadium and surrounding park is a place to ponder east London's past, present and future all at the same time, and to marvel at the mad romance of the Olympic dream. The place to view it from is the Greenway, a raised foot and cycle trail connecting the bank of the River Lea in Hackney Wick with Stratford. Gaze at the steadily assembling concrete and girder bowl where the running, throwing and jumping will take place, rising from the ashes of an old industrial twilight zone. Heaven only knows if all this industry will generate the promised regeneration legacy, but it's kind of humbling to watch it try. And when you've finished contemplating it you can return to the river, with its locks and narrowboats or take in a play at the Theatre Royal, Stratford East.
Pretend you are a Tudor, by M@ Brown, Londonist editor
The Queen Elizabeth Hunting Lodge has stood on the edge of Epping Forest for nearly half a millennium. It was built for Henry VIII in 1544 as a "hunt standing" - a place where king and courtiers could aim crossbows at the deer grazing below on Chingford Plain (today populated by the equally tempting target of model aircraft enthusiasts). Sadly, there's no evidence that the corpulent monarch ever visited, but his daughter, Queen Elizabeth I, is said to have ridden up the stairs on a white horse. The lodge is freely open to visitors. Wannabe Walter Raleighs can handle a replica crossbow, learn Tudor joinery or cookery skills and dress up in ruffs and doublets. This summer, a packed schedule of family events will celebrate the 500th anniversary of Henry's accession, including an evening concert and archery demonstration.
Stuff yourself silly at Nico's, By Blake Pudding, Associate Editor, London Review of Breakfasts
Nico's is famous for the sheer size of their breakfasts. Theo Theodopoulos, who runs the place with military precision, seems to have a phobia of any customer leaving the shop hungry. If you order a bacon sandwich he'll ask you if you want chips with that and if you say no, he'll give you some anyway on the house because he knows what you want better than you do. They even have specially designed plates capable of holding vast amounts of food. I normally order bacon, bubble, eggs and tomatoes - for this the entire enormous plate is layered with bacon and then the rest of the food is placed on top. I often struggle to finish but what I order is a mere aperitif compared with some of the meals served here. Come hungry and you'll leave happy.
• 299 Cambridge Heath Road, Bethnal Green
