Kensington High Street: Shop, Eat & Explore

Royal palaces, hidden Victorian homes, world-class culture and the best bites on one of London's finest streets

London · 10 stops · 2.8 km · ~1.3 h · Generated

  1. 1. High Street Kensington Tube Station

    High Street Kensington Underground Station, Kensington High Street, London W8 4PT

    Welcome to High Street Kensington... one of London's most storied streets, and a place where shopping, royalty, and sheer audacity have collided for over a hundred and fifty years.

    As you step out of the station, take a look around you. The entrance sits inside Kensington Arcade, which was built between nineteen oh six and nineteen oh seven as part of the station's redevelopment, designed by architect George Campbell Sherrin. And here's the clever bit... the space in that arcade was taken by two neighbouring department stores, Pontings and Derry and Toms. That's right. You could step off the train and walk straight into the shops without ever seeing daylight. A handbill from nineteen oh nine boasted that visitors could enjoy "comfortable and rapid travel by electric trains" and emerge "under cover all the way" — dry and unruffled on the wettest London day.

    Now, glance at the lampposts along the street. Do you notice anything unusual on top? Even some of the lampposts here are topped by a crown — a quiet reminder that you're standing in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, with Kensington Palace just a short walk away.

    But the Real secret of this street lies a few minutes down the road... six storeys above your head. The Roof Gardens sit a hundred feet above Kensington High Street on top of the former Derry and Toms building. Over a two-year period, Welsh landscape architect Ralph Hancock planted more than five hundred species of plants across one and a half acres. That's a Spanish garden, a Tudor garden, and an English woodland... complete with a flowing stream, full-grown trees, and — wait for it — Flamingos! Four flamingos called Bill, Ben, Splosh and Pecks have called this rooftop home.

    During the Second World War, the gardens survived Two German bombs. The first hit the Spanish Garden in nineteen forty, destroying its clock tower and falling down a staircase to the fourth floor, where it exploded. The second came in nineteen forty one... a large parachute bomb that landed on the tea pavilion but — miraculously — failed to explode.

    And those celebrity guest books from the war years? They contain signatures from Queen Mary, King Haakon of Norway, and actors like John Gielgud and Leslie Howard.

    Before you head off to explore the shops and restaurants of this magnificent street... take one more look at this arcade around you. It's one of the last surviving fragments of Pontings department store — the only remaining part of the original building. Everything else was demolished in the late nineteen seventies. But here, in this passageway, a ghost of Kensington's golden age of shopping still lingers.

  2. 2. Design Museum

    224-238 Kensington High Street, London W8 6AG

    Look at the striking building right in front of you. That dramatic, swooping roof... it looks like a copper tent about to take flight into Holland Park. But this building has lived two very different lives.

    This building was opened on the sixth of November, nineteen sixty-two, by Queen Elizabeth the Second herself. But back then, it wasn't a design museum at all. It was the Commonwealth Institute... a permanent exhibition designed to inform the public "how the rest of the Commonwealth lives."

    Now, look up at that roof. It was the First British example of a shallow pre-stressed concrete hyperbolic paraboloid roof... and the largest, covering over three thousand square meters. The design was inspired by Mexican engineer Felix Candela, a pioneer of this dramatic shell structure. And here's a detail most people miss... twenty-five tonnes of copper for that roof were donated by the Northern Rhodesia Chamber of Mines. That's modern-day Zambia. The building itself was assembled from materials gifted by Commonwealth nations. The hardwood floors came from Nigeria and Ghana, while the aluminium for the window frames came from British GuiAna.

    But then... the money ran out. In nineteen ninety-three, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office ceased funding the building's upkeep. By two thousand two, the trust closed the buildings completely and even pursued Delisting and demolition. This architectural gem sat vacant and decaying for over a decade.

    Enter Sir Terence Conran. The man who brought the duvet to Britain through his Habitat stores, who designed shops for Mary Quant, and who had a single obsession... making good design accessible to everyone. He had already founded the Design Museum in nineteen eighty-nine, following an innovative start as the Boilerhouse Project in the basement of the Victoria and Albert Museum. In twenty eleven, Conran donated seventeen point five Million pounds of his own money to move the museum here.

    The total transformation cost eighty-three million pounds. The Dutch firm Oma, led by Reinier de Graaf, reconfigured the interior, while minimalist architect John Pawson led the design. They essentially built a brand new building Inside the old one... while preserving that irreplaceable shell.

    And it worked. The move gave the museum three times more space than its previous location. Entry to the permanent collection is completely free. If you pop inside, head to the top floor... nearly a thousand items reveal the history of modern design, from the London twenty twelve Olympic Torch and the Sony Walkman to the Apple iPhone and even the British road signage system.

    Oh, and one more thing for the shoppers among you. The museum runs three shops, and as a charity, every purchase supports the museum. The gift shop alone is worth a visit... it's a curated showcase of brilliant contemporary design you can actually take home.

  3. 3. Leighton House Museum

    12 Holland Park Road, London W14 8LZ

    Take a good look at the building in front of you... number twelve, Holland Park Road. Plain red brick. Restrained. Almost modest. You'd walk right past it without a second glance. But behind that unassuming facade hides what one Victorian visitor called... "quite the eighth wonder of the world."

    This was the London home, studio, and thirty year long passion project of the Victorian painter Frederic Leighton. In the late nineteenth century, enormous wealth flowed to artists thanks to a booming middle class hungry for paintings. A community of high-profile painters grew up right here around the Holland Park estate... by the end of the eighteen hundreds, nine artists had commissioned purpose-built studio houses on this very street. Leighton was the grandest of them all.

    His architect friend George Aitchison designed the first part of the house in eighteen sixty-four, and it cost four thousand five hundred pounds. A reasonable sum. But then Leighton kept building... and building... for Three decades.

    The centrepiece? The Arab Hall. It was completed in eighteen eighty-two and cost More to build than the entire original house. Inside, more than one thousand tiles from Iznik, Damascus, and Persia line the walls, and the design was based on the twelfth century palace of La Zisa in Palermo, Sicily.

    But here's a detail most people miss. Leighton's obsession with collecting these tiles began over a casual conversation with the legendary explorer Richard Burton... in the spa town of Vichy in eighteen sixty-nine. Burton, then the British consul in Damascus, actually wrote to Leighton offering to "have a house pulled down" to get the tiles he wanted. Where tiles arrived damaged or incomplete, the ceramicist William De Morgan was brought in to make repairs and replacements so seamlessly you can barely tell the originals from the fakes.

    And the fountain in the center of the hall? It originally had goldfish swimming in it. Even the chandelier overhead was copied from a drawing Leighton made of a light fixture in the Umayyad Mosque of Damascus.

    Now... the most poignant detail of all. Frederic Leighton was the First painter in history to receive a peerage. The patent creating him Baron Leighton was issued on the twenty-fourth of January, eighteen ninety-six. He died the very next day. His hereditary title was extinguished after existing for only One day... the shortest-lived peerage in British history.

    So what happened to this extraordinary house? After his death, the contents were sold off, including over a thousand of his own drawings. But in twenty twenty-six, Leighton House celebrates one hundred years as a public museum. Step inside if you can. From the street it's just another Kensington townhouse... but through that door lies a piece of Damascus, a piece of Sicily, and the dream of a man who spent a lifetime turning his home into a work of art.

  4. 4. 18 Stafford Terrace — Sambourne House

    18 Stafford Terrace, London W8 7BH

    Step away from Kensington High Street for just a moment... and step back a hundred and fifty years. Because here, at number eighteen Stafford Terrace, hides one of London's most extraordinary secrets — a house frozen in time since the eighteen eighties.

    Considered the best-preserved Victorian townhouse in the world, eighteen Stafford Terrace was the home of Edward Linley Sambourne, a noted cartoonist for Punch magazine, from eighteen seventy-five to nineteen ten. From the outside? It's indistinguishable from every other white townhouse on the street. There's no grand sign... in fact, the entrance is down a set of servants' stairs in the half-basement.

    But step inside... and the twenty-first century simply vanishes.

    The house is a fine example of middle-class Aestheticism — from decorative sunflower motifs in the stained glass windows, to William Morris wallpapers, to a displayed collection of blue-and-white Chinese porcelain. Every wall, every surface is Covered. Over a thousand cartoons, drawings, and sketches hang on the walls.

    Now here's what makes Linley Sambourne truly fascinating. He was originally apprenticed to marine engineers in Greenwich — he trained to build ship engines, not draw cartoons! But a friend showed one of his sketches to Punch's editor... and that changed everything. Sambourne worked for Punch for forty-two years, producing roughly three thousand cartoons and rising to the prestigious position of First Cartoonist.

    And his secret weapon? Photography. He was an early adopter, using models — and often Himself — to better capture the human form. He amassed an enormous archive of some thirty thousand images. He'd dress up in elaborate costumes, photograph himself in dramatic poses, then use those images as references for his cartoons. Quite the method actor of the illustration world!

    But the story gets even richer. It was Here, in February of nineteen fifty-eight, that the Victorian Society was founded — by Sambourne's granddaughter Anne, Countess of Rosse, along with John Betjeman, Nikolaus Pevsner, and Hugh Casson. And Anne's son? Sambourne's great-grandson was Antony Armstrong-Jones, who married Princess Margaret and became the Earl of Snowdon. The subsidiary Linley title honoured Lord Snowdon's great-grandfather Linley Sambourne. So a middle-class cartoonist's family name became a Royal title.

    The house also had a second life on screen. Eighteen Stafford Terrace served as the set for Mrs. Vyse's London home in the Merchant Ivory film A Room with a View. It also appeared in Jeeves and Wooster as the home of one of Bertie's terrifying aunts, and in Brideshead Revisited as Charles Ryder's father's home.

    Oh, and one more thing. Sambourne House sits just a couple of doors down from Freddie Mercury's old flat at number twelve Stafford Terrace. A Victorian cartoonist and a rock legend... separated by just six front doors and about a hundred years. Not bad for one quiet Kensington street.

  5. 5. Japan House London

    101-111 Kensington High Street, London W8 5SA

    Look at this sleek facade right here on Kensington High Street. You might walk past and think it's just another upmarket shop... but step through those doors, and you'll find yourself transported five thousand miles east, straight to the heart of Japan.

    This is Japan House London, and it's set in a striking nineteen thirties Art Deco building... one with a fascinating past. This structure was designed by Bernard George, who served as chief architect for Barkers of Kensington, creating both the Barkers and Derry and Toms department stores along this very street. So you're standing in what was once part of Kensington's golden age of grand retail.

    Now, in twenty eighteen, Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs chose This building for something extraordinary. The Japan House program was planned from twenty fourteen and budgeted at thirty five million US dollars. London was the third Japan House to open, after Los Angeles and São Paulo. And the creative mind behind it all? Hara Kenya... President of Nippon Design Center, Art Director of Muji, and Chief Creative Director of Japan House London.

    Here's a detail most visitors miss. Look down at the floor when you go inside. Almost every aspect of this place is derived from source in Japan, including hand-made Kawara floor tiles from Japan's Awaji Island. These aren't decorative tiles... they're traditional Japanese roof tiles, repurposed as flooring. Every single one was crafted by hand.

    And then there's the philosophy of Monozukuri, the Japanese concept of making things with soul. "It takes a Month to make one pair of the nail clippers on sale," one of the directors has said. A month! For nail clippers! That tells you everything about the standard here.

    Inside, a vast spiral staircase, created and imported from Japan, winds around a transparent circular lift... leading you down to a rotating gallery in the basement. And if you're hungry, head upstairs. The restaurant was created by decorated chef Shimizu Akira, and there's a sake bar separated by an artisanal screen showcasing the craft of Japanese basketry.

    Oh, and one more thing before you go in. Do visit the bathrooms. I'm serious. There's a warmed up toilet seat and a computerized panel that lets you... customize the experience. It's the most Japanese thing in all of Kensington. Entry is free. Enjoy the discovery.

  6. 6. Whole Foods Market Kensington

    63-97 Kensington High Street, London W8 5SE

    Look up at this sweeping curve of cream stone and glass... and you're standing before one of Kensington's most extraordinary buildings. Today it's a Whole Foods Market, but this Grade Two Listed Art Deco masterpiece has a story that stretches back more than a hundred and fifty years.

    It all began in eighteen seventy, when a man named John Barker and his partner James Whitehead opened a modest little drapery shop right here on Kensington High Street. But Barker was no ordinary shopkeeper. He'd been a star salesman at Whiteley's famous emporium in Westbourne Grove, quickly promoted to departmental manager. He'd hoped to be made partner... but when Whiteley refused, Barker left and struck out on his own.

    And what happened next was Relentless. By eighteen seventy one, he'd bought the shop next door. Then the one after that. By eighteen eighty, he'd swallowed up an ironmonger's on Ball Street. And by eighteen ninety two, his empire stretched across the entire block... forty two departments and workshops! Over a thousand staff worked here, handling more than two thousand parcels a day.

    But Barker wasn't just a merchant. He served as an Alderman on the very First London County Council, became a Liberal Member of Parliament, and was awarded a baronetcy in nineteen oh eight. Sir John Barker... draper turned knight.

    Now, the building you see today is Not his original shop. That was replaced thanks to architect Bernard George, who worked as Barkers' in-house designer from nineteen twenty eight to nineteen sixty two, crafting both this building and the neighboring Derry and Toms in his signature Art Deco style. Construction on Barkers began in the nineteen thirties, but was only two thirds complete when war was declared in nineteen thirty nine. Work didn't resume until April nineteen fifty five, and the new store finally opened in September nineteen fifty eight. That's a building nearly Thirty years in the making.

    And did you know that at its peak, this single stretch of Kensington High Street housed Three department stores under the same ownership? Barkers, Derry and Toms, and Pontings... all side by side. Many thought they rivaled the grand shops of Oxford Street.

    Then on June sixth, two thousand and seven, Whole Foods Market opened its flagship United Kingdom store right here... the first Whole Foods in Europe, spanning eighty thousand square feet. When you walk in, the ground floor is still called "Provision Hall," a name borrowed from the original Barkers store.

    So whether you're here for artisan cheese or organic sourdough... take a moment to look UP at those sweeping Art Deco lines and remember... you're shopping in what was once the beating heart of Kensington retail royalty.

  7. 7. Kensington Church Street Antiques Strip

    Kensington Church Street, London W8 4DB

    Take a look at the street you're standing on. Kensington Church Street... it may look like a quiet, elegant row of shopfronts today, but this road is Ancient. Originally, it was created as a narrow lane to connect two Roman roads — one heading to Bath, the other to Oxford — linking them to the City of London. The south part was formerly called Church Lane, and the north part had a rather telling name... Silver Street. And if you can believe it, until eighteen sixty-four, there was actually a toll gate right here at Campden Street. You had to Pay to walk up this hill.

    Now, look at the shop windows around you. There are over sixty antique dealers peppered along this stretch, offering everything from classical art to treasured artifacts. But here's a detail most people miss... this street became known in the trade as "Crock Alley" because of the sheer concentration of antique ceramic dealers. Famous names like Graham and Oxley, Klaber and Klaber, and Jonathan Horne all set up shop here. The street has been important for antique shops from the nineteen twenties right up to today.

    And it's not just antiques. Most of the shops on this street are members of the prestigious British Antique Dealers Association — and it's claimed that this thoroughfare has the country's Highest density of Bada members. The Rowley Gallery, a picture-frame maker, has had premises here since eighteen ninety-eight.

    But here's where the story gets really interesting. From nineteen sixty-six to nineteen sixty-nine, this very street was home to Biba — the legendary fashion boutique run by Polish-born Barbara Hulanicki. Time magazine called it "the most in-shop for gear." And a young Anna Wintour — yes, The Anna Wintour — famously did a stint as a Saturday shop girl at the Kensington Church Street location. Picture that... the future editor of Vogue, folding minidresses right here on this pavement.

    And just steps away, tucked behind the church on Kensington Church Walk... the American poet Ezra Pound lived at number ten from nineteen oh nine until nineteen fourteen. Before nineteen thirteen, three of the great Imagist poets all lived on that tiny lane — Pound at number ten, Richard Aldington at number eight, and Hilda Doolittle at number six — and they walked together daily to the British Museum Reading Room. Pound even married Dorothy Shakespear right here at Saint Mary Abbots Church in nineteen fourteen.

    So as you browse these windows full of Georgian silver and Victorian jewellery, remember — you're walking a street where Roman soldiers once marched, where Swinging Sixties fashion was Born, and where modern poetry was quietly being reinvented... in a rented room just around the corner.

  8. 8. The Ivy Kensington Brasserie

    96 Kensington High Street, London W8 4SG

    Now take a look at that beautiful building right across from the Kensington High Street tube station. That's The Ivy Kensington Brasserie... and it carries one of the most storied names in British dining.

    The original Ivy was opened by a man named Abel Giandolini in nineteen seventeen... as a humble, unlicensed Italian café in London's West End. Picture this: lino floors, paper napkins, one cook, and no drinks licence. If you wanted a glass of wine, one of the two waitresses would have to dash out to the nearest pub to fetch it for you!

    But here's the story that gave the restaurant its famous name. Legend has it that the French actress Alice Delysia overheard Giandolini apologizing to a customer about building works. When he explained his dream to create a restaurant of the highest class, she interjected... "Don't worry, we will always come and see you. We will cling together like the ivy." That line was borrowed from a popular nineteen-oh-two song. And the name... stuck.

    The restaurant quickly became a theatrical institution, with Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh, Marlene Dietrich, John Gielgud, and Noël Coward all having their regular two-seater tables along the walls. By the outbreak of World War Two, it was attracting everyone from Hollywood stars to Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

    Now, fast forward to twenty fifteen. The Ivy Kensington Brasserie opened on the fifteenth of December, twenty fifteen, right here at ninety-six Kensington High Street. It took over the space where Pavilion's Restaurant and Bar used to be. The building itself dates back to the nineteen twenties, and has been completely transformed.

    The critically acclaimed Martin Brudnizki Design Studio consulted on the interiors... think antique pewter-top bar, vintage-style green bar stools and leather banquettes, striking brass light fittings, decorative mirrors, and marble flooring. The art nouveau look of the original Ivy carries through here... with checkerboard flooring, suspended globe ceiling lights, and mirrored walls.

    And here's a little insider tip. The restaurant has a large covered terrace at the rear that overlooks the tranquil gardens of Saint Mary Abbots church. It's one of Kensington's best-kept secrets... a hidden garden oasis just steps from the bustle of the High Street.

    Whether you pop in for a coffee on the terrace or settle into those leather banquettes for the famous shepherd's pie... you're sitting in a small piece of a dining empire that began over a hundred years ago... all because of one actress and a catchy song lyric.

  9. 9. Royal Garden Hotel Rooftop View

    Royal Garden Hotel, 2-24 Kensington High Street, London W8 4PT

    Now look at this spot... the Royal Gar-den Hotel. From out here on Kensington High Street, it looks like a fairly ordinary tower. But this building holds layers of history that most people walking past never suspect.

    The first hotel to stand on this very spot was the King's Arms, a grand old tavern with a lively bar on the ground floor and guest rooms above — a popular stop for travellers. Then, in eighteen ninety-three, the Royal Palace Hotel replaced it, transforming this corner into one of the World'S largest hotels at the time, boasting over three hundred rooms, elegant lounges, and a magnificent ballroom. And here's a detail I love... the Victorian building even featured a flat rooftop promenade that doubled as a smoking lounge — quite an innovative touch for its era.

    During the Second World War, the Royal Palace was taken over and used as headquarters for the Women's Royal Voluntary Service. Then the old Victorian giant was demolished, and a new building was designed by the renowned — and deeply controversial — architect Colonel Richard Sei-fert, completed in nineteen sixty-five.

    Now, Sei-fert is a fascinating figure. He and his company were responsible for More London buildings than Sir Christopher Wren — Centre Point, the NatWest Tower, you name it. The Royal Garden was one of a Trio of hotels he designed around Hyde Park. But here's the juicy bit... He managed to get on the wrong side of Princess Margaret, who expressed her dislike for his Royal Garden Hotel overlooking her garden at Kensington Palace. Imagine having a Princess as your angry neighbour!

    The hotel opened just in time for something legendary. In nineteen sixty-six, it was the venue for the draw for the Fifa World Cup — and then hosted the celebration following England's World Cup Victory. Bobby Charlton and the boys partied right here. This had much to do with the location on High Street Kensington, where swinging London took off in the sixties. Guests included Sonny and Cher, Abba, and the Monkees. From Elton John to Princess Margaret herself — yes, she eventually came around — a whole superstar cast of celebrities stayed here.

    And here's something wonderfully quirky. In nineteen ninety-one, the hotel served as the base for the Japanese sumo delegation during the First overseas sumo tournament, staged at the Royal Albert Hall. Picture that... enormous sumo wrestlers checking into this Kensington hotel.

    Now, if you glance at the gas lamps near Kensington Palace just up the road, you'll notice they're crowned with royal crowns on top, finished in gold leaf — a subtle reminder that you're walking on royal ground.

    And for those of you thinking about eating... up on the tenth floor sits Min Jiang, an acclaimed fine-dining Chinese restaurant celebrated for its refined Sichuan and Cantonese cooking and sweeping views over Hyde Park. Their wood-fired Beijing Duck, prepared according to an ancient Chinese recipe, is legendary. It's one of the Best dining views in all of London... and quite possibly the best Peking duck too.

  10. 10. Kensington Palace — The Sunken Garden

    Kensington Palace, London W8 4PX

    Take a deep breath... and look around you. Right here, tucked behind the walls of Kensington Palace, is one of London's most quietly Powerful spots... the Sunken Garden.

    Now, you might not guess it, but this elegant space was first designed and constructed in nineteen oh eight, on ground previously occupied by nothing more glamorous than potting sheds and greenhouses. The new layout was modelled on the Pond Garden at Hampton Court Palace, celebrating a formal Edwardian style of gardening. The garden is terraced with ornamental flower beds surrounding a central ornamental pond.

    But the story of this ground goes back much further. In sixteen ninety, King William the Third and Queen Mary the Second purchased a mansion on the edge of Hyde Park to be their London home. They renamed it Kensington Palace, and Mary began to create a flower garden with box hedges in the Dutch style... to remind the King of his Dutch homeland. And can you guess who Else called this palace home? The future Queen Victoria was born right here on the twenty-fourth of May, eighteen nineteen... in the dining room of all places! It seems a strange choice, but hot water could be brought up more easily from the kitchens.

    Now look at the covered walkway surrounding the garden. That's called the Cradle Walk, and it has a rather charming nickname. It was once affectionately known as the "Nanny Walk," because royal nannies would gather here while watching over young princes and princesses... pushing prams or pausing in the fresh air.

    But the reason Most people come here today... is for Diana. This was Princess Diana's favourite spot during the fifteen years she lived in the palace. She often spent time here and regularly spoke with the gardeners, admiring the flower displays. Imagine her, walking these very paths in the quiet of the morning.

    Her sons William and Harry commissioned a statue of their mother on the twentieth anniversary of her death, designed by sculptor Ian Rank-Broadley. It was unveiled on the first of July, twenty twenty-one, on what would have been Diana's sixtieth birthday, and shows her surrounded by three children who represent the universality and generational impact of her work.

    And here's something most visitors miss. A paving stone in front of the statue features an extract from the poem "The Measure of a Man"... the same poem used in the memorial service marking the tenth anniversary of Diana's death in two thousand and seven. Five gardeners spent a total of one thousand hours planting over four thousand individual flowers, including over two hundred roses of five varieties.

    Oh, and before you leave... look across the grounds toward the east front of the palace. There you'll find a statue of Queen Victoria, and here's a wonderful detail... it was sculpted by her own daughter, Princess Louise. Louise submitted her entry anonymously, and it was selected by the judging panel. She was herself resident at Kensington Palace and sculpted the statue at her studio right here on the grounds. A mother immortalised by her daughter... and a princess, immortalised by her sons. This garden holds both stories, separated by more than a century, yet bound by the same thread of love.