AT PROUD

Camden can rightly be proud of this former horse hospital turned bar, exhibition space and live music venue, set above the mobbed Stables market. High-energy revellers may have replaced the knackered steeds, but the building’s singular character remains blissfully intact.

Off a central cobbled walkway at the back are several converted stables; one houses the main bar, the rest serve as individual drinking booths, mixing peeling wooden partitions and original tethering rings with plasma TVs and black and white photographs of rock gods of old. A huge vaulted glass ceiling rises overhead and vivid green sculptures of meerkats, greyhounds and other such creatures clamber up the worn wooden beams.

By the building’s front entrance are two white, minimalist exhibition spaces (where the black and white photos of musical legends that regularly adorn the walls can be yours for a mere 500 or so quid).The largest serves as the venue’s club and music space, dominated by a stage where live acts play indie rock, hip hop, jazz and electro to an up-for-it, eclectic crowd that encompasses trendies, drainpipe-jeaned rockers, glam girls and the odd stray tourist.

There’s so much going on here that the drinks are almost beside the point, but drinkers will not be disappointed. Wines, spirits and international bottled beers are the name of the game and the outdoor terrace is the perfect place to pull up a rock star emblazoned deck chair and sip on a bottle of Estrella or Harbin whilst taking in an appropriately urban view over Camden’s rooftops and train tracks.