Let's Go Back To Dalston

Dean Nicholas
By Dean Nicholas Last edited 179 months ago
Let's Go Back To Dalston

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Image by dartar
Hep-cats, it's time to move on up out of E8. Dalston has been lauded by the Guardian, that barometer of the cultural zeitgeist, as the coolest place in Britain.

Citing the presence of trend-forgers such as Christopher Kane, Terry de Havilland and Lightspeed Champion, and highlighting nightspots such as Disco Bloodbath and the newly-opened Dalston Superstore (Barden's Boudoir is so 2006, people), the newspaper hails it as being "like the lower east side of Manhattan in the late Nineties", and the perfect antidote to Shoreditch's overpriced cocktail bars and member's clubs.

Add in the growing number of local entrepreneurs and the long-awaited new station due to open next year, Dalston does indeed seem to be moving beyond its previous notoriety as drug-ridden dangerspot and throwaway Razorlight lyric. And the seal of approval from the Guardian will bring the area's changes to a wider audience, shaving the final bit of parmesan over the "regeneration" risotto and all the good and bad that gentrification brings to an area. Enjoy Dalston while you still can.

Last Updated 27 April 2009