The Oxford Street basement that hosted the 1976 Punk Festival is the longest continuously running music venue in London and still books across genres from punk through Northern Soul.
Tip: There are no bad sightlines, the stage is at floor level. Get a drink before the headline, the bar queues 12 deep on a sold-out night.
Address: 100 Oxford Street, Fitzrovia, London W1D 1LL
The 10th-floor multi-storey carpark bar built by Practice Architecture for Bold Tendencies in 2009 is the summer fixture, with a Negroni view across south London and zero pretense to anything more.
Tip: Card only, no advance bookings, no table service. Get there before 18:00 on a Friday or you queue down the ramp.
The James Stirling postmodern roof garden above No.1 Poultry is the City rooftop institution, with a sunken lawn, a French restaurant and a bar terrace that catches the Bank of England light.
Tip: The garden is the bar, the restaurant is the formal room, sit in the garden for a drink and skip the menu unless you are expensing.
The 10th-floor terrace on Finsbury Square belongs to the Montcalm Royal London House and runs an all-day operation with City skyline views and a weekend Birdsong brunch that gets a DJ in.
Tip: Sunset slot 18:30 to 20:00 is the best light, book the terrace not the indoor section.
The Sea Containers 12th-floor cocktail bar on the South Bank looks out at St Paul's and the river, with a cocktail programme that earns its rooftop premium and small plates that justify staying for dinner.
Tip: The window seats book out for sunset, request one when you reserve. The corner with the Blackfriars view is the prize.
The One New Change rooftop bar and restaurant runs eye-level with the St Paul's dome, with a modern American menu downstairs and a long terrace bar that is the closest seat to the cathedral.
Tip: Walk straight through the restaurant to the bar terrace, the queue at the front desk is for diners only.
The 10th-floor terrace at ME London is the central rooftop with the 360-degree West End view, and the gin-and-tonic list and modern Asian plates keep it from being only a view bar.
Tip: Book a window banquette on the north side for the Trafalgar and St Martin's view, the south side gives the river.