Ohhh May, how you spoil us! With two bank holidays up your sleeve, we're taking the first one in our stride. So this weekend the main themes are lunching, brunching and sky-high dining – some new, some old and some fancy. But if you must party, we say, go hard or go home, meaning two things – tequila and Ministry. Plus, we've included our LA, IMS Engage, and Coachella roundup. Enjoy! This Weekend’s Picks • FRI City Social • SAT Lyle's • SUN Edible Cinema UJ TRACK OF THE WEEK Check out the latest electronic ballad from Andrew Armstrong and Ra Black Living Without You. Add it to your weekend playlist now! #UJLOVES Play REMINDER CHILLI CHILLI BANG BANG BOOK NOW FOR 09 & 10 MAY With Chilli Chilli Bang Bang fast approaching, we thought it was high time to remind you about the heat wave hitting Dalston Yard. You know the drill: the festival -all about chilli peppers- sees boldface chefs including Martin Morales (Ceviche), Stevie Parle (Rotorino) and Giorgio Locatelli (Locanda Locatelli) whipping up their signature chilli dishes, fiery street food from B.O.B.'s Lobster, Pizza Pilgrims, YumBun, and more. Plus there will be DJs and Jose Cuervo chilli tequila cocktails on hand, too. Grab your (hot) tickets now…they're selling out fast. @ChilliBangBang, May 09-10, Dalston Yard, Hartwell Street, E8 3DF Tickets £15, book here FRIDAY EAT: CITY SOCIAL DRINK: EL NIVEL We begin the weekend with a view. Perched high on the 24th floor of Tower 42 comes the latest in the social empire, City Social. Jason Atherton's (of Pollen Street, Berners Tavern, Social Eating House…) art-deco style restaurant will serve modern British cuisine: think asparagus salads with bone marrow crumbs and roasted quail with pancetta and sauce diable. Or alternatively, skip the restaurant reservation and book a spot at the 85 seat bar for some stiff cocktails. Think short, spirit based scotch and American whiskies, gins and cognacs inspired by the 1910-1930s prohibition era. All washed down with views of The Gherkin and Cheese Grater. Get a head start on the Cinco de Mayo with some tequila and mescal cocktails at El Nivel. The latest agaveria to hit the capital avoids the usual Mexicana kitsch and instead has opted for a low-key, 'retro Latino' vibe. Think old-school wood paneling, a large counter bar and a killer agave menu. Expect the classic el diablos and margaritas to El Nivel specialties such as the La Poderosa (Vida Mescal, lavender honey, lime juice, cardamom bitters). Traditionalists - try the vintage tequilas and mescals or the lesser-known Mexican spirits of raicillas, bacanoras, and sotol - straight up. Hasta Mañana hangover. 12pm-12am (last restaurant booking 10.30pm) Prices vary Tower 42, 25 Old Broad Street EC2N 1HQ 5pm-12am Prices vary 28 Maiden Lane WC2E 7JS BIRTWISTLE AT 80 BARBICAN Sponsored listing For those who prefer classical beats, the Barbican is presenting a selection of Sir Harrison Birtwistle's most important works in celebration of his 80th birthday. Performed by some of Britain's best musicians, the retrospective features theatrical triumphs – such as Gawain and Yan Tan Tethera – to Birtwistle's smaller but no less compelling vocal and chamber works. This is your chance to experience the musical world of one of today's greatest composers…The Barbican is offering Urban Junkies readers 15% off any concert performance of Birtwistle at 80, just quote 'Urban Junkies Birtwistle' or use online code 16044. Book now! Birtwistle at 80, the Barbican, Silk St, EC2Y 8DS, until May 30, book here FINGS AIN'T WOT THEY USED T'BE THEATRE ROYAL STRATFORD EAST Sponsored listing Go back in time to the 1950s with Fings Ain't Wot They Used T'Be, a witty musical set in a West End underworld of gamblers, spivs, prostitutes and Teddy boys. Written by ex-con Frank Norman, with music and lyrics by Lionel Bart, the show follows Fred, a loveable rogue who comes out of prison to find he is not quite the king of the manor he once was. With a cast led by Gary Kemp and Jessie Wallace, this new production at Theatre Royal Stratford East celebrates Joan Littlewood's 100th birthday year. Book now! Fings Ain't Wot They Used T'Be, Theatre Royal Stratford East, Gerry Raffles Square, E15 1BN May 8- June 8, tickets from £10, book here SATURDAY EAT: LYLE'S PARTY: EXIT XV TOUR at Ministry of Sound Lyle's, one of the most highly anticipated restaurants of the foodie microcosm in Shoreditch has opened its doors. Here it's all about the no frills interior (open kitchen, concrete floors, factory-paned windows and simple wooden tables) with instead a strong focus on its British menu. For dinner, expect an 8-course set menu with dishes such as blood cake with chicory and damson, lamb sweetbread with nettles, and dover sole with cider butter. Or if you prefer to go à la carte, book in for a lunch where the menu is just as varied but it's more of a pick 'n' mix affair. For those wanting to start the festival season early, head to Ministry of Sound's EXIT Festival launch party. The club night will see some of the headliners on decks; from techno mavens M.A.N.D.Y. and Max Cooper to disco house duo Waxe & Odyssey and deep house DJs Jaymo & Andy George, expect the five rooms to be shaking to the sounds of electro, house and techno. And if you like what you hear, tickets to the actual EXIT Festival are still available. 12pm-11pm £39 per person The Tea Building, 56 Shoreditch High Street, E1 6JJ 11pm-6am £18 103 Gaunt Street, SE1 6DP SHOP CARNABY SHOPPING PARTY The annual Carnaby Shopping Party is upon us. Expect 20% off at over 100 stores and restaurants, including American Apparel, Paul Smith, The Kooples, and Rum Kitchen, plus DJ sets, complimentary drinks and trend talks from a Grazia editor. Register for your free ticket here and shop to it! Carnaby Shopping Party, May 1, 5pm-9pm, Carnaby Street, W1F 9PS FOLLOW US! Facebook | Twitter | Instagram See what we've been snapping this week on Instagram! SUNDAY WATCH: Edible Cinema BRUNCH: New Tom's Edible Cinema is back with a brand new location (and lots more seats) at the BAFTA screens in Piccadilly. Although the setting may be new we can expect the same edible antics: film-appropriate cocktails and numbered food packages, this time to Baz Luhrmann's Romeo & Juliet. And, as always, details of the experience are hush-hush, but we do know to expect mini vials of poison and a bite size tongue snack for the kiss scene. So, if you're vegetarian, speak now or forever hold your peace. Tom's Deli has had a 2014 makeover and is now – for one year only – pop up New Tom's. And it really is new. From the new head chef Tom Straker (trained at the Dorchester and with Heston Blumenthal at Dinner) serving bistro style plates (think slow cooked duck eggs with mushroom duxelle and veal short rib ravioli with root vegetable and pancetta broth) to the new interior fitted with a long bar and quirky fixtures to the walls adorned with original works by British pop artists (Eduardo Paolozzi, David Hockney, Richard Smith and Patrick Caufield), this really is Tom's Deli no more. 3pm £37 195 Piccadilly, W1J 9LN 8am-6.30pm Prices vary 226 Westbourne Grove, W11 2RH MONDAY PICK GRANGER & CO IN CLERKENWELL Sydney's (and Notting Hill's) Granger & Co has landed in Clerkenwell. Get there early ( as with Notting Hill, we predict queues ) and sample the classic breakfast menu. Choose from the famous creamy scrambled eggs or the full Aussie (scrambled eggs, sourdough toast, bacon, roast tomato, miso chestnut mushrooms, chipolatas) and sweet corn fritters. Otherwise go for the more creative 'big plates' of spiced miso mushrooms on toast or courgette fritters. And then there's the antipodean coffee – if Shoreditch Grind, Taylor Street, and Tuckshop have taught us anything, we are fans, big fans. 10am-6pm, Mains from £13 50, Sekforde Street, EC1R 0HA LA, IMS Engage, and Coachella Roundup #UJOutAndAbout We may be over our LA focus here at UJ, but memories of our trip are still fresh. Thinking of doing the LA/IMS Engage/Coachella combo next year? Then plan an extended trip, as there's a lot to take in. Click here for some of the highlights from our recent jaunt Reserved: LA Trois Mec 716 N Highland Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038, United States | Website In a Sentence Three chefs, haute cuisine and a 'pizza' shop Location In a mini mall complex off the glitz of Melrose, this really does look like an old school pizza joint. The only clue that everything isn't what it seems is the computer print out on the window reading 'No more pizza sorry'. Vibe We love it here. This is a place that welcomes you from the moment you arrive. Staff are friendly with smiles all round, and in an open kitchen, that's saying something. We went on a Monday evening but it felt like Saturday night. People were having a great time. Flavours Where to start? Come here hungry- with five courses, a supplement dish, starter 'snacks', and 'mignardises' to finish, this is not the lightest bite. Know that and prepare accordingly, and you're in for a treat. Highlights included the avocado, citrus, and crab ceviche with buckwheat popcorn, as well as grilled cabbage with smoked almond milk, miso flan, and fennel pollen. The Nantucket scallops with tandoori, sesame, and cauliflower were stand out too. For desert, apple butter with crème de brie, toasted barley, and hay was indulgent and if you have room, try a bite of the buttercream puffs. Oh, and the garlic caramel. You can do wine or non- alcoholic pairings, too. Décor Outside – think grotty but with style (we love a neon sign) while the inside is small, bustling and casual: an open kitchen with bar dining. UJ hears that the open plan was inspired by London's Barrafina, another fave. The beats of Biggie, NWA, and Snoop were a welcome change to the soundtrack of the Doors and LCD Soundsystem (we know?!) that seemed to follow us around LA. And they got the volume just right, too. Upshot Tickets may be hard to come by: $75 non-refundable tickets are released festival style (meaning, fingers at the ready) every second Friday at 8 AM PDT, plus you have to register first. So if you do end up getting a ticket, you're in for a special night. But if all else fails and you can't nab a table, try one of their other restaurants, Son of a Gun, or Animal. WEEKEND GUIDE BY CS LIKE SHARE FORWARD PREVIOUS EDITION (c) 2014 Urban Junkies. All rights reserved. Reproductions of any portion of this website only with our express permission. 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