Why I live in Hoxton: fashion designer Eudon Choi’s local guide to his ‘peaceful but central’ corner of London

Eudon Choi and his partner found an oasis of calm near Shoreditch. Here’s his insider’s guide to Hoxton’s highlights.
Fashion designer Eudon Choi
Handout
Amira Hashish1 October 2021

I live with my partner in a small, modern brick-clad apartment block in Hoxton that was built in 2015.

We have lived here for almost three years. It is on five levels and feels more like a townhouse than an apartment. It has three bedrooms and two mezzanines, one is converted into a dressing room and the other is a TV room.

The downstairs, which has an open plan kitchen, dining room and living room, has incredible six-metre-high ceilings. It gives the space more of an art gallery feel.

There is also a beautiful walled garden with direct access through a huge set of glass doors. The windows in most rooms are floor to ceiling, which floods everywhere with lots of natural light.

The great thing about this area is that it is very residential, yet you can be in the heart of Shoreditch in less than 15 minutes.

Best eating and drinking

I have so many great places within a short walk. I love Monohon Ramen on Old Street for a midweek supper. At the weekend I will head to Pophams, which does the most incredible selection of breakfast pastries, or Origin Coffee for brunch.

There is a fantastic new cocktail bar on Old Street called Tayer + Elementary that I have been to a few times. For something special I love Bellanger, just a short walk away in Angel.

Where I work out

I do regular sessions with my personal trainer in Shepherdess Walk Park, which is just a few minutes from my front door. There is also a Gymbox a few minutes away by Old Street station.

For a culture fix

I live just around the corner from Victoria Miro Gallery, which always has amazing exhibitions. The last one I saw was by Grayson Perry.

Hoxton Square, Hackney, London, UK
Hoxton Square
Alamy Stock Photo

To commune with nature

We have a very private walled garden that is such a blessing for London. Shepherdess Walk Park is also where we walk our dog, Barney, and Shoreditch Park is very close by. The whole area has recently undergone lots of traffic calming and our street and those surrounding it have been planted with trees.

Grocery shopping

The downside is that there isn’t a great local deli or grocery shop. But for sourdough I go to Fabrique, a Swedish bakery near Hoxton station. I’ll grab some of their delicious cinnamon buns, too.

Getting around

I walk or cycle as everything is no further than 15 minutes away. My partner and I both have studios in Haggerston so when we decided to move from Herne Hill we knew we wanted to walk to work.

Monohon Ramen on Old Street
@monohonramen

Dream street

Shepherdess Walk. It has a series of old converted warehouses including a fantastic one that overlooks Regent’s Canal, has Crittall windows and roof gardens.

Something you only see in Hoxton

There is a fantastic series of mosaics in Shepherdess Walk Park that were made to celebrate the 2012 Olympics. They are hidden in the furthest corner and are inspired by Roman mosaics but also show details from Hackney life. I notice something different each time I look.

What’s the catch?

Because there are so many places to eat nearby, I eat out way too much.

In three words

Urban. Peaceful. Central.

Find Eudon Choi at @eudonchoi, @fantasticmrchoi or eudonchoi.com

Schools

Hoxton has several primary schools rated outstanding or good including William Tyndale Primary School, Hoxton Garden Primary School and Winton Primary School. For secondary education, Richard Cloudesley Secondary School and City of London Academy Islington are rated outstanding by Ofsted. North Bridge House Senior

Canonbury, an independent school, is also deemed outstanding.

Living in Hoxton

Average house price: £1,204,377

Average flat price: £594,320

Average house price pcm: £3,242

Average flat price pcm: £2,121

Source: Rightmove

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in