This hidden gem on Stoke Newington Road is café by day, DJ bar by night and occasionally host to a pop-up for good measure, such as Carl Schoene's Hammerschlagen. While the rest of America went wild for rock and roll in the 1950s, German-born Schoene's family was introducing the people of Minnesota to Hammerschlagen at their diner - basically, competing to be first to bang a long nail into a log, using only the thin end of a blacksmith’s hammer. To our minds, the activity is about as thrilling as the prosaic decor, but much more entertaining are The Dot's beers. These include Beavertown’s Neck Oil; Baby-Faced Assassin IPA from Yorkshire ‘free-range’ brewer, Roosters; and notable Belgian stout, Black Albert. You’ll also find bargain wine and spirits, plus nourishment of the leek and cheese toastie, Wiener schnitzel, and frankfurter and sauerkraut variety. So, even if the pop-ups here don’t always nail it, a visit should go with a bang all the same.