Hampstead is surprisingly low on great drinking venues that welcome small children. Kiss The Sky Bar is a lovely cafe bar which has recently opened on Pond Street and may redress the balance slightly. It has highchairs and crayons and colouring paper laid out on every sturdy wooden table. The decor also seems calculated to appeal to a younger clientele, with windows strewn with fairy lights, silvery pendants and brightly coloured mirrors and cushions. For brighter days there is a secluded beer garden too.

The children’s lunch menu is worth singling out for praise. Genuinely imaginative, in addition to selling Hipp organic baby food there is pesto fusilli, mini mezze and soup, as well as the necessarily ubiquitous fish fingers. The ready availability of cocktails and gigantic mugs of tea for the adults is welcome, too. There’s friendly and laid back service which takes children in its stride without either fussing or frowning.

Kiss the Sky is a cool, slightly hippyish hangout which has already made its mark on the Hampstead nightlife scene. It deserves wider recognition as a great daytime spot for kids, too.

Phileas French
@PhileasFrench