What to see at Tottenham Court Road: a guide to London by tube

http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2013/jan/09/what-to-see-near-tottenham-court-road-tube

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<strong>Nearby highlights</strong> Tottenham Court Road is dominated by the Scylla of Centre Point's concrete ribbing and the Charybdis that is the Crossrail development, due for completion in 2018 – but there are some good lunch options nearby. The Architectural Association (36 Bedford Square, aaschool.ac.uk) has an unsigned canteen in the basement that serves excellent-value meals. Upstairs in the Centre Point Food Store (20-21 St Giles High Street, cpfs.co.uk) is Centre Point Sushi, where you can tuck into a tranquil bento box. For a post-lunch drink, try Bradley's Spanish Bar (42-44 Hanway Street, bradleysspanishbar.co.uk), a small refuge with a working vinyl jukebox, or the wonderful Ray's Jazz cafe on the third floor at Foyles (113-119 Charing Cross Road, foyles.co.uk).

<strong>Did you know? </strong>Another of the original Central line stops, Tottenham Court Road is one of several stations boasting mosaic decorations. There are around 1,000 square metres of mosaic in the station, installed in 1980 and designed by artist and sculptor Sir Eduardo Paolozzi. They depict the life of the area above the station, often in abstract or ironic form, from the music shops of Tin Pan Alley (Denmark Street) to the relics of the British Museum and the fast food chains of Oxford Street.