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North Street is a big part of the renaissance that has electrified South Bristol in the last ten years. What was once a fairly run down shopping street has become a mecca for Bristolians young and old, and is now a pulsing vein of cultural and business energy that is pumping new life into Southville. It’s long, and takes in a big chunk of South Bristol. You get East Street at one end and Greville Smyth Park at the other, and you can find pretty much anything you’d ever need in between.

There are a variety of shops on North Street, and it’s a very long street that changes in character as you move along it. The cornerstone of new Southville is the Tobacco Factory. The site of the old Imperial Tobacco factory was converted by local architecture celebrity George Ferguson, and houses a thriving bar and café as well as a unique theatre space and a pool of local independent businesses. It’s worth checking out the Slow Food Market that takes place in the car park each Sunday, too.

There is a lot to see and do in North Street, and it possesses some of the finest delis and whole food shops in Bristol. Cyclists are well served with two of Bristol’s best known independent shops plying their trade down this way. You’re not too far from the park from either of them, so it’s a great place to test out a new pair of wheels.

For great eats you’re spoiled for choice, whether it’s take-away or eating in. Bristol’s Lounge bars started here and the original one does a roaring North Street trade, especially on Saturdays and Sunday. You’ll also find a great selection of traditional and foreign foods, from the hearty to the quirky.