rglondon | Entries tagged with step-free access

Belle Epoque, French-themed cafe on Newington Green

Happy new year wherever you are. You are still keeping your new year's resolutions, dryanuary or tryanuary or whatever, aren't you?

This week's featured article is the Belle Epoque, a French-themed café on Newington Green for all your croissant and croque needs.

An update: the Green Dragon, CR0 1NA in High Street, Croydon have tweaked their opening hours: staying open an hour later to 2am on Fridays and Saturdays, but opening later on Sundays (now 12 noon).

Several closures have been reported. Sanxia, SE8 4PQ, a Sichuan restaurant on Deptford Broadway, closed in October and is now another Sichuan restaurant. In Norbury, Nomad Cuisine, SW16 4AN, a halal restaurant with Middle Eastern art, closed sometime last year, and the premises now hosts Heady's Diner, a café. And Draft House Old Street, EC1V 9NR has closed (were they using the American spelling of "draught", or was the bar just a draft, in preparation for BrewDog which is due to open up there?).

So, out with the old. And in with the new! A new article for a completely new bar: the Wolfpack, NW6 6RA, the tap room for the Wolfpack brewery. It's near Queens Park and is a pleasant place if you're in the area. Another new article: On The Bab, EC1V 9LA on Old Street does tasty Korean street food and good tea. It's always busy at lunchtime.

Current Mood: thirsty

mrs_leroy_brown

Good afternoon all :) A short one this week, as we've no new articles, updates or reported closures.

This week's featured article is Urban Guj, an Indian cafe and teashop in Thornton Heath. I've visited and can highly recommend the divine carb-in-carb Wada Pau experience, and the masala chips were an utter delight.

mrs_leroy_brown

¡Buenas tardes!

This week's featured article is Tierra Peru, which as its name helpfully informs, is a Peruvian Restaurant in Islington. Reviewers praise the food's flavour and textures, and the portions appear rather generous.

Four new articles have gone up. In the east, we have Familia Cafe, a wee gem of a cafe in Forest Gate which offers up a Spanish breakfast sure to be a hit with garlic lovers. In central London, we have Lao Cafe, a Laotian restaurant in Covent Garden with industrial decor; best to arrive early as it seems to fill up fast. In the south, we have Rocoto Pepper, a Latin American restaurant in New Cross serving perfectly cromulent tea and arepas, along with breakfast choices and a lunch selection that has a vegan option. Just down the road from SE14, Pho Street in Greenwich is a Vietnamese cafe where unsurprisingly, pho and other noodles soups feature heavily.

Updates have been made to:

- Vasanta Bhavan, a totally vegetarian Indian cafe in East Ham
- Compton Arms, a pub near Highbury & Islington Station
- Akari, a Japanese restaurant near Essex Road station
- Parcel Yard, a Fuller's pub inside King's Cross station

Finally, we've two reported closures - China China, a Chinese restaurant in Lewisham and Village East, a bar and restaurant near Tower Bridge

mrs_leroy_brown

Sambal Kitchen & Diner, South Harrow, London HA2

Good evening friends and neighbours!

This week's featured article is Sambal Kitchen and Diner, a cozy Sri Lankan restaurant in South Harrow. The set meal sounds like a cracking bargain and our reviewer was particularly impressed by the dhal and sambal.

We've one new article - Megaro, a hotel restaurant and bar just across the road from King's Cross/St Pancras where it seems the breakfast brioche bun is a fork-and-knife affair.

Updates have been made to:

Blue Jay Cafe, a Carribbean cafe in South Norwood
Albert Tavern, a Greene King pub in South Norwood
Quaker Cafe, a cafe and bookshop directly opposite Euston Station in the Friends House
King’s Head, a pub on Essex Road in Islington
Tierra Peru, a Peruvian restaurant near Essex Road station in Islington

mrs_leroy_brown

Hello friends and welcome to another randomness roundup :)

This week’s featured article is the Greystoke, a Good Beer guide pub on the border of Ealing and West Acton. Unsurprisingly, it’s a CAMRA-friendly joint with plenty of real ales to choose from, and a menu of pub classics to help soak it all up.

Three new articles have been added. Urban Gui, an Indian cafe and tea shop in Thornton Heath - if, like me, the idea of a fried potato dumpling served in a bun with chutney makes your tummy rumble in anticipation of carby goodness, then check out the wada pau. Grape Variety (NOICE) is a wine cafe and off license in Chipstead with a small menu of charcuterie and sweets. Canvas Cafe in Shoreditch serves vegan food in a chilled, arty setting. I visited for my birthday a couple years back specifically to try the freakshake, which was exactly as delicious as it was sugar-laden. Recommend!

Updates have been made to the Owl and Pussycat pub in Shoreditch.

We’ve three reported closures - Cote D'Azur, a French and Mauritian fusion restaurant in South Croydon, Providores And Tapa Room on Marylebone Hight Street, another fusion restaurant, in this case New Zealand/Asian, and the Common Room, a pub near Ealing Common Station.

mrs_leroy_brown

New Asian Tandoori Centre (Roxy’s), Southall, London UB2

Wassup ya'll, or in the parlance of Bill McNeal - Gaziza, dlznoofuses!

This week's featured article is New Asian Tandoori Centre, a Punjabi restaurant in Southall. Our reviewer enjoyed a rich and flavourful breakfast and appreciated the good service. Check out the bhatura if you fancy a change from the greasy spoon style fried slice!

Three new pages went up: Sambal Kitchen and Diner, a Sri Lankan restaurant in South Harrow featuring set meals at an affordable price; Momo and Roti; a Nepalese restaurant in Houslow where you can get a generous portion of chatpate bursting with well balanced flavour; and Hilltribe, a Thai restaurant in Richmond which might not melt your mouth with Thai-hot spice but impressed overall.

Updates have been made to The Prince’s Head, a Fuller's pub in Richmond; KKs Bar and Grill, a cafe-bar in Woolwich; and The Royal Standard, a pub in Blackheath.

We've one reported closure, Great Queen Street, a modern British restaurant near Covent Garden.

mrs_leroy_brown

Plumstead Pantry, Plumstead, London SE18

Good afternoon!

This week our new featured article is for The Plumstead Pantry, a small cafe on the edge of Plumstead Common. The vegan breakfast features bonus veg alongside the trad faves and the roast tomatoes with feta, basil, and a slow-cooked egg on sourdough toast was marked very good. With a selection of teas as well as coffee, and friendly service, it sounds like a great place to start the day.

We’ve two new articles added this week. Le Tran Cafe a Vietnamese cafe and restaurant in Bermondsey serves a straightforward menu in a nicely decorated setting. Near London Bridge Station, there’s Kin and Deum, a Thai restaurant on the site of the old Suchard Freehouse with decent enough food but a rather noisy and crowded atmosphere.

Updates have been made to The Marquis of Wellington pub in Bermondsey, The Horseshoe Inn in Borough, and in Southall, New Asian Tandoori Centre, a Punjabi restaurant.

Finally and back to SE1, The Bridge Lounge and Dining Room held a farewell yard sale but we’re unsure if this means a permanent shut down or a change of management/ownership.

mrs_leroy_brown

Listen all ya'll - we've a slew of tasty news in this week's RGL update!

Our new featured article is the Rising Sun, a Sri Lankan restaurant in the Sudbury area of Harrow, not to be confused with Sudbury, Ontario. Weird lighting aside, the set lunch menu looks a great bargain and comes with friendly service to boot.

New articles added include:
- Round Table Books, a delightful children's bookshop located in Brixton Village Market selling all manner of books suitable for humans of all ages.

- Pintadera, a small Italian cafe in my personal favourite of the Norwoods (West). It's got homey decor which is work/laptop friendly; you may need to ask for spread for your toast, though.

- Still in West Norwood, there's Hobby's, a small craft and hobby shop; it's best to go knowing exactly what you want first.

- Mama Dough in Sydenham is a part of a small chain of pizza restuarants which also has a punny menu; the topping combos seem to offer the classics as well as some more nontraditional offerings and vegans & gluten-free dudes rejoice, they can cater upon request. I'm definitely hitting this one up!

Updates were made to Food House, an Indo-Chinese restuarant in Wimbledon, Fred's, a cafe in Brockley, Bridge House, a pub in Penge, O Cantinho de Portugal, a (shock!) Portuguese cafe/restaurant in Brixton, and Casa Morita, a taqueria in Brixton that also offers a selection of Mexican groceries.

Two permanet closures this week - Abuja Connection, a Nigerian restaurant in Crystal Palace, and Angel Road station which has been replaced by the brand-spankin' new Meridian Water Station just half a kilometre away.

mrs_leroy_brown

Good morning and welcome to a bumper edition of RGLly news!

Blythe Hill Tavern, Forest Hill, London SE23

This week's featured article is Blythe Hill Tavern, a Good Beer Guide in Catford within waving distance of of Forest Hill. As would be expected from a GBG pub, there's a good selection of well-kept ale. There's also a large beer garden with a children's play area, and an Irish music session on Thursday evenings. With an atmosphere described as warm and welcoming, it sounds like a cracking good pub to quaff a beverage.

Four new articles have been added:

Oscar’s, a cafe in Ladywell serving pastries and sweets along with stew from The Soulful Food Co. in Deptford.

Rising Sun, a Sri Lankan restaurant in Sudbury, Harrow that delivers value for lunch money with its £5 set menu.

Cobb’s Corner, a cafe in Sydenham on the site of the former Blue Mountain Cafe serving British and Caribbean food.

Brown and Green, another Sydenham cafe in the local chain serving a few mains and light meals in a child-friendly setting.

Updates have been made to the White Hart pub in Harlington and the The King William pub in Sipson.

In closure news, Croydon's Brasserie Vacherin is closed for a few weeks for refurbishment, though we're unsure when or if it will reopen. We Brought Beer, a specialist beer shop in Clapham, has permanently closed, though the Balham and Tooting branches remain open for business.

mrs_leroy_brown

Evening all :)

This week's featured article is Hack and Hop, a small City pub that impressed our reviewers with its extensive selection of quality ales and sharing platters. Truly it is a pub of distinction!

Speaking of platters, down Croydon way, Seima's Tea Room situated in the Centrale branch of House of Fraser serves a cracking loose-leaf tea and sanger platter.

Another Cronx cafe with updates is a bit of a Blur, to ~~steal~~ callback Kat's introduction to the Parklife Cafe on the edge of Lloyd Park. On this visit, bruschetta with a German twist was well received, accompanied with a generous slug of tea.

We've one reported closure this week - The Polish Kitchen in Cheshunt has been replaced by a pizza and pasta restaurant called Zio's.

mrs_leroy_brown

Good evening ya'll!

If you're looking for advice on where to seek out Japanese noodles in the City, "udon" well in reading this update. Koya serves up udon in a variety of temperatures in a rich and salty broth. Expect solid competence in a modern setting, with efficient service.

Two new articles have been added: Ma La, a Sichuan restaurant in Westminster which can accommodate small and large groups, though you might benefit from scattering across smaller tables if you want to reach the lazy susan. There's also Planet of the Beans, a child-friendly cafe in Selsdon serving an interesting interpretation of eggs royale.

Updates have been made to Ealing Park Tavern, where a pint of lime and soda is £2 and the mains are tasty, albeit on on the small side. Updates have also been made to The Speaker, a small pub in Westminster with a good selection of beers that passed the RGL drinkable taste test.

If you're looking for Stanfords, an excellent map shop in Covent Garden, note it's moved around the corner from Long Acre to Mercer Walk.

That's it for a fortnight as we prepare for and recover from Croydon Fun Weekend :)

mrs_leroy_brown

Handpumps at the Red Lion, Bromley, London BR1

Beer fans celebrate! All the new Good Beer Guide 2019 entries have been uploaded. There are 306 in total, so why not visit a local watering hole, or wander to a new 'hood to quench your thirst?

New articles include Lounge 101, an Indian restaurant and bar in Ruislip with some interesting ideas about service. If you're round Ruislip way and fancy a beer, there's Hop and Vine, a micropub which as expected is small, but happy to make room for canine friends. Finally, the West Norwood Library and Picturehouse in, you guessed it, West Norwood, opened its doors, though we've not visited yet.

Updates have been made to Somali Town Restaurant in Streatham. It serves up hefty portions of food, though with slightly carbonized anjero on this visit.

In closure news, Halcyon Books in Greenwich has permanently shut. Masaledar, an Indian restaurant twixt the Tootings Bec and Broadway is also shut, although we're uncertain if this is temporary or permanent.

kake

Image © Kake

This week's featured article is Orchard, SE4 1LW, a nice little bar and restaurant in Brockley.

Vegetarian and vegan options are clearly marked on the menu (the photo here is of the warm lentil and roast vegetable salad, which is vegan), and there's step-free access and an accessible toilet.

Recent additions to RGL include YBR Cakes, a cake shop and cafe in Thornton Heath; Chai Corner, an Indian tea shop and cafe in Croydon; and Manchurian Legends, a Dongbei (northeast Chinese) restaurant in Chinatown.

One reported closure: the Wheatsheaf in Vauxhall.

kake

Image © Kake

This week's featured article is Hazev, E14 9RT, a Turkish restaurant on the Isle of Dogs near South Quay Station.

Opened fairly recently, it's a collaboration between London's two main Turkish restaurant chains, Haz and Tas. It includes a cafe/deli, a restaurant, and a bar, all located in a large open-plan room on the ground floor of a waterside residential block to the south of Canary Wharf.

It's step-free to get in, and step-free through to the ladies' toilet at least, though the cubicles are a bit of a squeeze to get into.

Recent additions to RGL include Nivla Restaurant in Camberwell and Bombay By Night in Hampton.