rglondon | Entries tagged with sw16

Hello RGL community. I got back from a three-week holiday Down Under on Saturday (it was lovely!) and I've been a bit jet-lagged since, and a bit busy at work too, hence the delay to this post, a very special episode of the Randomness Guide to London.

You'll be aware of the news. Therefore the first thing to mention is that after this post RGL will take a break for a while. Most of us are now working from home, and avoiding going out as much as possible (some entirely). The latest government and Public Health England advice has been to avoid group socialising and non-essential travel, so it's likely that many of the pubs, bars, restaurants and cinemas will be closed at this point, and given the way things have progressed on the continent, it feels like only a matter of time before that is enforced more strictly. We cannot in all good faith, as of Wednesday 18 March, advise you to go out to any of the places on this list either; if they are still open, you will have to take that decision yourself, but find ways to support them however you can.

The list below was compiled on Sunday, and even in the few days since then, the public health advice has taken a much harder line.

Restaurante Santafereño, Brixton, London SW9

With all that in mind, the featured article is Restaurante Santafereno, SW9 8PR, a popular restaurant in the Brixton Market supporting the Colombian community. Perhaps make it a place to visit when we are able to move freely again.

There's an update to Sala Piquin, also in Brixton Market, formerly Casa Morita. It's moving from just Mexican to regional fusion, with friendly staff, so why not help them out with a visit when it's safe again to do so.

Two reported temporary closures (that aren't related to coronavirus) are: Mirch Masala in Norbury (for hygiene reasons); and Joy King Lau in Covent Garden.

Well, that's our last update for a while. We don't know how long things will go, but it's likely to be for at least the length of the Summer, which is sad. Some places are still offering takeaways or deliveries so please do your best to support small businesses wherever you can in any way that is safe to both you and them, and spare a thought for those businesses who were gearing up to open or rebrand or refurbish in March and beyond. More than that, spare a thought for the many people working in the hospitality and tourist industries who will find life much harder now. Life will get hard for a bit, before things look up.

rowleybirkinqc

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

katstevens

Evening RGL readers! This week's featured article is for Warisan Cafe in Paddington, where you can enjoy some pretty good Malaysian cuisine in a basement setting.

New to RGL is Belle Epoque on Newington Green, a French cafe with some excellent bus-spotting opportunities. It's right next door to the Unitarian Church, which has a massive sign on it saying 'ERECTED A.D. 1708, ENLARGED A.D. 1860'. One of the many delights visible from the top deck of the 476.

There are updates to Affogato in Norbury (find out what an 'eggs hedderman' involves!) and the Manor Arms in Streatham - the latter has had a refurb and the crab shack is no more. I'm not sure where one would go if one wanted a pint of whelks nowadays?

I feel I should apologise for inflicting a soap-based earworm on unsuspecting readers last time I mentioned the wide ranging menu at Perfect Blend in Streatham. Rest assured I will not make the same mistake again for our final update this week, where our reviewer found the music more peaceful that day, it didn't get in the way.

katstevens

Evening RGL crew!

This week's featured article is for the Douglas Fir micropub in Anerley (halfway up the hill, towards Crystal Palace). Expect all your favourite Gipsy Hill Brewing Company beers, and a place to plug your laptop in.

We've been to Orpington! This has resulted in a new page for snazzy Indian restaurant Masala Dabbas (the thali sounds good) and an update for the Orpington 'Spoons, the Harvest Moon, which looks exactly like I'd expect a Zone 6 Spoons to look like. A couple of stops up the line in Bromley we've a new page for gelato emporium Unico, which also does savoury pastries. The Wine Gallery in Purley has tapas plates to accompany your glass of rosé, while you admire the art - very sophisticated.

Keep going south from Purley and you'll reach Coulsdon, home of the Singapore Orchid, an 'old school' Singaporean/Chinese restaurant with lots of vegetarian/mock-meat options. Even further south is the Rambler's Rest in Chipstead, a country pub with open fireplaces, and the Kingswood Arms (in Kingswood), which has had an important fishfinger sandwich update. Before you start wondering if we should rename this blog the Randomness Guide to Surrey, the subject of our final new article is located right by Streatham Hill station: Perfect Blend self-describes its widely ranging menu: breakfasts, small plates, burgers, smoothies, cocktails, coffee, pancakes and an omelette. I defy you not to hum the Neighbours theme tune while reading that list ("breaaaaak-fasts....").

Finally, some closures to report. The Change of Horses in Farnborough is "currently closed for a short undeterminable period of time" (scratching-chin-emoji), the Waterman's Arms in Richmond is closed for a refurb, and Lounge 101 in Ruislip has met its pseudo-Orwellian fate at last, consigned to oblivion by Frank Skinner's comically-oversized lever.

ewan

Welcome back to another week! Just a short update this time.

Our featured article is Family Bistro, SW16 4EU, which is a Polish restaurant in Norbury. The pierogi are handmade and worth the wait, for all dumpling fans.

Our one new addition is Byrnes Pie and Eel House, a pie and mash shop in Wallington, with trad styling but relatively recent to the area. Our RGL explorer judges the food to be fine.

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.

mrs_leroy_brown

Santok Maa's, Thornton Heath, London CR7

Good evening ya'll!

This week's featured article is Santok Maa's, a totally vegetarian and vegan-friendly Indian restaurant in Thornton Heath. It serves a good selection of savoury food as well as sweets, and has been visited frequently by Kake. I'd like to sample the house speciality of Nairobi bhajia (battered potato slices) which is allegedly too large a portion for one, which feels like a challenge!

We've got a heap of new pub pages:

Great North Wood in West Norwood
Sambrook's Brewery Tap Room in Battersea
Country House in Earlsfield
Gidea Park Micropub in Gidea Park
Craft Beer Co in Limehouse
Owl and the Pussycat in West Ealing
Dodo Micropub in Hanwell

But wait! There's more! Updates have been made to even more pub pages:

Bull in Streatham
Woodman in Battersea
Fish in a Tie in Battersea

In non-pub news, updates have been made to Sunrise Jacket Potato and Oriental Food, a Filipino cafe in Romford, beating Fish in a Tie for this week's best business name, which truly is saying something.

Reported closures this week are Bull and Last on the edge of Hampstead Heath, although it's only temporary. Permanent closures have been reported for central Croydon's Roti Masters as part of the redevelopment of St George's Walk, and Beer Rebellion in Crystal Palace.

mrs_leroy_brown

Hiya folks!

This week's featured article is Blend, a microcafe in Norbury. It's hard for me to think about hot drinks right now, but if I'm ever around that way, I'll be sure to check out their excellent selection of loose leaf teas. They also serve a curated selection of breakfast faves and sangers, and you'll likely be able to charge your phone or other electronic device if need be.

Two new articles have been added - Obia in Croydon's restaurant quarter serves an interesting falafel burger, though it appears the curse of the structurally unsound veg burger knows no bounds. If that seems a bit outré, you can always stick with their traditional Italian classics.

Still in Croydon, Kalpa serves Sri Lankan and Keralan food. Our reviewers were satisfied by the overall quality, though slightly underwhelmed by the mutonniness off the mutton rolls.

Updates have been made to Viet Grill in Shoreditch. Perhaps try the Saigon Feed set lunch, where you can choose from a limited selection of starters and mains, one of which is called "grilled piggy aubergine" and which our reviewer found quite nice.

ewan

Hello all! It's Wednesday! You know, Kake sends me updates on Sunday or Monday, but I just like to keep you all waiting in excited suspense to find out what's been going on at the RGL website... (Well, that, or I'm just a bit disorganised.)

東京ダイナー (Tokyo Diner), Chinatown, London WC2

So this week, our featured player is Tokyo Diner, WC2H 7JP, a busy if sparsely-decorated Japanese veteran, which won't take your tips and does a fine agedashi tofu.

New to the team is Blend, another compact Norbury tea and coffee lover with a fine view of railway platforms, offering what we're calling sensibly-balanced food.

We have a breakfast-related update to Affogato, also found in Norbury.

Finally, looks like Hiep Phat in Walworth might be going, but we're not sure yet. Tins and boxes of Chinese and Vietnamese groceries may no longer be available at this location in SE17, but we're just waiting confirmation on its fate.

ewan

I am keeping you waiting this week, apologies, but read on for some fine places!

First up, the featured article is Boca, E1 7DA. This is a cafe in Spitalfields themed around South America! An entire continent of food in such a small space. Anyway, expect empanadas aplenty, and vegan/veg options, hurrah!

Otherwise, we have three updated articles:

* Tokyo Diner, a Japanese restaurant in Chinatown. Try some tasty agedashi tofu, perhaps?

* Cafe Blue, a cafe in sun-struck Purley. It is blue. May not be worthy a visit to Purley if you're not local, unless you're a fan of curly fries perhaps?

* Cappuccino, a cafe in Norbury. It gets busy, and you might not get the breakfast you want, but try the smoothies, smoothie fans.

ewan

Hello again!

This week's featured article is Deli Felice, SE16 7JQ in Rotherhithe, a small space showcasing a frequently changing roster of local artists. Sounds pretty good and you may even find yourself not objecting to dried oregano.

We have updates! Three updates! There's Pearl Liang, a dim sum place near Paddington (still good!). There's Bridge Hotel in Greenford (still there). And there's The Orange Tree in Richmond (still probably best to avoid when there's rugby on).

Four reported closures though: Good Taste, a very good deli in CryPal, sadly missed; Kensington Roof Gardens in, er, Kensington; Rio's Britannia Cafe in Norbury; and Bunga Raya in Thornton Heath.

ewan

Welcome back! The featured article this week is Karachi Cuisine, SW16 4XD in exotic zone 3 Norbury (that's in South London, so don't be confused by the name). It's a Pakistani restaurant with excellent reviews from our team of tasters (a "very good" is not dispensed to all and sundry on RGL).

We have three new articles: Munal, a Nepalese/Indian restaurant in Worcester Park with some oddness; Barwell Cafe in sunny Chessington, where you'll get classic greasy spoon vibes but beware some of the ingredients; and Cocum Keralan restaurant in East Molesey. Kerala is a state in South India for the record.

We have an update to Affogato, also in Norbury. I assume they offer an affogato on their menu, but no one amongst us has tried it. Still the other food options seemed to go down well.

Reported permanent closures are to Craft Beer Co. in Clapham (it's quickly morphed into another pub), and Kathiawadi Cuisine in Thornton Heath.

One of our entries has moved, which is Mandalay Golden Myanmar now in Brondesbury NW6 (from Edgware Road in W2), though we don't have much of a write-up.

Finally the cinema in Bermondsey Square has renamed to Kino Bermondsey from the Shortwave Cinema.

katstevens

Evening crew!

This week's featured article is for Le Raj in Epsom, a fancy joint that's earned a spot in the Good Curry Guide. The takeaway prices are a bit lower but you'll have to come and get it yourself, as they don't deliver.

New to RGL but certainly not new to me is the Soldier's Return, the third best pub in Ickenham. It's changed a little since I was drinking cheap lager there in the '90s - the tie's changed from Courage to Greene King, and they've apparently got rid of the (really quite manky) carpet. Also new is Karachi Cuisine in Norbury, a child-friendly Pakistani restaurant that does an interesting-sounding traditional breakfast on weekends. Try the chickpeas!

Finally, the Michelin-starred Dabbous in Fitzrovia has shut. Apparently the team will be opening a new (hopefully less noisy) restaurant next year.

ewan

Hello and welcome back and sorry for the delay this week; things got busy at work at then... Oh well.

So the featured article this week is The Ferry House, E14 3DT, a pub on the Isle of Dogs, still very traditional though with fewer dartboards and less sticky carpet than that might usually entail. It's got Courage beer and Sunday roast, though.

One new article is Pivaz, in London-adjacent and Central Line-terminating Epping. It's a somewhat upmarket Turkish restaurant, with tasty breakfast options and attentive staff.

Our reported permanent closures are The Cricketers, a small pub in Croydon (just near the Lebanon Road tram stop), and Dirty Burger in Kentish Town, though it was never much more than an outhouse shack and I was a meat-eater the last time I went there, giving a sense of its long and storied existence (i.e. it's several years old).

Finally, we can report the reopening of Affogato, a Norbury coffee shop and cafe, so there's no reason now to cancel all your Norbury travel plans this summer.

katstevens

Evening folks!

This week's featured article is for Provender, which is not a gritty archeological crime series on ITV3 but a French restaurant in Wanstead with quality napkins and tasty souffles! (Next time on Provender: Detective Ian Provender eats some delicious prawns and then discovers a mysterious amulet on Wanstead Flats - could this be linked to the murder??)

New this week are entries for Battersea Pie Station in Covent Garden, which I keep calling Battersea Stodge Station in my mind (the pies are stodgy but in a good way), and the Crown & Pepper pub in Caterham, which also has a restaurant section serving Indian and Indian/Chinese food.

Affogato in Norbury is temporarily closed while they sort out the drains and the licensing (yikes), but it's good to see the Catford Bridge Tavern reopening. It's no longer an Antic pub but hopefully the new owners will have retained its friendly atmosphere and spacious interior.

Finally, here at RGL Towers we mourn the passing of the best named combination-cafe-and-juice-bar in South Croydon, Juicy Squeeze. A carton of Five Alive just won't cut it anymore.

ewan

Welcome back!

This week's featured article is Rial Cafe, E15 3BT, or maybe Ruad Cafe if you like. It's a cafe in West Ham with eclectic furniture and tasty lunches.

Our two additions are a MICROPUB in Anerley, the Douglas Fir (run by Gipsy Hill and is fairly minimal in decor, but good beers and WiFi), and Resham in Norbury (an Indian restaurant which specialises in Indian-style Chinese food).

Three reported closures are The Belvedere Hotel in Belvedere (which is near Erith, if that helps?), Beer Rebellion in Sydenham (short lived sadly!) and The Camel and Artichoke behind Waterloo station.

Finally the very fine Claret Free House in Addiscombe is now called The Claret and Ale.

ewan

Bit of a light one this week! The featured article is Steakout, SW16 4AQ, which was added recently. It's a halal steak restaurant in Norbury. Expect neon, toy cows, sizzling steak.

Our one new article is Bela Vista in Plaistow, a Portuguese cafe/restaurant with draught lager (Sagres I'm guessing) and pretty good Portuguese food.

ewan

Hello, and after a bit of seasonal break, welcome back to a new year, 2017!

Lulu's Caribbean Cuisine, Finsbury Park, London N4

This week's featured article is Lulu's Caribbean Cuisine, N4 3EN. It's pretty small and colourfully painted, and if you're there for a weekday lunchtime you may find yourself the only one. Generous portions and flavourful too, worth checking out we think.

There are three new pages: A&N Brothers Cafe in South Croydon (decent breakfast); Steakout in Norbury (neon pink, but decent steak); and The Fox pub between Coulsdon and Caterham (more a restaurant than a pub, but you can drink there, and the food is... decent).

Our two reported permanent closures are Bottledog on Grays Inn Road, and The William Jolle pub (a Wetherspoons) in Northwood Hills.

katstevens

Evening all!

This week's featured article is for Ram's in Kenton, a vegetarian Indian restaurant and sweet shop with a decent all-you-can-eat buffet. Unlimited bread! There are also two new pages on RGL: Cactus Grill in Wallington serves Mexican/American food with a lunchtime meal deal, and Hap Lee in Norbury does the usual Anglo-Chinese cuisine (maybe skip the aubergine).

There's an update for the Orange Room in Mile End, just around the corner from a house where approximately half the population of Livejournal has lived at one point or another, including this author. I'm pretty sure there wasn't a local Lebanese mezze place at the time - but now there is!

Several pub closures to report: the Hatchet near Mansion House, the Chequers in Hendon, and the Greenwich Pensioner in... wait for it... Poplar! (Come on, why would you think a Greenwich Pensioner might be in Greenwich?) The Victoria Stakes in Muswell Hill is also temporarily shut following a fire, but the Good Samaritan in Whitechapel has reopened: very handy for a pre- or post-Tayyabs pint.

katstevens

Evening everyone! I hope you all found time to do something interesting over the holiday weekend. We're taking a few weeks off for some beer-related investigations, but there's plenty this week to tide you over until then.

Our featured article is for Redemption in Shoreditch, a vegan restaurant with an interesting (and 100% non-alcoholic) drinks menu. I don't think I've ever heard of a cocktail with lettuce in it before, let alone drunk one.

We've been to Swanley! The station is now in TfL zone 8, giving Oystery access to the Greene King-owned Lullingstone Castle pub, the Blue Harbour fish'n'chip shop (big portions, give the peas a miss), The Chef Chinese Restaurant and Sharon's Card Crafts, which sounds like a must-visit for papercrafters.

If for some reason Swanley doesn't float your boat (perhaps you are allergic to swans?) there are new articles for Cafe Adagio in Addiscombe, the Tulse Hill Hotel pub (another Greene King establishment), Pepe Italian Street Food (a pizza/pasta takeaway in Soho), The Finsbury pub near Manor Park station and the Somali Town Restaurant in Streatham, where the menu options have a refreshing simplicity (no lettuce cocktails).

The Mimosa cafe in Herne Hill has had an update following a visit, as has the Old Ale Emporium in Harringay (not to be confused with Haringey) and our old Ewok-village friend in Finsbury Park, the Faltering Fullback.

Finally, one sad closure to report: the lovely old Tudor Rose in Marylebone is going to become a restaurant. When I worked nearby I was always happy to spend time in this pub, especially in winter with its open fire and seemingly semi-permanent Christmas decorations hung all around the walls.