My first destination, Old Kent Road. The first and cheapest property on the Monopoly and the only property in South London, South East London to be precise. So if are in North London don't expect a cabbie to be to chuffed when you say that you want to go there, "I don't go saaff of the river". Journey there was not the most interesting. Bakerloo line from Paddington to Elephant & Castle, a dark & dingy, rickety ride on what felt like the oldest tube train in London. Elephant & Castle is not much to write home about, a multi leveled shopping center that looks well dated and is apparently going to be redeveloped. There are some market stalls below but not many were open. One thing that did surprise me, almost impressed me, was that you can pay by contactless the 20 pence to use the toilets! Around the back of the shopping center I jumped on a bus and continued with my journey along New Kent Road to Old Kent Road. Old Kent Road has hardly changed since I was living nearby in Lewisham almost 30 years ago. Not a bad thing to be fair, still a bit scruffy and run down looking but the road has everything you need, great grocery shops selling African, Caribbean, Middle Eastern, Eastern European and British food and drink and no shortage of cafes, restaurants and takeaways selling food from almost everywhere you can think. It was early so most were closed but definitely looks like a good place to eat. I jumped off the bus by the Sainsbury's and continued on foot, heading to Ricardo's a cafe that had been recommended. On the way I passed Burgess Park and decided to take look. The park was quite nice, lots going on, a lake, a BBQ area, sports centre , football pitches. The park was quite busy with people running, cycling or like myself just walking. The park links Old Kent Road with Camberwell Road on the other side. I came across some some tiny little houses which were part of an art exhibition in memory of lives lost during WW1 from a Zeppelin bomb that exploded on what was previously Calmington Road now the site of Burgess Park. Each house represents lives lost. The biggest representing men, the medium women and the smallest children.
My next stop was Ricardo's for a coffee which was no more than 10 minutes further along the road. The cafe was a large spacious affair, plenty of seating and a friendly guy who may have been Ricardo himself. Service was quick and the prices were good. Menu was surprisingly large with the majority of meals under £8. Breakfasts looked decent. A real mix of customers with half regulars who chatted away with the guy. A nice atmospher
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AuthorLouis Mogg. Archives
March 2020
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