Fishmonger News

Or maybe it's Olds for some of you but it's certainly news for me. For months people have been finding some very erratic opening hours at the Trafalgar Road branch, including me and today, after making a special walk to get some fish (working on the "it's Friday morning - if a fish shop is going to be open any time it will be then" approach) and finding the shutters down again, I emailed the Fishmonger team to find out once and for all what's happening.

Emma replies:

"Unfortunately, we have had to close the Trafalgar Road shop. All of our business is now out of the Circus Street/Royal Hill branch. We are in the process of updating the web site with the new information and that should be working within a week or so. We are open in Circus Street from Tuesday to Friday 8.00 till 5.00 and on Saturday from 7.30 until 4.30. We are closed the day after a bank holiday as the inshore fishermen do not go to sea on a public holiday."

So - I've gone from being a grumpy Phantom to a sad Phantom. I guess it's good that we've at least got a fishmonger in Greenwich - but once again yet another good quality shop is over in the west, leaving the east with another closed storefront...

Oh Beehive!

Beehive Cafe

Ex-Flying Duck, Creek Road

I have been trying to get to this place since Angie told me it was going to open - in my keen-ness I managed to go before it was actually operative. I had a lovely chat with the people who have moved into Flying Duck's old gaff - four of them in all, all ex-market people - two lots of vintage clothes, a record guy and the coffee man. All delighted to have their own premises at last (the biggest comment was 'out of the cold - at last') even if they have to share it to be able to afford the rent. But we owe the Flying Duck people a big vote of thanks in that they may have gone themselves, but they absolutely refused to allow any chains to come in in their place and happily allowed independents to split the rent.

Then Real Life got in the way. I got emails by the crate-load - M&R, Darren, Jen, Angie, Katja - to name just the ones I can remember - telling me how good this coffee is, but only actually managed to get there yesterday.

And now I know what the fuss is about. This coffee is fabulous, folks. A worthy contender for the now-open crown (since the tragic demise of the Coffee Cellar) of "Best Coffee In Greenwich." Rich and satisfying, yet mellow and un-bitter at the same time, it's the owner's own blend, roasted by his own fair hand at his roastery in Charlton (you can still buy it at his stall on Stockwell St Market at weekends.)

The guy's Antipodean (I can't tell from his accent whether he's Aussie or a New Zealander - I'm sure someone will put me right) and they take their coffee very seriously Down Under. It truly is exceptional coffee - and for homesick antipodeans everywhere, yes, they do Flat Whites, and served with that all-important smile on their faces. It truly made me wonder at the queue outside the deeply inferior Starbucks that I had to pass to get to Beehive.

In fact my only complaint is the size of the place. It's minute. There's a couple of chairs around but apart from that you can really only get takeaway - nice enough on a day like this but less fun on a rainy Monday. Three of us trooped in and it was overcrowded. He needs a bigger place and quick.

But I have a cunning plan, and it goes like this.

We all visit this great new cafe, buy lots of coffee and then persuade the owners (someone told me it was Joy, but it could be Greenwich Hospital Trust) of the now-vacated Coffee Cellar to give the Beehive guy a good rent. We then persuade him to keep the groovy 60s theme and we'll once again have fantastic coffee in cool retro surroundings. Voila!

If you want to order hand roasted coffee - either for mail order or to pick up at the market stall, visit http://www.londoncoffeeroasters.co.uk/

New Food Market

Greenwich Market, Wednesdays to Sundays.

Several of us have been keeping an eye on proceedings at Greenwich Market's new foodie section (or the expansion of the old section) - and yesterday was the first day.

I confess I hadn't been that excited about it - the one that operates on the usual busy market weekends perhaps wisely concentrates on tourists - so the food tends towards the scoff-it-on-the-spot variety - interesting enough, but not the kind of ingredients you can get somewhere like Blackheath Farmers Market. I had assumed an expansion of the same.

Still - I had to go and have a look. Obviously.

It's clearly early days - there can't have been more than half a dozen stalls, spaced out in the market - very open and airy, but slightly empty-looking. And some of them were the usual suspects - as I say, nice enough, but not somewhere I'd go for my groceries. But I was very pleased to see at least two 'proper' fruit and veg stalls - one selling Kentish farm goods - from free range eggs, tomatoes and cucumbers to first-of-the-season strawberries, the other the Greenwich Community fruit and veg stall - extremely good value.

There were sundry bigwigs wandering around while I was there (that's how I could tell it was the first day - nothing if not observant, me...) and photographers, presumably for the local papers, but my own pics turned out utterly rubbish. Just imagine a fairly empty Greenwich Market Hall with a few very nice-looking stalls (the fairy cakes stall is scrummy - and no, I refuse to call them 'cupcakes...') and you'll have it.

The service on all the stalls was welcoming and friendly - if a little slow, as the stallholders chatted with everyone - a throwback to ye olden days when shopping was a social experience.

As I say, it's early days. There aren't that many stalls. But it's definitely worth a look - patronise it now and there will be more...

Patisseries/Bakeries in Greenwich

Meike asks:

I wondered if you happened to know any good bakery / patisserie in Greenwich? We're looking for something French if possible, similar to Paul's.

The Phantom replies:

To my great sadness no, I don't. Not in Greenwich. A couple of places - the fishmonger, the cheesemonger, the deli - sell the odd loaf of bread, there is a stall on the market and Buenos Aires up Royal Hill sells slices of cake and sweet little natas tarts. But there's no dedicated patisserie/bakery I know of; one of the more glaring gaps in the Greenwich Pantheon of shops. There is a (literal) bakery around the back of the Power Station - but it only makes bread - as far as I know there is no retail outlet.

People looking for business ideas, take note.

Indeed, they should take note of Blackheath, which has not one, but two fabulous patisserie/bakeries, almost next door to each other. Of the two, the exquisite Hand Made Foods I tend to think of as more of a deli than Boulangerie Jade, which is, I suspect, exactly what you're looking for. Melting cakes, wonderful bread, rolls and croissants and good coffee are just the start of it. Ok - so it's a bus ride or a brisk walk across the heath - but it should just mean you have even more room for the lovely gooey goodies purveyed.

I am not always jealous of Blackheath. In fact, I'm not usually jealous of Blackheath. But I do envy them their baked goods. Wonderful.

G.G. Sparkes

Old Dover Road, SE3

We're lucky in that we have not one, but two old, well-established traditional butchers. I'll get to the other one another day, but today I want to concentrate on G.G. Sparkes at Blackheath Standard.

I can find virtually nothing about him on the Internet - save that the business been around since 1952. I'm assuming it's a family show - either that or the guy's incredibly well-preserved (or perhaps has bought the business) which makes me happy - places like that, Gambardella, Standard DIY and Pegga Stores lend a real base of tradition among the spotty crop of estate agents, dead banks and fly-by-night caffs.

It's classic in style - a real "butcher's" - though has clearly been updated more recently than Drings. The meat has been organic and free-range for 18 years and sourced from really classy places - individually-selected farms and game suppliers. They also do rare breed meats and some very-good-indeed sausages.

Whenever I've swished my way through the chainlink curtain, the guy has fallen over backwards to help me, making suggestions and getting me to taste the cheeses (oh yes, they also have a cheese section and a small range of deli-goods - good-looking pastas, sauces, pickles - you know the kind of thing.) I understand there's a free delivery service though I've never bought enough stuff to warrant it.

I've heard rumour that he is one of Rick Stein's Food Heroes, but I don't remember him from the telly and I can't find any mention online - maybe someone can set me straight? Perhaps he's included in an accompanying book or something?

Billingsgate Fish Market

It's a bourgeois tragedy. The meat's bought (GG Sparkes) the cheese and veg is safely gathered in (Cheeseboard and Creaky Shed) vast vats worth of wine, port and sherry arrived(Theatre of Wine - delivery's free) but - zut alors! The Fishmonger's closed for the week! What's a phantom to do? Only one thing to do - brave the Blackwall Tunnel and the hour-that-dare-not speak its name, and Go Wholesale...

I utterly hate getting up when there's a five in the hour. It makes me literally ill - some kind of weird pressure thing at that time of the day seems to contract my chest and make me really rather queasy. I will do anything to avoid it - including getting up when there's a four in the hour. Billingsgate opens at five on a weekday (no Mondays, remember, and only shellfish on a Sunday)and because we knew nothing about how the place works we decided to turn up as soon after then as possible.

As it happens, it seems that the real rush happens about an hour later - and who can blame a bleary fishmonger for wanting to get an extra hour in bed? These guys do it every day, including winter - yeuch - and I confess I have a new-found respect for Julian at The Fishmonger Ltd for doing it. The only thing that would make me go at 5.30am again is the Blackwall Tunnel - really quite fluid at 5.15 - and going back south at six, but with a good queue building already on the other side going north. And from a buying point of view 5.30 seems a good time to arrive too. The car park is busy but not overflowing; the fishmongers doing a fair trade but still able to talk.

I confess that being quite a shy and retiring kinda phantom I was a little nervous of a wholesale market. I was concerned that I would stick out like the proverbial sore thumb as the tourist among all the Gordon Ramsays, Marco-Pierre Whites and, er, Julians. I had this image that the traders might be quite hostile to someone who didn't want to buy a hundredweight of Dover Sole or a whole barrel full of eels. I had also assumed that there would be no prices anywhere and a sort of Turkish bazaar-style haggling system would be the norm. I had, of course, forgotten one thing. This is Britain.

Billingsgate is one of those things everyone should do at least once in their lives, even if only so that they know what they're buying at The Fishmonger, and what goes on to get the goods to the shop. Wandering around the place is an education in itself, though not, I understand, as atmospheric as the old Billingsgate in the City, whose cellars, I have heard rumoured, took several years to thaw out when it was redeveloped by greedy people in the 80s. Their loss is our gain, I say. The market's new location makes it about 12 minutes by car. You could go by DLR to Canary Wharf (about ten minutes walk from the market,) but you might not be popular with other passengers on the way home.

The main market is, of course, covered, and a lot quieter than I had expected. As you know by now, I live in some kind of hazy 1960s time warp in my head and although there is friendly Alfred Doolittle costermonger-type banter going on (yeah, yeah, I know he was fruit & veg,) it's not the racket I had imagined - and not a single geezer with one of them silly 'ats on at all. Nobody seemed to be in the slightest bit interested in the tourists - ie. us - they were too busy going about their business, and we happily wandered up and down the aisles marvelling at the sheer variety of sea life we'd never heard of. I mean - what the hell do you do with a Ribbon Fish?

The whoppers are sold individually. We bought the biggest salmon we could fit in the fish kettle for a tenner - the truly mooosive ones were about twenty quid. While we were about it we bought a huge side of smoked salmon, also for ten pounds.

Of course where retail fishmongers really come into their own is with the giant fish - the halibuts, for example - you really do need to buy the whole damn thing when one slice from the local fish shop would feed a family of four for a month. All the individual can do is wonder at these majestic creatures laid out on slabs of ice.

Most of the smaller fish you need to buy by the boxful so its well worth going with friends and divvying up the spoils or making sure you have a LOT of room in the freezer. We bought a box of beautifully-filleted rainbow trout for fourteen pounds - there were thirteen in there, which makes them just over a pound each (unprepared trout was much cheaper.) As a final treat, we bought a kilo of gigantic king scallops also for fourteen pounds(with free plastic box, whoopee.)

We were treated with courtesy and smiled at by people who, at that hour of the morning could be forgiven for being very crabby indeed. There are two greasy-spoon type cafes in the place, but we didn't stop to test them (they looked fantastic)as we had one eye on the tunnel.

Back home we divided the scallops into sensible amounts in separate bags, and clingfilmed individual trout fillets we weren't going to use. Our freezer is now full to bursting - and anyone coming to dinner chez Phantom can expect scallops, salmon and trout for the foreseeable future.

It's still only 7.43am. I can't believe I'm up. I'd forgotten how good coffee is this time of day.

Seriously folks. Try this once. Take the pain, get up at 5.00am. Wander around, experience a little bit of London's heritage, buy some fish (oh - handy tip - take plenty of bin bags to put your loot in - some supply bags, others don't, you don't want it dripping everywhere) - and then grovel before Julian's feet, knowing he goes through this rigmarole every day.

Greengrocers

Donovan asks:

I've just moved to the heart of the East Greenwich conservation area, not to be confused with whatever ends up being the 'Heart of East Greenwich', and your blog has been tremendously useful in searching out things like dentists and the fishmonger. I know we've got the Tesco, M&S and Coop now but is there a proper greengrocer's within walking distance?
Also can you recommend a doctor's surgery?

The Phantom Replies:

Aaah, Donovan, there's the rub. I know of only two proper greengrocers within walking distance since the lovely old couple who used to run the fruit & veg stall outside the Co-op retired, and although they're both within walking distance, they are both "destinations" rather than a quick nip round the corner. Orange & Apple at Blackheath Standard, which I haven't got round to reviewing yet, but will soon, I promise, is a great old-fashioned greengrocer with friendly, knowledgeable service, and The Creaky Shed is a wonderful, very trendy, but extremely good greengrocers in Royal Hill.

East Greenwich is desperately in need of a proper greengrocers within a few minutes walk. As more people (such as your good self) move into the area, and the "Heart of East Greenwich" (whatever that will be) takes shape, perhaps someone will be inspired to be brave and start one. We can only hope...

As for doctors in your particular area, perhaps The Vanbrugh Group Practice in Vanbrugh Hill will fit the bill. I have have heard only good reports of them.

Zero Degrees

As the weather finally takes an upturn and a few rays of sunshine warm the cockles of a Greenwich heart, a young man's (and several young women's) fancy turns to...

...beer. We're quite well-served in this part of the world for microbreweries - the excellent Mean Time (another time) in Charlton and the highly entertaining Zero Degrees in Blackheath.

What could be more civilised than a brisk stroll across the heath on a sunny Sunday afternoon and sitting around a Montpelier Vale pavement with a pint of Lovely? Zero Degrees brews their own Lovely in giant copper vats that look like something out of Professor Brainstawm's lab, which you can view behind glass windows. It's all very clean and clinical (which frankly you'd want if you were going to drink the result) and I never tire of actually seeing it all happening (slowly) before my eyes.

They do various types of beer several of which are 'specials' - usually the fruit ones which I'm told can be a bit on the sickly side - but I guess it's horse for courses...

Inside it's ok - but can get a bit busy and noisy, mainly due to a combination of the giant screens which either show music vids or sport - and the sheer number of folk in there.

In the two eating areas - one with low chairs and tables, the other much more formal - they make decent pizzas and pastas which are good for group meals and outings where you don't need to discuss anything important. It's very sociable - and most of the occasions I've been there have been birthday party/work outing type things for which it's perfect. I wouldn't recommend it for a first date, unless you realised as soon as you'd said 'yes' that it was A Bad Idea. In that case it's ideal for a first date - you can eat nice food, drink nice drink and smile politely before making a quick exit. Around the bar itself there tend to be more of your traditional beer drinkers, which sometimes makes it difficult to get to the bar, but is generally worth the wait.

Many people chose the 'takeout' option where you can buy a 5 litre keg ( £ 15.50)to either take home or enjoy on the heath. These are metal and heavy, with plastic handles which although seem easy enough to transport across the heath on your lovely evening stroll, will soon start to cut into the strongest hand. Get a bus. Really.

I only realised that the Blackheath Zero Degrees wasn't the only one (I'd assumed a clever pun on it being cold beer and at the Meridian) when I looked at the website. There are also branches in Bristol and Reading. Pah.

But the beer still slips down nicely, I understand, on a lovely sunny afternoon in July...

BP Garage /M&S Simply Food

Trafalgar Road, SE10

The trio of mini supermarkets along Trafalgar is complete now that M&S Simply Food has opened at the BP garage, but I still see no real reason to abandon hope that we'll get some more proper, specialist shops to go with Theatre of Wine and The Fishmonger at some point.

M&S IS convenience food. One of the reasons they always managed to look so much better turned-out than the rest is that while Tescos and the Co-Op attempt, in the measly few square metres they have, to be all things to all shoppers, piling their shelves high with thirty different cereals, washing powders and flour-brands, M&S merely dabbles, turning over the bulk of their space to attractively-presented ready-meals, sandwiches, wraps and immaculate, individually-packaged pieces of show-fruit and vegetables.

Their aisles are well-spaced and the shape of their chillers is such that they feel open and inviting, rather than claustrophobic, and a first time, casual visitor can happily toddle around filling their baskets with nice little treats and a spot of something to bung in the microwave for tonight.

But woe betide anyone who would actually like to do any serious cookery from scratch. They do premium cuts of meat (and fish - shame on anyone who buys it, mind, when they could walk a few steps up the road and get personal, informed service from a real fishmonger for the same kind of money) and a limited selection of veg - it will do you in an emergency, but try doing it too often and you'll end up seriously short of basics - the fiddly ingredients and store-cupboard staples - and your pocket will start to whine in agony.

In their defence, M&S aren't actually TRYING to be a grocery store. They're a supermarket within a garage, and they are, to be fair, a marked improvement on what was there before. The food is superb, there's no doubt about it, and even walking up to the place, after paying for your petrol, there is a neater, smarter look about the place.

The usual piles of barbecue equipment and charcoal are just that little bit neater, the newspapers just that little bit more regimented. Even the bits that don't 'belong' to M&S - the counter and the Wild Bean Cafe which I'm afraid I couldn't bring myself to try, it brings back far too many memories of motorway services and dismal long-distance journeys, seem that little bit cleaner; the lads' mags tucked into the little bars for truckers to stand at while enjoying their beverage just that little bit less rank than on the M1


As a family treat or for the locally-based bachelor who just wants to stick a gastropub ready meal in a microwave, this little M&S is fab, and I cannot put my hand up and say I don't do it myself on a more-regular-than-I-like-to-admit basis. But as a regular buy, in my humble opinion it is all a bit over-packaged and a tad on the pricey side. There's still plenty of room for a good bakers, a proper greengrocer, a decent butcher, Andrekabu's stationery shop....

Tesco

Trafalgar Road, SE10

What can I say? It's a Tesco's - you've seen one, you've seen 'em all. This one follows much the same lines as every other store from here to Beijing, and they certainly pile those shelves high.

Trouble is, I'd say they got a bit on the greedy side, given the size available at Trafalagar Road, and put in one aisle too many. The shelves are stacked literally to the roof (I don't fancy any short people's chances at getting down some of those bottles of fizzy pop, )but there's so little room between them that traffic jams and mild irritation are inevitable, even on a short trip.

There is, as I say, plenty in there, piles of pasta, pizza, ready-meals, cereals and cans (though a pleasingly paltry amount of fish - nothing to scare our lovely new fishmonger, also very little meat - if anyone's thinking of starting a butchers...) but it really was a little too packed to the gills for me (sorry that pun wasn't intended.)

Slightly annoyingly there isn't a loose vegetable in sight. They're all packaged up into neat plastic bags with bar codes on - presumably for ease at the checkout, but not very environmentally friendly - and I ended up having to buy far more than I needed or wanted. I will be shopping for veg elsewhere now that I've done my obligatory phantasmagorical shop.

The convenience foods are what a shop this size does best and there are a lot of sandwiches, filled rolls and crisps, which will presumably make the bulk of their sales - and profits - there's a lot of cash to be had in sandwiches. The usual fillings.

The checkout is efficient. I tried out the self-service one, better than the one in Sainsburys which doesn't seem to be able to scan a single thing without telling the world there's an unexpected item in your bagging area. The Tesco one scanned everything perfectly - not a single mistake at any point.

The big question is not whether specialist shops like the Fishmonger or Theatre of Wine will be affected here. You're either the kind of person who buys their wares or you aren't - you're not suddenly going to be swayed by a bottle of £ 2.99 plonk if Threshers hasn't already got you. Ditto the small grocers with interesting vegetables displayed outside - their core market will stay too. The question is whether Iceland and the Co-Op will survive the competition.

The Co-Op , if you remember, had a bit of a spruce-up a couple of months ago in anticipation of the the new kid coming to live on the block. I can't say I was wildly impressed with the results - it's a bit brighter but the checkout system is lousy and Radio Co-Op is straight out of the bad bit of the 70s.

But Tescos has not upped the ante enough in my humble opinion to make it a straight knockout. The aisles are meanly-spaced and the place is so cluttered with bounty that it makes your head spin. just as you're trying to reach for a tin on the top shelf someone in a hurry is trying to elbow past at the same time that a bloke stocking up for his corner shop aims a trolley at your ankles(what's a shop this size doing with a trolley in the first place, I wonder?) The overall feel is too claustrophobic for me.

Sadly the Co-Op has the opposite problem - often badly (or not at all) re-stocked once shelves are empty and with a strange, scruffy, lost look about it, like that kid at school that no matter how neat and tidy he left his mum in the morning always looked like he'd been dragged through a hedge by the time he'd got to school. Both stores seem to be hankering after the fancy goods market, with fripperies such as whoopee cushions and cheap kiddie toys cluttering the place up, instead of just providing some really good food. And Iceland - well, Iceland always seems to have a "just about to close down" feel to it.

Tescos is ok, for a Tescos. Er, that's it.

I'm sad to report, Supermarket Nirvana has not been reached in Trafalgar Road. Yet. We will have to see what the M&S at the BP garage turns up in the Clash of the Retail Titans to find out if they hit the mark any more squarely. In the meanwhile my fave place for groceries remains La Salumeria - enjoy it while you can...

Royal Teas

Royal Hill, SE10

Every so often I get myself a bit confused. There comes a place that is so "obvious" for review that I actually assume that I've already written about it. It comes as a bit of a shock when someone points out that I haven't. I have no idea how Royal Teas slipped through the net, but there you go. I thought I'd already 'covered' it. There are others which will come up and bite me on the backside, I am sure...

It's a Greenwich institution, of course. Royal Teas seems to have been around for ever - must be twenty years at least. It's ostensibly a vegetarian cafe, though there is the odd dish which includes salmon - it's good to see that they're not too evangelical about it. It's a tiny place, which can get a bit full, especially when there are a lot of pushchairs parked in there, and I have found that timing is everything - trying to second-guess busy periods is an skill which can be acquired with practice.

The front room of what was clearly once a cottage has mix & match tables and chairs, shared with a splendid piece of metal furniture with large drawers for various types of coffee bean and tea, which you can either drink on the premises or take home a bag of to enjoy later. I have no idea what the piece of apparatus in the window is - some kind of coffee-making equipment, I presume, but it's rather beautiful in itself and is purely decorative these days.

The back room has more tables and the counter, leading out to the back where they make all those great snacks and meals, and, of course, their famed cakes. The decor has a slightly 'updated hippy' feel - orange and purple, which is both cosy and welcoming.

I'll warn you now. it will be difficult to finish anything you get served here. The portions are satisfyingly huge. I don't know if they do doggy bags; one day I think it will be worth an ask as it is the sort of thing they might encourage. Among their breakfasts (served all day) is a monster American version which is frighteningly large - but so tasty you find yourself eating far more than you intended. The baguettes are shoved full of so much filling that it's most inelegant to try to eat (though I have a minor gripe with one I had the other day in that I had vast amounts of cheese and salad, but the effect was rather dry - I could have had less cheese and replaced it with a little butter to bind it all together.) I've never had the cream tea, but I've watched other people tucking in and I will get round to it one day, judging from the looks on their faces it will be well worth the wait.

The cakes are fabulous. I don't really need to go into too much detail as I'm sure I'm preaching to the converted. My favourite is the lemon, but more research is needed to be absolutely sure.

To anyone who doesn't know, the slightly odd "fairy tale" in the window refers to a long-running dispute with Greenwich Council. After many years of R.T's existence, the council suddenly discovered the place and, at first, heaped praise and help on its owners, offering them grants and all kind of plaudits. It was only later that the council changed its tune. The place didn't have a proper licence, it argued, and the men in grey tried to shut it down. Royal Teas itself is fighting back, aided by devoted local residents (though the most local - the person upstairs, I'm told, moans about the disruption. How does this happen, I wonder? Someone moves in above a cafe, then complains that they live above a cafe? Maybe I've missed something here...)

The dispute with the council rumbles on. In the meanwhile, Royal Teas continues as normal, its friendly, cheery staff coping as best they can with the question mark above their heads. Visit them while you can (though, as a dedicated 'good loo' aficionado I must warn you - don't make a pilgrimage for the restroom facilities - there is a certain charm about it and it's perfectly clean but it's hardly a 'destination loo') and let them know that this is the kind of thing we need to encourage more, not less of, in Greenwich.

http://www.royalteascafe.co.uk/

Point Zero

Polish Cafe/Deli

Trafalgar Rd, SE10

I've been watching the progress of this place through darkened windows ever since the ridiculously-named "Yew Wood Knot Believe It" closed. At first I feared that it had merely been done up for the living accommodation above it, leaving the shop below to rot- and frankly I suspect it had been - there's now a rather awkwardly-shaped entrance to the shop below as yet another minuscule flatlet has been created upstairs. But unlike others further along in Woolwich Road which have received the same treatment but are left all dressed up and nowhere to go, whitewashed windows the furthest you can see in, luckily someone decided to show a little faith and move in.

I guess I should admit right now that I don't think this particular cafe is aimed at the likes of me. It is very much a Local Polish Shop for Local Polish People. And good for them. It's nicely done on the whole and of course I don't mind if a shop's not really for me if it's a credit to the neighbourhood.

And it's really not bad to look at. They've obviously spent money on it - little recesses in the front with long mirrors, a curved glass counter with a large selection of Polish sausages, meats, cheeses and other cold goods, and, at the back, a series of arched wooden shelves groaning with imported Polish tins, jars and packet goods. They seem almost stereotypical to me - lots of pickles, sausages and root vegetable soups in the main, though there are some interesting-looking blancmanges and other dishes. I suspect this selection very much represents 'comfort food' for people far away from home - and, were I living in Poland, I would be delighted at a reciprocal store there.

The rest is fashionably plainly decorated - the omnipresent laminate floors, slung ceiling with inset lighting and white-painted walls, but it's well done and suits the three simple round tables at the front with their wiggly blue glass vases filled with sprigs of spring flowers. The floor and window sill are filled with Polish fashion magazines (and one or two token English-language ones so the rest of us don't feel too left out...)

Somewhat randomly along one wall lies a fridge of sundry cold drinks, and at the back there's another with some interesting-looking cream cakes. As I walked in I was greeted by The Carpenters, a nice retro throwback - until I realised they were on the radio, which, one I realised it was a random choice, somehow didn't seem quite so cool.

The staff seemed a little distant - but not unpleasant. Perhaps it was a language thing. They got my coffee order wrong, but changed it immediately with no fuss. I always think that getting something wrong happens to us all from time to time - it's the way that people deal with mistakes that makes the difference.

I confess the coffee itself was a bit on the strong side for me, already suffering from The Mother Of All Hangovers. This brain-splitting brew was so thick that I could almost physically feel it travelling upwards to sear through my head as yet another punishment for the previous night's indiscretions. I think even on a good day this would have been a bit dark for me, though as a cup of coffee to look at it was a thing of beauty - thick brown-white crema, almost entirely obscuring dark, dark coffee below. A medium cup cost £ 1.75

I'm glad Point Zero has opened. It looks good, sells interesting things and, I suspect, will stylishly fill a gap in the market for people a long way from home. But I don't think it's going to replace the Trafalgar Cafe in my own affections just yet...

See tomorrow for the other new caff along Trafalgar Road...

M&S

Blackheath Standard

We've all been waiting for it - and today at 10.00am, Old Dover Road was the fullest I have ever seen as throngs of nosy people like me queued to get in to have a first peek. The local law enforcement services were also out in their droves in case there were any brawls between overexcited old girls with shopping trolleys driven crazy on M&S champagne.

As was to be expected, there was rather more hoo-ha than when the Co-op reopened last week. The celebrations involved PR girls handing out fizzy and tying balloons onto kiddies' prams. They also had hi-tech raffle tickets to win M&S vouchers if you could battle your way to the back of the store to get it checked on an ultra-violet reader. A boom-box blasted out Magic Moments and people milled around doggedly pushing giant shopping carts in a most antisocial fashion.

I naturally wanted to explore every corner of the new store, but had already made the decision not to buy anything today. Part of it was, of course, the vast queues at the checkouts (I don't think they would be a problem on any other day - they seem to have enough) but most of it was that today, of all days, it was important to visit the other shops at the Standard who have been supplying us through thick and thin (mostly thin recently.)

When it boils down to basics, this is a Marks & Spencer store. If you've seen one, frankly, you've seen them all. It's very nice indeed, with dinky boxes of dinky food at rather less dinky prices. The quality is high, and the presentation modern and fresh. It still feels a bit - well - dark inside - a problem of the building as much as anything, but the food is well displayed and appealing. I have always felt I could spend a small fortune on M&S food. There is a small bakery at the back (though don't forget Hirst &Sons) and the usual excellent ready meals.

I am pleased to see a very basic selection of M&S clothes. There is a paucity of clothing stores at the Standard (unless you're into the charity shop look) and the pants, socks, jeans and woollies are a welcome addition. There are also various toiletry items and basic homeware.

The car park is back in action - though do remember that if you stay longer than an hour it will cost you.

I squeezed out through the throngs of customers queueing round the store and visited the other shops which were, understandably, empty. GG Sparkes, Apple and Orange, Pegga Stores. NOW is the time to visit these guys, while we still have them.

Although M&S is going to be pricier than the old Somerfields I'm really hoping that this new store will begin to turn the quality of the Standard around. We have some fine specialist shops there already; hopefully they will enhanced by M&S supplying the rest of our needs and we may even get some lovely new ones. Laziness mustn't be allowed to sneak in - remember, kids - if we don't play with our toys they'll be taken away...

Supermarkets

Pablo asks:

From previous posts I have deduced the following:1) The Co-op has been refurbished and will continue totrade2) A new Tesco supermarket is soon to appear3) There is a Somerfield in the areaPlease excuse my ignorance (I am very new to the area)however I have the following questions:1) Where will the new Tesco be and what is thetimeline for this?2) Where is the Somerfield? Is this due for closure orwill it continue to do business?

The new Tesco will be along Trafalgar Road, a few metres closer into Greenwich than the Co-op. I have no idea how long this is going to take - but since they haven't actually finished the foundations yet I wouldn't hold my breath just yet.

Somerfield is in Greenwich High Road in that dodgy little set-back row of shops. It's a dismal, scruffy experience.

A new M&S opens at Blackheath Standard today.

Co-op Update

I've just realised what it is that depresses me so much about it. It's nothing to do with what it looks like.

It's that dreadful 1970s throwback Radio Co-op relentlessly telling me about all the bargains instore as I trudge round.

Three Things I Bet You Didn't Know The Co-op Sold:

• Five kinds of babies' dummies (in two different places)
• Fridge freshener
• Pectin (in case you don't know it's an enzyme used in jam-making...)

Mr Humbug update

Matthew asks:

"What are the opening hours of Mr Humbug?"

An important question indeed.

You can indulge your sweet tooth every day except Monday, Matthew. On Saturdays and Sundays he's open from 10.00am, Tuesday to Friday from 11.00am

He's one of those delightfully organic small shopkeepers who officially closes at 5.30pm but if he's still busy (usually at the weekend) he'll stay open til 6.00pm.

Be careful though. This guy has the gift of the gab. Before you know it you'll be the size of a train.

The Co-Op

Trafalgar Rd

I am proud of the Co-op - the little 'ave a go Joe that fancies its chances enough to meet the Tesco Goliath head-on in the Battle of Trafalgar Road.

It's stolen one March (fnarr fnarr) in that it's managed to close, refurb and re-open in a matter of a couple of weeks while the lumbering retail monolith still thrashes around removing original Edwardian shop fittings and digging foundations down to Australia.

Which is why I am truly sad to report that that's just about the only thing that the Co-op has managed to do.

As you approach, it's naturally the shop front that strikes first. What is it that makes supermarkets install giant plate glass windows then cover them in sticky-back plastic with close-up pictures of cabbages glistening with 'morning dew?' It's not just the Co-op that does it - they all do - but don't they realise that punters might actually prefer to have a couple fewer choices of penny wafer brands in return for a few rays of natural sunlight?

I am not going to say anything about the shop signs save that I'm assuming they're temporary.

I have to admit that the Co-op is better now than it was. Tragically that's not really saying much. My overall memory of the old store is a tatty display of cheap women's mags falling out of the shelves as you walked in, followed by half-empty tatty displays of sad-looking veg and baskets of 2-for-1 bakewell tarts with orange stickers. Later on there was a tatty, half-empty display of yogurts with orange stickers and more bargain bins. When you'd finally made your choice, you'd either queue up at one of two tills which might or might not be open or stand in line at the cig counter.

As I walked in yesterday, the display of cheap women's mags had expanded to a few more titles and was in shelves that looked like they might keep them a bit neater. The veg seemed slightly more various, but was already running out and looking hap-hazard. As I moved further into the store the fridges were new - but once again the products looked thin on the ground. The one thing they do seem to have bought in bulk are the ubiquitous orange stickers.

The tatty bargain bins remain. The gloomy lighting remains. And, even though they had the opportunity to change it, the ridiculous checkout system remains. They've admitted that the stand-alone checkout counters were never open and done away with them, but all they've replaced it with are several people at a long counter-like till with individual queues, rather than one queue feeding into all. It was only about 9.30 and people were already grumpy, complaining that 'their' queue was moving more slowly than anyone else's.

Really - M&S manage to make these places look cool. The Co-op looks not much different to before. What staggers me is that they've obviously spent money on this - but have failed to do basic things like working out the queuing system. The not-very-encouraging counter to this is that Tescos probably won't look much better.

I'm sad. I like the Co-op's principles and would always prefer it to the might of the Tesco Titan. It's made a few small forays - I liked the little display of essential DIY bits and bobs, for example, but though I might be wrong I seriously doubt the ability of this refit to stand up to the might of the Tesco Juggernaut.

Greenlands Health Foods

The Covered Market

What a revelation. I had always walked past this place, dismissing it as a bit of a hippy honeypot for the Ethnic Hat Brigade only. The mere fact that it was almost impossible to pass by outside for the amount of dodgy-looking healthy stuff piled up on racks was enough to put me off.

But in the pursuit of finding out everything there is to know about Greenwich I stepped inside, presumably looking every inch like some green-skinned alien walking into uncharted territory. I instantly began to eat my diseased opinionated words. Sorry folks. I will never be so prejudiced again. Til next time, of course...

This shop is incredible. It sells every health food known to humankind, a cure for pretty much every ailment (if you're into herbal remedies) and some splendid extras too - all in a boutique the size of my living room, which believe me, is not big.

The shelves climb all the way to the ceiling and are packed so tightly with goods of every healthy description that you fear to take something out unless the whole lot caves in on you. There are bags of grains you've never heard of, packets of seeds, boxes of curious foodie-type objects, tubs of sundry vitamins and supplements by the hundredweight - as well as all the usual stuff you'd expect. The central shelf stack is equally well-stocked and there are fridges for fresh stuff along the side. No wonder they have to spill out onto the pavement.

Beauty Without Cruelty. My goodness me. I used to buy that stuff in the 80s. Whatever happened to them? Well - now I know - they are alive and well, and being sold in Greenwich.

I am not totally sold on the efficacy of every health product ever known to man, but if you fancy a dabble, this is a fantastic place to dip a toe into the world of complimentary therapy. The people behind the counter (and full marks to them for actually physically fitting into such a tiny space) are friendly and helpful.

I emerged some time afterwards with a bulging bag of interesting stuff. Being the Greenwich Phantom is occasionally an expensive indulgence...

BTW Linseed is revolting. But just to show I don't hold this against them personally, I have chosen Greenlands as one of The Phantom's Favourite Haunts

Hirst & Sons, Bakers

Royal Standard

This shop is worth visiting if only for the lovely ceramic tiles on the walls. I might be wrong of course, but these feel like they've been there since the shop was built - and that's just the sort of thing I love (we have sadly just lost a similarly pretty shop along Trafalgar Rd, where the new Tescos will be) The walls are set off nicely by the old-fashioned curvy glass counters and the more modern wooden signs abover the bread.

If I'm honest, the bread isn't much to write home about. Baked at the sister shop in Lewisham, the bog-standard breads and commercial-quality cakes could be found in any similar bakers - but Hirst have several things in their favour - they're a small company, local and they're not Greggs. There is some character left here and the service is generally friendly and efficient - as long as you don't accidentally turn up behind a bunch of builders who've come in for a bulk order of egg rolls at the sandwich counter.

They seem to be doing ok at the moment, given the depressed state of the Standard. I hope they survive - they provide a valuable service - even if their bread is nothing out of the ordinary.

Daisy Cakes Bakes Shop

Deep down dark little Turnpin Lane, leading into Greenwich Market, which I will talk about in depth on another occasion,lies a dinky little pastel-pretty shop called Daisy Cakes Bake Shop.

It's tiny - so it's more the public face of a bespoke cake making service, but it does sell the odd gorgeous cupcake and cakey-slice as well as sugar roses for your own creations and a limited selection of decorating equipment. Cute Cath Kidston-esque cake stands and examples of the kind of cake that you can order for your special occasion line the window, as well as little sugar figures of brides and groomse - either standing or sitting with their legs hanging off the side of the top tier of your wedding cake. All in all, it's very pink indeed.

According to the website they bake everything on the premises. All I can say is that that shop must be like the Tardis out the back - or perhaps they're employing Ooompa-Loompas. They try to source locally, organically and ethically which is never a bad thing.

Don't expect this all to come in cheap - but you're paying for a unique service here, so it seems that you're paying for quality and individuality. I have never eaten a Daisy-baked cake - I would appreciate any comments from people who have.

www.daisycakesbakeshop.com

Mr Humbug

The Covered Market

Hooray for a good old fashioned sweet shop that sells childhood goodies out of jars that line the shelves and windows of this diddy little sweet shop. I always felt that Greenwich needed one of these - I even considered staring one myself, but I don't have the temperament or patience to deal with real live people on a daily basis, so I'm absolutely delighted that someone else has had the guts to do it.

I guess, being a kitsch-oholic, I would have made my version a little more cutesy old fashioned and gone for the full nostalgic experience similar to the delightful little sweetshop in Lincoln which makes you feel like you've stepped back in time. But I'm very happy to look past the modern downlighters and trendy fittings to the jars themselves and spend a cheery Saturday morning (yes, all of it ...) choosing what to spend my pennies on. Clearly others do exactly the same thing - the queues in here on a weekend are frightening, with the owners showing a hell of a lot more patience with small children's indecisions than I would. Mr Humbug is just one of the many reasons I love Greenwich and for that I have made it one of The Phantom's Favourite Haunts.

www.mrhumbug.com

The Creaky Shed

This is just the sort of shop that needs to be encouraged. A Royal Hill Lovely, the Creaky Shed is a little gem selling all manner of good quality fresh fruit and vegetables mainly on a seasonal basis. I adore going in there because it's so well laid out - everything in neat baskets of overflowing plenty. Unusual vegetables jostle with more workaday favourites and there are also one or two interesting jars of accompaniments such as apple sauce and sundry jams and pickles. Outside the sweet little window is always a gorgeous display of abundance - flaming pumpkins and strange squashes in Autumn, jolly tangerines, nuts and shiny things in the run up to Christmas and shocking pink sticks of champagne rhubarb and giant naval oranges in the gloomy depths of January - just when you need a bright, cheery pick-me-up. That particular row of shops has to be my favourite in Greenwich, for colour and sheer cuteness.

The service is personal and friendly and I never feel embarrassed to ask for just one or two of anything or enquire what something actually is - and, indeed, what to do with it if I buy it. The fact that it's rather dark inside would normally make a shop a bit gloomy, but the friendly atmosphere and the veritable cornucopia of jewel-like fruits and vegetables is such that it feels sumptuous rather than dim. The prices seem initially high - but you don't have to actually buy a kilo of this or that - you can just ask for what you need and they'll happily weigh it out for you. Frankly the quality is better than some of the frankly manky stuff I've seen at Blackheath Farmers Market on occasion. (I don't mind odd-shaped or mudddy - I've got an allotment, goddammit - but some stuff is just plain poor quality.)

My only complaint is that there aren't more of these places. The quality and variety of veg on sale here makes it a must - but it would be nice not to have to travel a couple of miles for everyday essentials. I place the blame partially at the feet of the supermarkets - but have to take some of it myself for having supermarket-shopped in the past. I now make an effort to buy local and small as much as possible to encourage more brave souls to start quality businesses. That's not, by the way, to say I don't actually go to Sainsburys at all - but wherever possible if there's a (nice) local alternative I'm now trying to take it.

I guess it's getting me out and walking off those Christmas pounds.

The Creaky Shed is one of The Phantom's Favourite Haunts

The Fishmonger Ltd

Trafalgar Rd

So. Here it is at last, and very pleased many of us are to see actual quality fooderies finally coming to East Greenwich - aw- c'mon - it's hardly far for you Westerners to trudge across the park in your green wellies and barbours... ;0)

It's all clean and bright, and though some of the shop has a distinctly "unfinished" feel to it - there's a tantalising Global knife cupboard and price list but no knives and several empty shelves in the display cabinet, I guess the main priority is to get the place open - niceties come later.

The one area which WAS absolutely stuffed to the gills (oops - sorry...) was the main event - the fish counter. Julian, one half of the young couple who are bravely setting out in the pescatorial world, is just getting himself acclimatised to the daily 4.00am visit to Billingsgate - there are no dark circles under the eyes yet, but with opening hours that currently go to 7.00pm, that will only be a matter of time. He confessed that he had been nervous that Billingsgate would be having an "off day" on Fishmonger's debut, but from what I could see, his worries had been for naught. There was a fine display - from eye-bright bream to shiny monkfish, giant king scallops to scarlet sashimi tuna, all beautifully arranged on the classic bed of ice.

Elsewhere in the shop are lemons, limes and fresh herbs in wooden crates and racks with spices and dressings. There are various cookbooks - some of which are clearly for sale, others - vintage, by the look of it, are more for getting ideas from. I am sure that as the shop matures, it will fill out with other accoutrements.

As you go in, there's a gorgeous old vintage dining table stacked with crusty bread, which has been locally sourced (not, I am glad to say, from Greggs...) fish kettles and other paraphernalia. It also has a collection of "Fishmonger Ltd" bits and bobs - good to get in there quick with the merchandise, I always say. You can get reclaimed hardwood chopping boards with the Fishmonger Ltd logo stamped discreetly in the corner (make sure you scrub that bit well, eh?) and some snazzy Fishmonger aprons so you don't get guts down your gut.

Of course you don't need to get anywhere near guts if you don't want to. Julian gutted and scaled my fish for me while I (and, ahem, a bit of a queue behind me) waited. I am sure it will speed up with time - and it was beautifully done. Presumably his partner will come in for busy times - once they know when those will be - at the moment the opening hours are long, but they intend to revise them once they've been open for a while.

They plan to have tasting sessions and fishy-type classes - I hope they do this soon. I've suggested they get together with Theatre of Wine for occasional evening sessions - champagne and oysters, anyone? They should also put suggested wine at the bottom of their recipe cards, IMHO. Incidentally, don't miss the lovely marine-inspired display in Theatre of Wine just now, created, presumably, to welcome the new kids on the block...

I've just realised that this reads a bit like one of the advertorial articles in local rags that I'm always going on about how much I hate. This is pretty much unavoidable just now - the place is so new I can't really say much other than the fish is good and the rest looks as though it will come given a few weeks. I'll revisit in those few weeks to give a more detailed critique...


Update: This shop goes from strength to strangth. They are friendly, helpful people, doing their best to make a truly exciting business. It's now full of shelves of itneresting foods, equipment and books - not to mention a giant bowl of daffodils. This has already become one of

The Phantom's Favourite Haunts

The Cheeseboard

A tiny little jewel of a shop which always has a good selection of different cheeses of the world (France features heavily) and one or two on the counter to taste. Their website boasts over 100 specially-sourced individually-made examples - though only a fraction of this is on display at any one time - probably a good thing with cheeses like Munster which has to be one of the smelliest fromages of Eastern France. The cheese is usually of perfectly good quality - though I once bought a Mimoulette - admittedly a hard cheese - that was so solid that it was totally inedible - a shame since it's a particular favourite of mine.

It's a bit pricey - but that's only to be expected of something so specialist - and geographically placed. Royal Hill rents must be astronomical. You can get some good crackers to go with it and they also do a limited selection of Meantime Brewery Beer and other nibbles, pickles, jams and other cheese-related goodies. The shop always seems to be bursting at the seams with customers whenever I go.

La Salumeria

Situated on a rather scruffy bit of Trafalgar Rd opposite the Forum, La Salumeria has been around for donkeys years and looks like it. It's very much of the "old school" of delis - a tiny, crammed little gem of a place, where cheeses and sausages dangle from the ceiling and packets of pasta and strange-looking tins of god-knows-what jostle for position on the floor. In between, the shelves are stuffed full of packets and jars - mainly Italian, but between them incorporating pretty much all the European languages known to Man. Behind the counter you can find home-made pesto sauce, cheeses, hams and meats, some breads, sweeties and salads. At the back a rather perfunctory wine selection sits gloomily waiting for someone to claim it, but down the front there's a marvellous box of Turkish delight that has my name stamped all over it.

At Easter there's a fabulous selection of colourfully-wrapped chocolate eggs and sweets, bettered only by the display at Christmas where not only the window, but the whole ceiling fills with hanging tins and boxes of pannetone, ameretti, turron and various other sweetmeats. I want to buy them all just for the packaging, which may explain the full-state of my place.

It's a funny, tatty and utterly delightful little shop and I love it.

Buenos Aires

Yet another Royal Hill Lovely, Buenos Aires is one of those trendy modern delis - bright, cosy and full of splendidly luxurious fripperies. With black and white photographs and a rack hanging from the ceiling with swinging pots and pans, it's self-consicously cool - but no harm in that, I always say.

They specialise in Argentinian food, but carry brands from other countries too. I always buy my Dulce de Leche there (literally Sweet Milk - known as Confiture du Lait or "milk jam" in France, both of which are fabulous. You can get much the same result by boiling a tin of condensed milk for hours on end,, but generally life's too short.) There's some nice specialist teas, too, and they sell decent coffee (though I buy mine from Union Coffee Roasters across the river - sorry, guys.)

To be honest I don't buy much else - it's really rather pricey for me to do anything other than buy luxuries - oh for the ability to do my 'normal' shopping at these places, but I like to meet girlfriends there for a cup of coffee and a cake, lounging around in the cosy leather armchairs and sofas that take up most of the shop. Recently it's become a bit full of "yummy mummies" for my taste, but I guess they have to go somewhere. I just wish they'd leave their sodding pushchairs outside.

Buenos Aires do the odd piece of specialist cooking equipment, mate tea and sundry cookery books and they're a good bet for presents for foodie friends. Around Christmas time they do utterly gorgeous hampers which I have been hinting about for a good couple of years now, to no avail.

Marks & Spencer (Cutty Sark)

An insanely busy food-only store next to the Cutty Sark plaza. It sells all the usual M&S favourites - good for day trippers or lazy people like me (try the caramel shortbread squares - utterly divine - better, even, than many deli 'home-made' versions, IMHO) but expect to queue longer than it took you to get to Greenwich in the first place. Nowhere near enough tills - often the queue stretches round at least half, sometimes more of the shop, though at least the assistants greet you with an apologetic, if beleaguered smile.

The rest of the bit around Cutty Sark DLR is a huge disappointment - Ottakars excepting - a horrid, horrid pub, a mobile phone store, a tatty Superdrug which always looks like it's in the middle of a stocktake, one of those vile Subway fast food outlets and a cash machine which steals your money, then nabs your card.

They are opening another M&S Food at Blackheath Standard where Somerfield has just closed (causing much parking chaos, BTW - beware.) I hope that's not the kiss of death for the lovely butchers and bakers.

Theatre of Wine

THEATRE OF WINE

God - if only there were more shops of this quality in East Greenwich...

Situated on the otherwise rather scruffy Trafalgar Road, hardly a paragon of upmarket fashion, Theatre of Wine seduces you even before you know quite what it actually is. It is a wine store - but such a wine store. With stripped wooden floors, gilt shabby-chic furnishings, plush velvets and a music stand announcing the opening hours, it doesn't take much working out that this is run by an ex-actor.

The thing is - ToW actually delivers what it promises. So many places look fancy but don't come up with the goods, but Theatre of Wine has a dedicated team who search out the very best wine and present it unfailingly beautifully. The high wooden shelves, topped with bizarre memorabilia, old theatrical props and ancient wine advertisements are crammed with bottles, each with a little cardboard label explaining why the owners love that particular wine.

There is really only one time to go to Theatre of Wine. Thursday evening. Although you can just pop in to buy stuff that night, Thursday nights (and the odd Tuesday) are tasting nights. A large trestle table groans with glasses, foodie bits and samples of the stuff you're going to drink. An odd collection of seating awaits - make sure you arrive early - there are one or two 'comedy' fun-fur pouffes for latecomers which look like they're been whisked from some 1970s tart's parlour. Actually though, if you arrive REALLY late you get seated in the table in the window - fab.

Each week has a theme, but it is never stuffy or preachy. They're sometimes even rude - or at least honest - about their own buying mistakes. There's usually a massive gourmet cheese or interesting nibbles to go with it and though spittoons are supplied Daniel's very understanding if you prefer to just drink your samples (most do.)

Booking is advised as the numbers are limited. Prices range from around £12 per person to over £50 depending on what kind of drinks are being tested.

Every so often they run a six-week wine tasting course for beginners, run by the quietly-spoken but very knowledgeable Jake - definitely money well spent. But if you're not certain, ask any of the friendly staff to recommend stuff and they'll bend over backwards to help.

Out of interest, Daniel Ilsley, ToW's owner, made a short film set in Greenwich and its environs last year. A fine little movie which premiered at one of their own tasting nights and then featured in the irritatingly ill-publicised Greenwich Film Festival. I wish it luck with wider distribution.

I happily endorse Theatre of Wine as one of The Phantom's Favourite Haunts

www.theatreofwine.com