Explore Stamford Hill…Part 1

If it’s dinner you’re after then pop a couple of doors down and you will find the most recent addition to the food scene in Stamford Hill: De Gusto. This is a Brasilian-cum-Italian restaurant that opens in the evenings and serves hot food with a cocktail list long enough to wallpaper a small room. Covered in pictures of Italy and Brazil it’s not quite Nobu, but it will fill you up and if you go during the week you’ll be likely to catch the Pasta Buffet: for less than a tenner you will be served-up pasta dish after pasta dish – a taster menu for the carb-hungry and a guaranteed crowd-pleaser for anyone looking for a place to take fussy children or those in need of comfort food.

For something strictly South American you’re in the right place in Stamford Hill. With a growing community here the food is authentic and affordable. La Carrilera is the best if you like your meat done Latino style and accompanied with plantain and beer. The staff are friendly, and the menu is large and includes tapas-style food as well as big main dishes.

And if you’re looking for a watering hole then Stamford Hill has a fair few, many of which have been revamped over the last couple of years to make them more welcoming, although some are still worth avoiding. The Dutch House is a bustling, well-kept pub with friendly staff and a wide range of drinks. It shows the football and has a decent pool table at the back for any budding Stephen Hendrys.

So forget the myth that Stamford is the boring bit of the A10 and make the most of one of its unique, un-gentrified culinary offerings before the rest of the world catches on.

Why not share some of your favourite places in Stamford Hill.

This week’s guest blog is written by Sophie Robinson-Tillett.  Once the editor of www.stokenewingtonpeople.co.uk, she still contributes to the website, as well as to London 360 and East London Lines.

Stamford Hill has always been overlooked as a destination in Hackney – outdone by the bells and whistles of Stoke Newington up the road, Londoners don’t realise that there are plenty of hidden gems in this part of N16 too.

Summer is the best time to check Stamford Hill out because some of its greatest assets are the green spaces tucked in every corner. Springfield Park is by far the best in North East London with a Green Flag Award to prove it, and benefits from being relatively undiscovered. Enjoy a coffee at the park’s Spark Café, also known as White Lodge Mansion: they do great paninis, soups, salads and milkshakes, and a truly mean hot chocolate when you need a bit of warming up. In the winter you can enjoy the interior of the Grade II listed building, and on those rare occasions when the British sunshine makes an appearance you can pull up a chair outside and try spotting the wild green parakeets that the park is well known for.

Or if you’re a bit of a water baby then head a little further down and you’ll end up at the canal. Here you can enjoy anything from a brownie to a full English at the Riverside Café on the waterfront. It’s cheap and cheerful, and is a favourite for old-school locals and thirsty kayakers from the rowing club next door. This is a great place to people-watch and enjoy the chugging narrow boats and panting dogs that can be found here throughout the year.

If the weather isn’t quite nice enough to laze by the waterside or bird watch in the park then there’s plenty on offer indoors too. Stamford Hill Broadway may look like a hodgepodge of betting shops, supermarkets and fast food outlets, but there is an increasing number of interesting, independent pubs and restaurants that reflect the dynamism and multi-culturalism of this pocket of North London. If you fancy some down-to-Earth daytime food, then it’s all about Moteginos on Amhurst Park. A long standing, much loved greasy spoon selling everything from roast dinners and omelettes to the biggest fry-ups you’ve ever seen. Good service, clean environment and shoestring prices make it popular with local residents, workers and police officers all day long.

Read Explore Stamford Hill…Part 2

Check out Part 1 of this blog post here.

Bermondsey St also offers several options for coffee and cake breaks. First off the list is the aptly-named Bermondsey Street Coffee, with free Wi-Fi, magazines, papers and funky music playing (not too loudly). It’s a great place for a quick lunch, or a long, lingering coffee afternoon. If you like your coffee with a dose of community spirit, then head to Coffee at the Hatch; a small hatch in the corner building of St Thomas’s Street, where Square Mile coffee and a very fine flat white come out. The beautifully resorted tannery, hosted the Consultation café, which acted as a community hub for people who wanted to find out more and discuss the future of the area. The café may be gone, but the hatch stayed.

The drinking and dining options attract a mixed crowd. If it’s a cocktail and wine bar you are looking for, then The Hide Bar should do the trick.

The Street’s take on a traditional English pub is The Woolpack. A favourite of mine in the summer for its beer garden, kitsch-but-chic Victorian tiles, booths and a 60’s reminiscent wallpaper. It’s great for socialising and drinking, but with so many other options, I would probably go somewhere else, as the food is standard pub fare.

A notch above is The Garrison. A gastro pub which feels more like a British restaurant housed in a former pub, where the food is utterly delicious (I had one of the best beef Sunday roasts in London). Go there on a Sunday evening at 7pm for their film club “Sunday Cinema Sessions”. Can’t beat a bit of vino-cum-film.

Its sister venue, Village East brings a touch of NY-style ‘hood to SE1, delivering expertly crafted cocktails, excellent food and a good atmosphere. This place has a real buzz about it. I have tried their breakfast-brunch and left in really good spirits.

Zucca is the loud, open-spaced minimalist modern Italian, that Islington would love to have for itself. The kitchen is on-show and the place attracts the longest queues. If you only visit Bermondsey Street once, make this the place to try.

Antico on the site of a previous antique shop, is the second Italian in the Street, with a bar on the basement and the kitchen at street level, it’s full of promise but not quite there yet. Full review here.

Undoubtedly the best new addictions to the above restaurants have been provided courtesy of chef José Pizarro, formerly of Tapas Brindisa, who has opened two venues on the Street: small and intimate tapas and sherry bar Jose, and more formal restaurant Pizarro.

Confirming the area’s attraction potential, recently, Masterchef’s Gregg Wallace already has announced he will be taking over the Bermondsey Square Hotel’s restaurant, replacing the short lived posho-chippie Alfie’s with 1970’s childhood-memory food. Gregg’s Table will open on 27 February.

A further restaurant and bar, Mainray House, is also set to open in the former Terra Plana shoe shop.

And it is this mix that makes the place so special.

Try and visit before the Shard opens. You might still be able to call it “your little secret”.