AREA GUIDEBermondsey Street

If we were giving out awards for cool streets, the gong for funkiestnewcomer would be scooped by SE1’s Bermondsey Street.Bisecting that lost world between London Bridge and Tower BridgeRoad, in the past five years it’s developed from drug-dealing hellholeinto a model of inner-city regeneration. The mile-long Zone-Onestretch is now HQ to design studios, fashion houses, galleries andsome great restaurants, bars and cafés. With a multi-million pound

ongoing development, there’s plenty more to come…

Fifteen years go, the thoroughfarethat runs between Tooley Streetand Tower Bridge Road was agrim wasteland, full of drug deal-

ers and dodgy pubs. Even the weeklyantiques market only seemed to attractfusty dowagers searching for their bur-gled silver. My, how things havechanged. Today, the area is the model ofmodern regeneration, and a fitting testa-ment to the property developer’s mantrathat an area first gets hip when the cre-atives move in (in search of cheap rents),followed by the gays (never shy of livingon the edge). The area is home to the JamFactory loft development, fashiondesigners Eley Kishimoto, ZandraRhodes’ Fashion & Textile Museum andsome funky boutiques, galleries, cafésand restaurants. A casual stroll on anyday might see you bumping into Placebo,Dirty Vegas, Faithless, Marc Almond, writer Jonathan Meades or sculptorAndrew Logan, all of whom live in or fre-quent the area.

What’s more, regeneration hasn’t beenat the expense of the locals. Trendy butfriendly lofters regularly rub shoulderswith tenants from the local authorityblocks. And everyone gets along just fine.Browse long enough in a boutique, andsomeone from the mini market next doorwill nip in for change for a fiver, just as, inour domestic dreams, a neighbour mightdrop by for a cup of sugar. Local suits havebeen known to stop into Cockfighter afterwork to buy a T-shirt to wear on a nightout at The Garrison over the road. Andmany of the hip young urbanites workingin the coffee shops and bars actually live inthe area and wouldn’t seem to have it anyother way. Currently, they’re worriedabout what the Southwick Council’smulti-million pound development of localgreen area might mean. Local faces screwup at phrases like ‘the new Clerkenwell’.But, although there are occasional com-plaints of lack of infrastructure, nobodyreally wants a Sainsbury’s. However, aflorist and a decent deli would be nice.Then they’d then never have to leave.

GUIDE NEIL McLENNAN PHOTOGRAPHYROB GREIG ILLUSTRATION JAMIE CULLENGUIDE TAKEN FROM FEB 25-MARCH 3 ISSUE OF TIME OUT LONDON

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TIME OUT LONDON I FEBRUARY 25-MARCH 3 2004

HOW TO GET THERE

Unless otherwise stated, London Bridge isthe nearest tube, followed by a ten-minutewalk down St Thomas’ Street.Bermondsey and Tower Bridge stationsare also handy. The RV1, 381 and 47 busesall run down Tooley Street, or take the 42,which goes along Tower Bridge Road

SHOPPING

Bermondsey (New Caledonian)MarketThis weekly event is beloved of collectorsand novices searching for some heirlooms.There’s mostly bric-à-brac in the open-airsection, but you’ll also find jewellery at goodprices and useful period stuff for keenDIYers, like brass doorknobs at £4 a pair.The covered market has everything fromcutlery to chandeliers and great art-deco-ish kimonos. Dealers like to keep a low pro-file. Go early, as it’s all over bar the shoutingby noon, especially in winter. Bermondsey (New Caledonian) Market,corner of Bermondsey St and Long Lane,SE1 (020 7969 1500). Open Fri 4am-2pm.

Cockfighter of BermondseyUp-and-coming design duo Kate Lindenand Damian Wilson design and shift theircult Cockfighter collection of witty T-shirt,sweats and knitwear from a cute boutiquein the heart of the street. Their colourfullyprinted ‘honk-if-you-had-it -last-night’ T-shirts are a key piece for spring-summer,but there’s also delicate, Swarovski-crys-talled cashmere knitwear for the lessadventurous and cool men’s patchworkleather coats.Cockfighter of Bermondsey, 96 Bermondsey St, SE1 (020 7357 6482/www.cockfighter.co.uk).Open Wed-Sat 11am-7pm.

Eley KishimotoWhen style aficionados like husband-and-wife print design duo Mark Eley andWakako Kishimoto set up shop in an area,you know it’s on the edge of somethinginteresting. The couple, who are at the fore-front of the reemergence of print design,have produced cheeky prints for the likes ofAlexander McQueen and Jil Sander. Andnow they have a shop selling their own lineof playfully patterned clothing, acces-sories, bags and shoes. Loads of fun.Eley Kishomoto, 40 Snowsfield, SE1 (0207357 0037). Open Thur-Sat 10.30am-6.30pm.

United Nude/Terra Plana Shop andShowroomNewly opened studio selling its own-madeshoes. United Nude is its minimalist rangeof ladies shoes which are inspired by Miesvan de Rohe’s Barcelona chair – think trian-gular-shaped hollow heeled mules andtwo-tone funky boots for a touch of glam.The more earthy might prefer the TerraPlana range which, shaped ergonomicallyfrom natural materials, is more about fit,form and function. They’ve recentlylaunched another line, Vivo, boasting a‘bullet-proof’ kevlar sole, which could comein handy some day. Prices from £70.United Nude/Terra Plana Shop and Showroom,124 Bermondsey St, SE1(020 7407 3758/ www.unitednude.com/www.terraplana.com).Open Mon-Fri 10am-6pm.

ART & DESIGN

The Bermondsey Street GalleryCurrently housing an exhibition of workby hip young British painter Sacha Jafri,who’s sold to Madonna, Kevin Spacey andPrince William, among others. Pop yourhead in the door (if it’s open) and check outhis bold, bright magic realist canvases.The Bermondsey Street Gallery, 60 Bermondsey St, SE1 (020 7407 8522).Open by appointment.

Fashion and Textile MuseumZandra Rhodes finally realised her long-term ambition to create a space dedi-cated to innovative exhibitions offashion a year ago, and so created a land-mark at the heart of the street. Its launchexhibition, ‘My Favourite Dress’, contin-ues to attract everyone from design stu-dents to Armani-clad ladies onexperimental forays east of Selfridges.Inside, there’s a small but interestingshop, and an educational division withan extensive research archive.The landmark fuchsia pink andVitamin C exterior, by Mexican archi-tect Ricardo Legorreta, makes the build-ing unmissable. Literally.Fashion and Textile Museum, 83Bermondsey St, SE1 (020 7403 0222/www.ftmlondon.org). Open Tue-Sun11am-5.45pm. Adults £6, concs £4,family £16.

fr dzignThis furniture shop cum showroom cumworkshop specialises in sourcing, refur-bishing and selling art-deco furniture.Mid-century chairs by the likes of VernerPanton and Eames are popular, as arerarer and more interesting versions of theJacobsen ant chair, which go for £150.Their hit lamps, made from French wall-paper print cylinders, aren’t cheap at£350, but are unique. Quirkier pieces cur-rently on show include a 1920s Tokyo den-tist’s chair (£850) and a very Englishcream and navy leather Tourer sofa. fr dzign,Globe House, 2a Crucifix Lane,SE1 (020 7357 0772/ www.ftdzign.co.uk).Open Mon-Sat 10am-7pm.

SoBo Art Gallery Espresso BarOnly open a month, with the aim of bringing abit of café culture to the barrio, this art galleryespresso bar owned by Peter Leonard isalready popular with Jam Factory residents.Revolving exhibitions mean they can alsoadmire the affordable art and add anyfavourites to their collections. SoBo Art Gallery Espresso Bar, 83 TowerBridge Rd, SE1 (020 7403 5080/www.sobogallery.co.uk). Open Mon-Thur 8am-6pm, Fri 7am-6pm, Sat 9am-6pm, Sun 10am-4pm.

EATING & DRINKING

The BermondseyThe road to regeneration often starts with acappuccino machine and a decent sand-wich bar and this street isn’t lacking ineither. The Bermondsey keeps local work-ers filled up on mozzarella and pesto on cia-batta or pastry fancies. There’s the usualrange of coffees, salads and sturdy break-fasts and they also do outside event cater-ing and can organise everything from aquiz night to a tutored wine-tasting. Oh,and it’s also nice to hang out in the window

with a latte and watch the world go by.The Bermondsey, 63 Bermondsey St,SE1 (020 7407 1096). Open Mon-Fri7.30am-5pm.

The Bermondsey KitchenAs the name suggests, the preparationarea dominates this modern, funky restau-rant with lots of ingredient-grabbing andsaucepan-banging from the high-mainte-nance chefs. Rib-eye steak with sweetpotato and blue cheese butter (£13) fol-lowed by citron tart (£4). Tempted?The Bermondsey Kitchen, 194Bermondsey St, SE1 (020 7407 5719).Open Mon-Sat 12noon-3.30pm, 6.30-10pm, Sun 11.30am-4pm.

Champor-Champor Little gem of a restaurant tucked awaybetween London Bridge and BermondseyStreet that offers an inventive take onAsian fusion. Recently expanded, it hasvibrant interiors and is reasonably priced(two courses for£19.90) with some tastyAsian fusion dishes such as jackfruit soupor satay and lemongrass-spiced ostrich.Champor-Champor, 62 Weston St, SE1(020 7403 4600/www.champor-champor.com). Open Mon-Fri 12.30-2pm, 6.30-10.30pm, Sat 6.30-10.30pm.

Delfina Cafe and GalleryEstablished light, airy and spacious cafe andgallery space that’s long been established asa site of events but is also a reliable stopping-off point for anyone in search of a quiet sitdown. There’s a sensible menu with dailyspecials and plenty of wine by the glass. Idealfor a cruisy lunch, with some often very inter-esting art on the side.Delfina Café and Gallery, 50 Bermondsey St,SE1 (020 357 0244/ www.delfina.org.uk).Open Mon-Fri 8am-5pm.

The Garrison Public HouseThe owners of this corner pub have man-aged to straddle the tricky style dividebetween cosy local and hip destination

‘We’ve come to get T-shirts for the bandfrom Cockfighter –they do the best inLondon. The wholearea’s getting moreand more buzzy. Youcanhave a bit of ashop, then pop overthe road for a pint.And there are greatunderground clubsaround TooleyStreet.’

Sister Bliss andMaxi from Faithless

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United Nude

Cockfighter of Bermondsey

Fashion and Textile Museum

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Meals served Mon-Fri 12noon-3pm, 6-10pm, Sun 12noon-6pm.

Manze’sJust to show the area hasn’t completelygiven itself over to ciabatta and cappucci-nos, this old-school pie-and-mash shopattracts lunchtime queues of local busi-ness workers, sitemen from buildingworks and the occasional curious touristall after an authentic flavour of the oldEast End. Manze’s, 87 Tower Bridge Rd, SE1 (0207407 2985) Tower Hill tube. Open Mon11am-2pm, Tue-Thur 10am-2pm, Fri10am-2.15pm, Sat 10am-2.45pm.

ON THE MARKET

What’s the deal on property?If you’re so struck with Bermondsey’sfresh vibe that you want to move there,you’ll find that property developers haveanticipated you and a lot of others doingthe same, and have been busy since theJubilee line station opened. GalliardHomes alone has two projects under wayaround Bermondsey Street, and hasalready completed three more. While it’snot dirt-cheap, it’s still pretty affordablefor its Zone One location.

Not only is the area a village-likeanomaly in the centre of town, but it hasplenty of character, which is in starkcontrast to the nearby (and moreexpensive) Shad Thames area, which isfeeling a bit sterile and even neglectedthese days. Professional couples arefilling up new-build flats and payingbetween £300,000 and £350,000 for a two-bedroom, two-bathroom flat. If you insiston a car, you’ll find that parking spacesare at a premium and you might pay up to£30,000 extra to secure one.

For those after a touch of periodcharacter, many of the Dickensianwarehouses around the street, such as theTower Bridge Road Jam Factory (due fortotal completion in 2006 but alreadypartly occupied), have been convertedinto office or residential space. Beware,though – not all come with high vaultedceilings and acres of uninterrupted space– some are poky but will still set you backa lot of money.

If your pockets are shallow but you’dstill like to get in on the action, you couldgo for an ex-local authority property. One-bedroom flats within ’30s or ’50s blocks ofabout five floors start at £130,000. Thereare some high-rises too, but it’s difficult toget mortgages on anything concreteabove ten floors high and surveyors aren’tkeen either.

The nearby Spa Road area is midwaythrough a ten-year regeneration plan thatbegan in 1999. In addition to more than900 new homes – many falling into thebracket of ‘affordable housing’ – there’llbe a GP’s surgery, car share scheme andnursery.

Renters start at £100 a week forsomething really basic – the studentpopulation is big round here (from Guy’sHospital mostly) and they won’t paymore. A more chichi one-bedroom flat willbe around the £230 mark.

While students, professionals and thesocially mobile are well represented, youwon’t find many kids here. This is nonappy valley – despite some newly

bar. It has the vibe of a dark-wood-and-burgundy-booth boozer but set within astylish, light and airy décor, inspired byProvençal France with a little bit ofScandinavian beach house thrown in.Less formulaic than gastro pubs, the foodis good – with classically unfussyEuropean and British food servedthroughout the day. There’s a privateroom downstairs, which doubles up as aweekend cinema club, screening contem-porary film where locals can drink, smoke,enjoy a meal and a movie and not have towash up afterwards .The Garrison Public House, 99-101Bermondsey St, SE1 (020 7089 9355).Open Mon-Sat 11am-11pm, Sun 12noon-10.30pm.

The HartleyNewly opened gastropub on the site ofthe former Pagoda pub, which was thekind of place where the only thing guar-anteed on the menu was a fight. Thingshave changed, though. In keeping withthe local penchant for refurbishment,the once-tawdry site has been given newlife and a stunning menu. Organicmeats feature on the changing daily spe-cials (Aberdeen Angus in a porcinimushroom sauce for £10.95, say). Laid-back, easy eating and drinking for thenoughties.The Hartley, 64 Tower Bridge Rd, SE1(020 7394 7023/www.the-hartley.com).Bar open Mon-Fri 12noon-11pm, Sat11am-11pm, Sun 11am-10.30pm.

‘I used to live here,and wish I still did. It feels like trueLondon to me, justthe right mix of theold and the new. I’m worried that it’schanging and hope it doesn’t get toooverdeveloped. That would be such a shame.’

Chloe Thomas, TV director

The Bermondsey Kitchen

The Garrison

Delfina

regenerated green spaces just offBermondsey Street (including free tenniscourts). For some of you, the lack of kidsmight just swing it for SE1. Kate Riordan

Property agentsAcorn, 118 Bermondsey St, SE1 (020 7089 6565). Daniel Cobb, 82-84 Bermondsey St, SE1(020 7357 0026).Williams Lynch, 90 Bermondsey St, SE1(020 7407 4100).

©Time Out Magazine Ltd 2004

Grange Walk

‘This does remindme of Clerkenwellten years ago. It hasloads of potentialand there’s stillplenty of room forgrowth. It’s anexciting time to bearound. All the rightingredients are here.’

Kerwin Browne, chef

The Jam Factory

FEBRUARY 25-MARCH 3 2004 I TIME OUT LONDON

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