Abraham – the Friendliest Man in Kennington

Posted on May 6, 2019 by Kennington Runoff

While passing through Kennington central of a morning you might have passed a marquee selling coffee and other items. It is ‘Bouquets and Beans’ and is the brawns and brains of creator Abraham (below), who is on hand to deliver coffee, tea, hot chocolate, cake and a friendly chat to passing Kenningtonians from Tuesday to Saturday, 7:30 to 4:00.

The core element of Bouquet and Beans is floral services, and they provide the flowers to Winkworth and the Doghouse, in addition to services offered online. However, B&B is increasingly servicing the coffee and cake addiction of Kennington by selling 100-150 cups from 7:30-10. Abraham describes himself as a ‘people’s person’ and the best part of his job is talking to people as they buy their cuppa enroute to destinations beyond our cherished area. He also loves the ‘community feel’ of Kennington and tries to be here as often as possible, including the Kennington Fete.

If you’ve ever wondered why there is a kind of ‘Scandi noir’ feel in front of St. Anselm’s in December that’s because Bouquets and Beans also sell Christmas trees, and KR has bought several of them. They are of very high quality and if you ask the right questions Abraham’s burly assistants can even deliver them to your door for free.

We Are the Lambeth Boys

Posted on May 1, 2019 by Kennington Runoff

You could probably spend a day few days, or in our case years, exploring the BFI Film Archive of old films about London. We recently discovered this treasure called ‘We Are the Lambeth Boys’ and it gives a fascinating insight into Kennington circa 1959.

The film depicts the lives of the girls and boys of Alford House youth club, which still flourishes in Aveline Street, pictured below. To 2019 eyes the 49 minute film appears slightly condescending, but it was in fact intended to dispel conceptions of ‘Teddy Boys’ (hence the conversation about apparel early in the film) and the culture of youth clubs in general.

Examining the (nerd alert!) outside shots of the estates, we think they were filmed around Newburn Street. If you are a fellow fan of ‘ohh, I know where that is’ viewing, scroll to (nerd alert 2!) 33:30 for a distinct view of 50’s Kennington Cross (shown below). If you’re still on board scroll back to (nerd alert 3!) to 26:10 for a glimpse of Cleaver Street toward Cleaver Sq. If you have any further nerd revelations please drop them in the comments box….

I need some nicer clothes…..

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Ta Ta Tesco

Posted on April 20, 2019 by Kennington Runoff

For those of you new to the area, or those who are of a forgetful disposition as we are, you might not be aware that Tesco Kennington Lane will be closing forever in June. It will be replaced by a Tesco (probably the Metro variety) in the soon to vanish car park.

How can this be happening, you ask? Well several years ago Berkeley Homes purchased the Tesco site and the redundant gas holders behind it. After several years planning permission was granted for the construction of 728 new homes ranging from 4 to 17 stories, and 23, 000 sq. feet of commercial space. And taking a page out the King’s Cross book, one of the gas holders will have flats in it. The Lambeth planning application (great for insomniacs) indicates that this will take 30 months (a gentle way of saying 2.5 years) but the Berkeley homes website indicates ‘Phase 1’ will take 40 months.

Not to worry, dear reader, when all is said and done there will be a new all singing and dancing Tesco, and a pic of it is below. The footprint is slightly smaller than the old store, but according to a consultation I went to last year it will be better laid out. Precisely how Berkeley Homes know how Tesco will lay out its store I’m not exactly sure.

If you want to make yourself feel all warm inside about our neighbourhood, have a gander at the slightly fictionalised description of Kennington/Oval on the Berkeley Homes website . Oval Village beckons!

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Ground Control to Major Plane Trees

Posted on April 10, 2019 by Kennington Runoff

Next time you’re walking up the west side of Kennington Road take a look up at the plane trees just beyond Tesco Metro and up to the IWM. If you look closely you’ll notice the names of all 12 Apollo astronauts who walked on the moon on metal plaques (Buzz Aldrin is hangin’ on for dear life in front of Texaco) plus 3 other Apollo astronauts. No one appears to know how the plaques turned up there, but the very handy Londonist website speculated in 2017, and the dearly departed Smoke magazine had a go a few years prior. If you dig deeper into the web you’ll also find some pretty cray cray theories, including one claiming that seeds for the (100+ year old) trees were actually on the Apollo missions. Hey ho..

The plaques appear to have been there for at least 25 years, so their creator might have moved on or indeed joined the heavens. If you have any theories please leave a comment. Best of luck looking, and may god’s love be with you………..

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The top ten best restaurants in Kennington – no. 6 – Doost Persian Grill

Posted on February 21, 2019 by Kennington Runoff

Positives: About 65% of our Kennington takeaways over the years have been from Doost. The food is simply delicious. The chelo kabab koobideh (lamb kebab) is one of the things we miss most from our meat eating days, although their veggie kebab is great too. We’ve never had a bad dish there. Even their rice is next level.

Doost Persian Grill & Vodka Bar

Negatives: We just can’t understand why it isn’t full all the time!

The top ten best restaurants in Kennington – no. 8 – Taro

Posted on February 19, 2019 by Kennington Runoff

Taro - kenningtonrunoff.com

Positives: We were super excited by the arrival of Taro, next to Kennington Post Office, at the end of last year. There are more and more Japanese food options opening up in the area, but some only do takeaway, and not all are well reviewed! SW9 Sushi on Brixton Road in South Kennington is one option for eating in, but Taro, who already have a successful branch in Soho, is a cut above. Really good food, nice and bright interior, and delightful service – they practically give you a round of applause on the way out.

Bento box at Taro - kenningtonrunoff.com

Negatives: None that we’ve found so far; hopefully the honeymoon period will never end.

The top ten best restaurants in Kennington – no. 9 – Gandhi’s

Posted on February 18, 2019 by Kennington Runoff

Positives: Kennington Tandoori gets most of the press, but its problems with customer service linger despite the business being handed on from one generation to the next. What edges it for us is Gandhi’s extraordinarily cheap vegetable thali and particularly the dal – simply the best we’ve ever had. They don’t do the thali for takeaway but if you ask them nicely, they might.

Negatives: Kennington Tandoori has nicer premises, especially in summer when its front can be opened. If you want fancy and modern and you don’t mind playing by their rules, go to the KT. Gandhi’s is more of a traditional curry house and menu.

The top ten best restaurants in Kennington – no. 10 – The Walcot 1830

Posted on February 17, 2019 by Kennington Runoff

The Walcot 1830 - kenningtonrunoff.com

Positives: The Ship was a nice pub with mediocre food, whereas under its new owners and new name – The Walcot 1830 – it really takes pride in its menu. We’d say it serves the best pub food in the area, replacing the Duchy Arms which no longer boasts an ambitious menu by Prince Charles’s former chef, and edging out the Elephant & Castle. We were also delighted to hear they’ve renovated the bar billiards table which was such a big feature of The Ship.

Walcot 1830 outside seating - kenningtonrunoff.com

Negatives: It’s not cheap, and if you don’t like rich food, your options might be limited. Per Vanilla Black, will they ever get a proper sign, or are they doing too well without one?

Sea bass at Walcot 1830 - kenningtonrunoff.com