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The top ten best places to eat in Greater Kennington – no. 10 – Cafe Van Gogh

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Welcome to our almost annual run down of the best places to eat in Greater Kennington. Let us start with a few caveats. You might notice that we generally give good reviews to eating places here. This not due to lack of scrutiny as we eat out in Kennington all the time. Rather, we choose to promote the places we enjoy and feel passionate about, as opposed to the places which aren’t up to standard (and you know who you are..we can hear your microwave humming). Also, there are many places which we know are wonderful (such as Bonnington Cafe)   but we just haven’t been able to make it there recently, so we apologise if your favourite hasn’t made the cut.
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Number 10 is Cafe Van Gogh. a glorious vegan cafe on cusp of the KR catchment area in Brixton Road. Not afraid of being lauded, it was recently anointed as one one of the Guardian’s best vegan friendly restaurants in London . We visited on a weekday during half term, and the place was full of people working on laptops and folks with kiddos. We chose the vegan mac-n-cheese partially as a challenge, as it is pretty hard to pull off in a vegan joint. Our server explained that the cheese is achieved by a mixture of mustard, garlic and onion powders. We were very sceptical about this but the result was delicious. Those around us had a butternut squash pasta dish and a plant based based burger with chips. On the other table a mum told us that she just had an aubergine stuffed chapatti with dhal. It should be noted that the menu is concise and well curated.

Cafe Van Gogh is a not for profit social enterprise who work in conjunction with a range of local Kennington/Oval/Brixton charities. They provide paid employment for people who have faced challenges in life and who want to get back into the realm of employment. We are not vegan ourselves, but having lunch here was a truly delicious eye opener and even more valued with the knowledge that we’re giving something back to the more vulnerable in our shire.

Vincent himself was not present for this dining experience, but if you want to experience his work without even seeing anything he actually painted, then you might want to check out the totally bonkers Vincent Van Gogh experience just up the road at the Southbank..

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Greater Kennington in 1970 – And the Upcoming top 10

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We’re still in Cuba where disaster has struck..The umbrella has just fallen out of our cocktail….But in the meantime please titillate yourselves with this British Pathe video from 1970.  The clip starts at minute 11, on top of a bus going down Baylis Road towards Lambeth North and the spire of Surrey Chapel (now Oasis Hub), then various other clips past St. George’s Circus (?) toward the Elephant. The estates created in the 50’s ands 60’s still look new, and still in evidence are signs of bomb damage…The video then moves on to less interesting places like Westminster.

In a few days we will awe you (or depress you) with number 10 in our annual roundup of ‘top ten places to eat in Kennington’. Unlike in years previous, this list will cover both dinner and lunch venues and could even include the odd pub or two. The reason for this is because our predecessors ate out a lot more than we do  we appreciate that people work at different times of the day or their free times vary.

Marks to Prove it

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The secretive mandarins at Kennington Runoff finally signed our leave card so we are currently in Cuba. Of course we would never leave our readers without top flight infotainment, however, so if you’re lonely please watch ‘Marks to Prove It’ by the Maccabees  from a few years ago. The fascinating video was shot almost entirely in Elephant and Castle. If you don’t fancy the sound of young white guys screaming, you can mute it and catch Elephant Park being built, our our soon to be dematerialised Elephant Shopping centre. If you’ll look closely you’ll also see Waterloo, and perhaps where you live!

Now where’s my mojito?

 

Collective in Kennington Park

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The café in Kennington Park has experienced a number of permutations over the years, almost to the point of us assigning the designation of it being a ‘jinxed property’. It was resurrected in July of last year as a  lunchtime pizza place called ‘Collective’. We went for the pizza, but as they open at 10am they also have croissants, coffees, muffins and teas. If the mood takes you, you can even have, umm,  a morning ice cream.

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Pizza seems to be the current vogue in Greater Kennington (with barbershops a close second), supplanting estate agents, which is a good thing. We’ve been meaning to visit Collective since last summer but gave it a miss as it interferes with Loose Women our healthy daytime regime.  It bats above it’s weight from the outset by having a large, wood fired pizza oven.

 

A good pizza is all about the base, and we had a basic marinara  to maximize the experience. The dough is definitely sourdough, and thin almost to the point of being transparent. True to Neopolitain pizzas, it is blistered and slightly charred, but not to the finger blackening gorgeousness of Theo’s in Elephant. The marinara was good but we encourage you to branch out to the ‘spicy boy’ or the several veggie options. Vegan cheese is also available.

The place is especially good for kids as it is spacious and the kiddos can even run outside without the fear of the number 3 bus mowing them down. If you’ve been in a coma for the past 5 months and you’re presently reading this in July,  the outside space is great and even BYOB. In our estimation the only downside is that many people do not want to devour an entire pizza in the middle of the day so it might be bountiful to invite your colleagues or take some home, which is an option. They are also open at weekends. Very good, but will it be in our top 10?*

*The final plug, honestly.

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Lunch Box – Kennington Tandoori

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The street food project at the Dog House has yet to materialise, but as we had our sights set on Kennington Cross today we decided to tick off tick another institution off our list, Kennington Tandoori.

KT has been entertaining the taste buds of local folk and Westminster glitterati since 1985 and we’ve been going for years. You might be aware that they had a foray into breakfast food a few years ago which didn’t go so well, and they are now trying their hand at the very competitive Kennington lunchtime trade with their £7.95 ‘lunch box’. Their dinners are so successful that they might even make our top 10 in a few weeks (last shameless plug alert), so we decided to check it out at noon.

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First off, the reason why KT is undertaking a ‘lunch box’ is pretty apparent when you collect your meal; the place is a ghost town mid day. There are four options (one veg) for the lunch box and we opted for the tamarind chicken. It had a very good balance of sweet and tangy with a bit of spice offset with caramelised onion in a rich tomato sauce. The onion bhaji was very big and tasted more like cauliflower, which was also good. There good have been a bit more rice but that is a small matter.

KT is a very solid and filling lunch option in central Kennington if you are looking for an alternative to sandwiches and quiche. If you find the excessive packaging an issue (and we did) then you can always achieve maximum confidentiality by having a seat with and being the only punters in the room.

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Getting a Bit Gassy in Oval

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As your devoted public servants, last night we popped over to Montford Place with our almost alliteratively titled ‘Gasholder Building Public Consultation Invitation’ to meet with a group of chirpy Millennial Berkeley Homes Reps and one rather grumpy architect.

Regular Runoff readers are probably aware that we are closely watching and musing over the inexorable rise of ‘Uptown KenVo’ in Kennington Lane, and this consultation was about the high rises which will be erected inside the largest gasholder, located just behind ‘shipping container Tesco’. The other two gasholders will be pulled down in March (read about them here) and will be the site of the first stage of the development which will eventually have 1300 (!!!!) homes.

There will be 225 flats inside the gasholder, and grumpy architect mentioned that the plan had recently been altered to provide more green spaces for residents. Also, the building will have an arc shape which will reflect the very fine looking arc at the north side of the Oval. The gasholder will not be dismantled, and apparently construction materials will delivered underground (!!!!).

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When completed the whole site will be set between Kennington Lane, Montford Place, the Oval and Vauxhall Street, which is pretty huge. Apparently the elevation to Vauxhall Street will be retail, as will a strip that runs through the gasholder itself (at bottom). At this point a Millennial Berkeley Homes Rep joined the convo and this is when we decided to get a bit subversive. The conversation went accordingly:

Berkeley – We’re thinking that there could be some locally owned cafes in there, or maybe a crèche

Runoff –  Or there could be a Starbucks

Berkeley – Umm…or there could be a library in there.

Runoff – Or what about a Pret INSIDE a Starbucks?

Berkeley – Err….

If you want more information or your own chance to be a bit subversive, the next consultation is this Thursday (6 Feb) from 6-8 at 37 Montford Place. If you choose the subversive route you first might want to pop into the Pilgrim Pub for a swift one.

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Didi and Franc

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We were frankly devastated when Oddbins Kennington closed last year. Lord knows we tried our best to keep them open, morning, noon and night. Our loss is what’s commonly referred to as a ‘first world problem’.

Courtesy of our friends at Vanilla Black,  the site is about to be reborn Phoenix like as a wine and cheese shop called ‘Didi and Franc’, also billing itself as a ‘deli/wine/bistro’. This information was garnered from Instagram, where they have established a presence.

We contacted Didi and Franc about their opening date and they conservatively replied ‘spring’. We will have a full, in-depth and extremely positive review after we receive an invitation to their launch party*
*This never works
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Winter Interest

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It’s a bit unorthodox to be writing about gardens in the bleak midwinter, but we all need a bit of greenery in our lives, especially when the sky matches the grey Kennington pavements.

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Harleyford Road Community Garden in Vauxhall wsd created by the demolition of a terrace of Georgian properties in the 1970’s which featured inordinately large front gardens. In 1984 the progressive residents of nearby Bonnington Square agreed to work in partnership with Lambeth to turn the site into a place of quiet refuge amongst the nearby smog and snarl.

 

 

 

 

The arboreal product of the partnership  created 36 years ago persists to this day, and even in winter offers a great place for the public to stroll, eat a sandwich, reflect, or just experience an element of silence. The garden is divided into several different areas and includes a children’s play area, lawns, benches, picnic areas, and a mossy green pond. It prides itself on being the only accessible wildlife site in the area.

The Garden is still maintained by volunteers from Bonnington Square,  and it without question possesses the quirky,  ‘planty’. and independent aesthetic of the Square. This is evident in the mosaic wall and paving stones implanted with chipped china  and rocks. In reality the entire layout of the Gardens are the masterwork of Bonnington residents, and well done.

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With no small amount of surreal irony our quiet, pastoral refuge is sponsored by the rather notorious nightclub ‘Fire’. As intrepid and responsible local journalists we approached Runoff management about getting to the bottom of this relationship (in a strictly professional capacity of course) by actually going to Fire at 3am last Saturday. We were rapidly rebuked and informed that this would be ‘inappropriate’ and ‘compromise the ethos of the site’. Well lets see about that and watch this space.

The Gardens are very kid friendly and also placid and safe for people on their own who seek solace and serenity. Enjoy!

Longdan Supermarket…Our Local Asian Superstore

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If it isn’t on your gerbil trail then you’ve probably missed a very unique place at the top of Walworth Road called ‘Longdan’. Longdan is a pan Asian supermarket with a very tasty Vietnamese street food restaurant attached called ‘Aobaba’.

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We know that some of you sit up at night wondering just where you can source dried lotus seeds and 50 kilo sacks of jasmine rice. Well, now you’re in luck. Longdan specialises in hard to find products from Japan, Vietnam, China, Thailand and Malaysia, among other places. The hard to find products are perfect if you are feeling inventive, want a bit of culinary inspiration, or just want a browse. For the cautious sorts much of their fresh exotic goods are sold frozen and can be kept for the long haul.

 

One thing Longdan does very well is condiments (and who among us doesn’t favour a nice condiment?) and you can bag a range of soy and chili sauces, bean curd, stir fry mixes, and good old fashioned Siriracha. Recently we bought banana leaves to remind us of the time we were in Kolkata (oops, better pick up that name we just dropped!) in a sad effort to resurrect our curry meal there.  Having said that, our favourite bit is at the back, where they sell a variety of Asian kitchen products which are largely impractical for western chefs but a great way to make you feel like a cooking pro.

 

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As for Aobaba, it offers cheap and delicious Vietnamese fare to eat in or take away. In the past we’ve enjoyed summer rolls, Banh Mi (baguettes), grilled pork and beef noodles. At the time of writing they didn’t do Pho, but our capital certainly isn’t lacking in those joints…

 

 

 

 

So, if your gerbil trail  leads inexorably to our depressing ‘Shipping Container Tesco’ then try moving in another direction for a bit of a culinary challenge. Cabbage roots, anyone?

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Meet the Locals 1 – James Gill of ABC

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Recently we had a nice chin wag with comedian and overall ‘fun guy’ James Gill about his Thursday comedy night, Always Be Comedy,  at the Tommyfield in central Kennington.  For the uninitiated, ABC features some established comics (last Thursday we saw Marcus Brigstocke and the crap evidence is below) with up and coming folks. Once you recover from the crowd resembling a giant reunion of contestants from ‘The Apprentice’ it’s a nice place to unwind and have a giggle at this most stressful time of year.

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KR – How long has ABC been running and what inspired you to start it?

James – Oh my gosh! It’s been more than EIGHT YEARS. I started it with two former housemates: Stuart Keeping and Paul Vale.. So I’m the last man standing. Christ. This is how The Sugababes must feel. Why did we start? I still have no idea whatsoever. I think it was so I could learn how to MC. But I’m guessing. I have no idea. If you ever find out, please will you tell me?

KR – What makes a good audience member?  And what about  a bad audience member?

James – A good audience member is someone who laughs. At the right times, obviously. If they’re just sat laughing all night, before the show, at the set-ups and through the breaks, then they may be unwell, and I now feel genuinely sorry for this fictional person in my head. A bad audience member. Oh, the person who has turned up to actively have a shit night: arms folded and a general aura that says, “Yeah, well what have you got?” I try to spot them early on and ask them to unfold their arms as they’ll have a much nicer experience.

KR – Can you tell us a bit about the games you play before the show and during the break?

James – Yes! Absolutely. It feels like we used to play a lot more weird and wonderful games, and perhaps I was personally hiding behind the games. So I try to be a lot more man-and-a-mic these days, with the games a lot more pared back. That’s because I MC and do telly warm-up a lot elsewhere, and it wasn’t realistic carrying a bag full of props to, say, Leeds. I do sometimes miss the ridiculous games – especially the Nerf-related games. Maybe it’s time to resurrect the Nerf. You can never have a Nerf… I am SO sorry.

KR – What can punters expect to see in 2020?

James- Lots of shows are booked already. So from late summer into autumn, we’ve got Sara Pascoe, Rachel Parris, Ivo Graham, Iain Stirling, Ellie Taylor and heaps more. And perhaps a bit more Nerf. Have I gone on a bit too long? I feel a Nerf is a Nerf… Again, so sorry. Thank you so much for the chat and hopefully we’ll see a lot more local faces at future gigs. And, again, if you know why we started the gig, be sure to come over and have a chat with me.