Saturday Shopping: Peckham

Muriel Spark’s 1960 novel, the Ballad of Peckham Rye, describes a very different Peckham to the one we see today. The world depicted by this Grande Dame of literature - one of post-war spartan lodgings, smoky pubs and noisy garment factories - is an insular one: a community wary of outsiders; it is a south London populated with blousy busy-bodies and dangerous gossip mongers. Although times have changed, this remarkable literary legacy lifts our lovely locality from the prosaic and parochial and bestows upon it an uncertain glamour and a suggestion of mythical mysticism; ‘the Rye for an instant looking like a cloud of green and gold, the people seeming to ride upon it, as you might say there was another world than this.' At the end of this fatalistic fable the devil-may-care, satanic-pretender protagonist leaves behind a Peckham that is changed forever, but this is the very thing about Peckham; its ability to meet change with reinvention and optimism. 

The Rye Hotel, now known as The Rye, is referenced on the first page of the Ballad of Peckham Rye and this lovely pub is a good place to start your visit to Peckham. Share a Blake Board (named after another literally connection, as it was on the Rye that the poet and painter had his vision of angels) of Scotch egg, crispy chicken, grilled chorizo sausages, pork pie, salt and pepper squid and hand cut chips, washed down with a Meantime London Ale.

The Rye,31 Peckham Rye, SE15 3HX

Open Monday - Thursday: 12am to 12pm, Friday - Saturday: 12am to 1am, Sunday: 12am to 11pm

A E Wilson’s is Peckham’s oldest surviving business; established in 1870 the firm was a family one until the last Wilson left us in 1995, aged 91. Since 1995 local Steve Hume has run the shop: who at the age of just 16 in 1985 invented the Muddy Fox Courier; one of the bestselling bikes of the decade. Although not quite 1870, many years ago my parents bought me my first bike, a beautiful powder blue and chrome Raleigh, from Wilson’s. I loved it and the whole new realm of shopping opportunities my new bike offered me. Today Wilson’s offers the same skilled services; same day repairs (no appointment necessary), new and used bike sales, spares and all the accessories one would expect. 

A E Wilson’s, 32 Peckham High Street ,SE15 5DP

Open Monday to Saturday 8.30am to 6pm

On the opposite corner Persepolis, is a destination store for all things Persian. If you are not a local a visit to Persepolis is worth the trip alone. Owner Sally Butcher has created an essential, incomparable, retail experience: full of charm, character and inimitable style; much like the lovely lady herself.
 break
Foodstuffs and delicacies are mixed with exotic home wares and handcrafted items, the authenticity of the offer is augmented by Sally’s expertly penned cookbooks; Persia in Peckham and the indispensable; Veggiestan.

I think the Shah Abbas teapots and cake plates are the grooviest things I have seen and I delight in giving them to people and see the glee and  amazement when they open them. Pop along to Persepolis, please!
break
break
break

Persepolis, 28 – 30 Peckham High Street, SE15 5DT

Open Monday to Sunday 10.35am to 9pm

The Flower Shop is literally an oasis of calm and peace in all the hustle and bustle of vibrant Peckham. Walking through the narrow doorway into the deceptively large florist, the noise dies away as you are drawn deeper into the serenity and tranquillity of the shop, enticed by bloom after stunning bloom. The shop specialises in next day delivery and can organise a delivery to the hour – well worth remembering – in fact it is the Flower Shop’s reputation for efficiency and reliability that has kept the company in business for the past 30 years.

When complaining about snails and slugs attacking my lilies, and my hatred of all things chemical, I was advised by the lovely owner of the Flower Shop to steep crushed garlic in water and pour around the roots of plants I wished to protect - it works - apparently vampires, slugs and snails hate fresh garlic.
break

The Flower Shop, 76 Peckham High Street, SE15 5ED

Open Monday to Saturday 9am to 5pm

Manze Pie and Mash shop is a London institution, with a fascinating history. Three year old Michele Manze arrived in Bermondsey from Ravello, on the Amalfe Coast, in 1878. Originally ice-merchants, turning later to ice-cream makers, the family identified the need for more substantial food in post-Victorian London; the Manze Pie, Mash & Eel business was born. The first shop to bear 24 year old Manze’s name opened in 1902 on Tower Bridge Road, his fifth and final shop at 105 Peckham High Street was opened in 1927. The pies sold at Manze shops are baked fresh on the day. The pastry is handmade, rolled and filled with fresh minced prime cuts of beef and gravy and cooked in traditional stone ovens. 

Manze Pie and Mash, 105 High Street, SE15 5RS

Open Monday: 11am to 2pm, Tuesday -Thursday: 10.30am to 2pm, Friday: 10am to 2.30pm, Saturday: 10am to 2.45pm.

Il Giardino is another Peckham stalwart; the small and cosy restaurant has been serving delicious homemade dishes from Sardinia for decades. Besides the ground floor restaurant, Il Giardino has an airy upstairs room available to be hired for private dining and accommodates up to 30 diners.

Il Giardino, 7 Blenheim Grove,  SE15 4QS

Monday to Saturday 6am to 11pm, Sundays 4.30pm to 9.00pm from November to April

Breakbreak
Colourful West African wax fabric abounds in Peckham. The eclectic and eccentric designs are selected to describe a little about the wearer, often proverbs and sayings are twisted into the bold patterns. These motifs of self-expression are often from nature but I always look for the esoteric; you might find toasters, coca cola bottles or perfume flasks even the odd carburettor. I love to buy lengths of this gorgeous fabric as gifts for people – you can always find something pertinent - imagining they might upholster a chair or make cushions, it probably languishes in a drawer, but it is lovely to share this colourful tradition and watch their faces when they spot the hidden and relevant meaning in the cloth.  I buy from Royal Textiles, 180 Rye Lane, where incredibly these amazing designs in standard lengths of 5.5 x 1.2 metres start from just £6 (going up to £75). If you are looking for fabric for upholstery or other homes projects (they are great for a summer garden party table cloth), the range by Julius Holland is only £15 per 5.2 metre length. The staff are extremely helpful, go in for a look, you will walk out laden and brighter for it.

Royal Textiles, 180 Rye Lane, SE15 4NF

Opposite at 205 Rye Lane, Wang Jia Chinese Supermarket is packed
with covetable products, being a fiend for packaging I good spend hours in there just looking at the teas. This green tea with jasmine flowers is just £1.50 and these sample sets of 6 mini tins of tea (Pu Erh, Oolong, Jasmine, Dragonwell Green Tea, Tikuanyin oolong, China Green) are just £3.99. The perfect host/ess gift.
break

Al-rehab is a Saudi producer of alcohol free perfume oils, the company’s somewhat hard to come by fragrances are available in handy 3ml dispenser, perfect for pocket or purse. I am rather taken by the Red Rose scent, which is a great summer roll-on, an in-flight freshener, and at only £2 you can afford to pack a few. You can buy them from AHK unit 14/16, Rye Lane Market, 48 Rye Lane.

Also in Rye Lane Market, at unit 36, is Sister P, purveyor of Mexican prayer candles, glass ones of which - like this St Michael £7 - will brighten up any garden summer soiree. I could not resist this Do As I Say incense, at £4 it will be money well spent if it works!

Keep in touch with plans for the Peckham of the future by visiting Peckham Vision's website, support the wonderful Friends of Peckham Rye Park - details on the friends website - discover the history of Peckham at the Peckham Society website and do pay a visit, Peckham Rye is only 8 minutes from London Bridge and is now serviced by the London Overground Link - click here for details. 

No visit to Peckham is complete without a visit to glorious Bellenden, check out our previous blog for details and make sure you have time to visit the fashion-fabulous Fenton Walsh, and other remarkable independent stores, cafes and restaurants including; Quaint and Belle, The General Store, Flock and Herd, The Begging Bowl, Anderson and Co and Review.

STOP PRESS: Sunday June 2nd is the Bellenden Big Lunch. FIND OUT MORE.

Lawrence's monthly shopping column appears in the SE Magazines group of publications, please click here to read online.