Albina

Wrong Side of the River: Canning Town – The SOAS Spirit

Canning Town may be within spitting distance of devilish capitalist emblems such as Canary Wharf, and its glittering tube station wouldn’t look out of place at a Tiffany’s, yet this grand entrance could not be more misleading.

What used to be uninhabited marshland prior to the 19th century, accessible only by boat or toll bridge, gradually developed into a slum housing workers from the nearby Royal Victoria Docks.

Charles Dickens described the housing conditions in his 1857 book Londoners over the Border: ‘Rows of small houses, which may have cost for their construction eighty pounds apiece, are built designedly and systematically with their backs to the marsh ditches; …two or three yards of clay pipe “drain” each house into the open cess pool under its back windows, when it does not happen that the house is built as to overhang it… In winter time every block becomes now and then an island, and you may hear a sick man, in an upper room, complain of water trickling down over his bed.

The nearby ExCel Exhibition Centre has nothing to offer unless you are actually going to one of their exhibitions, so I choose instead to head up the stairs of the Royal Victoria Docks Bridge – a pedestrian bridge that offers stunning views of Canary Wharf on one side, and the derelict Millenium Mills and London City Airport on the other.

The article stated that it was not the first time Canning Town had been blacklisted, and that two years earlier NatWest had labelled it ‘a particularly risky place to lend money’.

Northbank Restaurant - River Restaurant London, English Menu ...

Originally from Preston in Lancashire, John moved to London in 2003 as an apprentice at the National Portrait Gallery’s Portrait Restaurant.

He later joined Marco Pierre White’s pub group outside Oxford, working his way up to Sous Chef at The Talkhouse.

John is a classically trained chef and references Marco Pierre White and Pierre Koffman as his culinary inspirations.

He considers his style to be Modern British with traditional French influences and his favourite ingredient is crab.

Outside of the kitchen, John enjoys spending time with his young family, practices Ju Jitsu and eats out as often as possible, whether it be a BBQ or fine dining.

Albina, 239 Barking Road, Newham, London, E13 8EQ - Eastern ...

Jamies Minories Bar Tower Hill | London Bar Reviews ...

Blueprint Café | Restaurants in Bermondsey, London

A long-time favourite, the Blueprint Café would be destination for the setting alone: wall-to-ceiling windows look on to a stunning view of the Thames and Tower Bridge, and a retractable canopy gives a great inside/outside feeling.

Begin, perhaps, with just-seared yellowfin tuna with kalamata olives and a delicate salad niçoise, or a tender artichoke salad with a molten warm duck egg and mint.

Line-caught cod beneath a zingy green herb crust, with yellow-tinged crushed potato with rapeseed oil and a flower and herb salad, was stunning – summer on a plate.

Even a tomato and onion side salad was a treat – jewel-bright, full-flavoured plum, cherry and green tomato heaven.

Service was a touch haphazard, but always friendly and, after all – with that view (plus mini-binoculars on every table) where’s the rush?