The Curse of the CamberwellOnline Blog strikes again.
July 2004: I discuss Blake House restaurant.
January 2005: Blake House closes down.
October 2004: I talk about Rock‑8 Tapas Bar.
March 2005: Rock‑8 closes down.
April 2005: I wonder about Grosevnor Steak House.
June 2005: Grosvenor Steak House closes down.
It’s been there as long as I can remember with no customers, doing just fine, then as soon as I open my mouth (or, rather, move my hands) it ups and closes down. I’m going to watch what I say from now on.
On a more serious note, there’s a lot of shop and bar space that’s just not being picked up. Grosevnor, Bees, Blake House, 4 Sure We’re D Best… high street locations sitting empty. Is Camberwell dying? Where are people going?
On the subject of closing down, the Texaco petrol station on Camberwell New Road disappeared really quickly; like, overnight. Went past it on the bus one day: right as rain. Next day: stripped bare. Pumps gone. The works. Is there going to be more housing development there? Anyone heard?
There seems to be some kinda life at ‘4 Sure We’re Da Best’…
I’m sure the employee(s) of the Grosvenor Steak House were good people, and I wish them no ill, but there’s only two things I’ll miss about this place. Finding out just how bad the food must have been to have had consistently no customers through several years trading, and to find out the secret of staying in business when you have no income.
I read somewhere that most petrol stations actually make a loss on petrol, but claw back some profit selling coffees and newspapers. I guess they didn’t sell enough lattes.
People aren’t leaving, they’re just not eating out locally. Those that do are faithful to their favourite spots, so new places, particularly pricier ones in obscure locations like Blake House, have an uphill struggle. Nando’s does very well.
I think Blake House might be about to have a make over. There’s a planning permission notice on the lamppost outside saying that there is an application to take out the single window and single door and replace it with a double door. At least it isn’t an application to turn it into 50 luxury flats!!!
I agree with Gareth’s comments re the Grosvenor. Any time there were actually customers in the restaurant was a cause for comment between me and my friends. Let’s just say we drew some predictable conclusions about the income… but maybe we were being unfair?
Has anybody else noticed that the easier the menus get in fast food establishments (KFC,McDonalds, Other Fried Chicken Establishments with a cartoon chicken in a cowboy hat as a corporate identity etc) the more confusion and arguments it seems to cause? — There was a time when you had to have a basic level of literacy to place an order as the menu was only in small text with no illustrations or pictures above the heads of the counter staff — Then you had to have some language skills to communicate with the person taking your order, what you’d like to eat — Now there are huge pictures above the counter with various meal deals which all have corresponding numbers but all people seem to do is point furiously at the said pictures while pogoing up and down on the spot and simultaneously making grunting noises and then expecting the poor underpaid counter staff to decipher what all these cro-magnon type shenanighans actually mean — In turn this causes conflict and argument and just holds up the queue — Which just goes to show that people act more civilised if they are obliged to engage their brains rather than having all the work done for them — The wonders of a free market democracy never cease to amaze me…