Today, in my second London area guide series, I’m showing you one of my favourite streets in London – Bermondsey Street. This area is full of independent, small business with so many hidden gems that I can’t wait to share with you. As usual, if you’d like to watch the YouTube tour of this area you can watch it here:
And follow this link to add all the places I’ve visited in this guide onto your google maps app, so next time you’re in the area you can easily see where I recommend!
Vinegar Yard
Firstly, there are SO many street food markets in the London Bridge area. I will be doing a separate video and blog post on all of these, but on the walk from London Bridge station to Bermondsey Street you’ll walk past Vinegar Yard – an outside street food market with added vintage and antique market. This is thriving in the summer and a great place to grab a cup of coffee or a beer.
Bermondsey Bar + Kitchen
Bermondsey Bar + Kitchen is an all day and evening destination in a converted car park at the top of Bermondsey Street. They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as hosting events with DJ’s and pop ups so it’s a one stop shop for all. Their outdoor area is huge and very popular in the summer months, and whilst I haven’t eaten here before, the menu makes me hungry!
Tanner + Co
Situated in a converted warehouse, Tanner + Co is a bar and restaurant with quirky decor, reminiscent of a school gymnasium. There are board games a plenty (perfect for cosying up in the winter with a roast and a game), a popcorn machine and some lovely cocktails available. They also have an outdoor dining area with fairy lights, heaters and blankets so you can enjoy the fresh air all year around.
London GlassBlowing
During the first lockdown I fell in love with watching glassblowing in action – thanks to Blown Away on Netflix (check it out, it’s like bake off but with glass blowing), so I was stupidly excited to visit London Glassblowing on Bermondsey Street. This is a glass art studio where you can browse some insanely beautiful art pieces AND you can watch the artists work at the back of the store! The staff are really lovely and they even sell some unique pieces from the participants from Blown Away. Even if you’re not clued-up on it, I really recommend watching the glass blowers work, it’s so amazing!
B Street Deli
I absolutely adore B Street Deli because, whilst being tiny, it’s perfect for: a coffee catch up with friends, a quiet lunch alone with a book, picking up a salad + picnic items to take away in the summer, or for an intimate date night with wine. It literally caters to ALL occasions. The coffee is great, they have a lovely selection of wine, gorgeous quiches, tarts and a salad bar, they even sell flowers. However, this place gets V busy on a weekend so be prepared to queue!
The Garrison
One of our favourite pubs in London for brunch and wine. In fact during our first few months of dating, G and I would go to the Garrison each weekend for sweetcorn fritters + feta with a Bloody Mary and it was a delight! They also have a private cinema room that you can hire and play any film you like! I actually had my 18th birthday party in this cinema room, where we watched Moulin Rouge!
Giddy Grocer
A very cute and quaint, village-esque grocers where you can pick up an array of organic, local and artisan produce, just remember everything has London prices!
Comptoir Bermondsey
With the most delicious window display of croissants, pastries and baguettes, Comptoir Gourrmand is a family run French Patisserie and cafe with products made fresh every day. They also have stores in Borough Market, Maltby Street and Soho!
Casse-Croûte
Okay, big talk here, but Casse-Croute might just be mine and G’s favourite restaurant in London. It’s the one place I would recommend every visit as the food is delicious and it’s such a wonderful, authentically French dining experience. You absolutely must book a table to eat here as the restaurant is TINY (I’d guess it only seats 30) which makes it a really memorable and intimate meal. The menu changes every day depending on what’s in season, and they write the menu du jour on a chalkboard each morning – you’ll never have the same meal twice here which makes it even more special! I just recommend it whole-heartedly!
Trove – 167
A quaint little treasure-trove of a store that I could spend ages in. They stock a huge range of products, from mirrors, luggage, home fragrance, jewellery, mens accessories and homeware. Everything is quite pricey but I recommend visiting if you’re looking for a gift for someone. We actually found a wine rack in the store that we ended up purchasing as it was perfect for the style of our home.
WatchHouse
If you’re looking to pick up a coffee, check out Watch House. Whilst they now have quite a few branches across London, this is their original store and location, a converted 19th century graveyard Watch House, on Bermondsey Street. They specialise in Modern, industry leading speciality coffee and their food isn’t bad too!
Pique-Nique
This is the sister restaurant to Casse-Croute, and it’s a bigger, spacious restaurant with a glass conservatory on the corner of a park, which would be wonderful to dine in all year round. The menu doesn’t change as frequently as Casse-Croute but all dishes are designed to share between 2 and every thing we ate here was delicious! It’s quite pricey – £21 per person for a main is the cheapest available, but I’d also really recommend the starters! The Parsely Root + Coffee dish was one of the most beautiful starters I’ve ever had!
Bermondsey Arts Cocktail Club
If you’re looking for a cocktail bar in the area, it’s got to be Bermondsey Arts Cocktail Club which is situated in an old converted public toilets (complete with original tiles). They have a small selection of wine available and a great selection of cocktails making it perfect for date night.
Gibbon’s Rent
A true hidden London gem, Gibbon’s Rent is a permanent community garden nestled between the warehouse flats of Bermondsey. This urban oasis was created by The Architecture Foundation and Southwark Council and features exotic plants, a curving pathway and a little library where you can drop off books + pick a new one up to read. There are also signs encouraging passers by to pick up a watering can and help tend the plants whilst they pass. It’s a little patch of calm and green between the bustling London and I really recommend a stroll through.
I hope you enjoyed this second in my London area guide series! Let me know if you have any recommendations in the area and what you’d like to see next!
Love Katie x
Love the guides you’re doing
I worked at number 47 Bermondsey Street in the late 1970’s to the mid 1980’s. We could never understand why the boss moved our offices from Covent Garden to this God-forsaken toilet. It wasn’t a very nice area and was incredibly run down. Many of todays posh restaurants were actually tobacconists or greasy spoons or simply derelict shops. The pubs were great. The Garrison, then called the Yorkshire Grey was our local. Friday night lock-ins and proper pub grub! The post office, now José tapas bar, also had a sandwich counter and you could pick up big doorstep sandwiches. Locally, Manzes pie and mash was a weekly lunch treat. It’s been there since the 1890’s and has continued to provide hearty meals despite the gentrification.