In praise of Deptford - and Cuisine a la Leke

Mini plug for an area and a restaurant. A few weeks ago we went to a wonderful African restaurant in Deptford, SE8, called Cuisine a la Leke. Yep, ‘African’ is a bit generic but that’s how it describes itself so who am I to disagree. No dog trouble that is always a good start. Then after sipping some large bottles of Afro-beer, the food arrived. It was spicy (watch out for the ‘chilli gravy’), well cooked and came with a ‘rice cocktalk’ including joloff beans, peas and that brown rice beloved of Nigerian restaurants everywhere in London. Happy, smiley, genuinely NICE service. A restaurant I’d be happy to recommend to anyone. Go there and thank me later. Its at the top of Deptford High Street which has been voted the ‘UK’s most diverse High Street’ (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/4292533.stm) and really does have a great atmosphere, a fantastic range of shops, and houses some of the finest urban eateries in the whole of London. Special mention must be made of the Orient Chinese, which I would happily vote as London’s best, certainly within its price bracket, which is budget-budget – and I’d say that even some posh restaurants would struggle to match the quality of the food here.

Take it from a Londoner – yes, one who admittedly spent three happy years living here as a student of nearby Goldsmiths’, but don’t let my bias put you off. An area for real Londoners, whose businesses are run by real Londoners. Long may it remain the scuzzy, colourful, delightful, diverse, dirty place that it always has been. Forget the touristy East End, take the train to Greenwich instead, but get off one stop too early. Then enjoy the exuberant, clotted heart of the real capital where clone-brand shops fear to tread. My only gripe? Where have all the pubs gone. The Noah’s Ark – RIP. The Scent of Urine (Centurion) – RIP. I recommend the Deptford Arms on the High Street, and also the White Swan, formerly Mamie O’Leary’s (which serves Thai food at the back). The Bird’s Nest in nearby Church Street isn’t a bad watering hole either. But it’s a far cry from its heyday when there were around ten pubs on the High Street alone. Still, much to recommend it.