Crystal Palace Local

In need of some shopping therapy? We have a Crystal Palace welcome waiting for you in the Triangle. Where else can you spend such a lovely afternoon safely in the knowledge that no matter how many of the local hostelries you pay homage to, you will not get lost. The very shape of the Triangle means you can relax in the knowledge that eventually you will end up where you started! Do however leave a good bit of time for Church Road cos Church Road has a vibe all of its own.

In the past many considered it to be the poor relation of the Triangle but nowadays its artisan feel is attracting a huge following from within and outside of the area. Its regulars love the retro /vintage/antique/curio and the music that is at its core. The Crystal Palace fraternity are so proud of the raw talent of the local bands who play in our pubs and underpin the music base of the area. The Alma pub remains an important venue and the regular festivals are based in Church Road.

The charming  little independent shops offering their wares reflect the old days when private enterprise was fun and inventive. Some shops not to miss would be; Coconut Trading whose owners travel around the world to source and import the most unusual and attractive hand carved wooden objects, unusual lamps and exotic jewellery;  Myjumbi that offers affordable art by aspiring great artists of the future and  Vien run by Vivienne Bartholomew. Realising that the vintage dresses she was selling were often too long, too tight or lacked the freshness that the young girls liked, she started to remodel the clothes, sometimes taking two garments and merging them into one or altering them and adding embellishment to make them current. She has a brilliant talent and is attracting the acclaim that she deserves. We all know each other in Church Road often meeting up in Andrea’s fab cafe ‘Comfort and Joy’ Her food is all natural and very tasty

I must mention the jewellers and the lovely Daryl, so helpful. My son bought a diamond there. He arranged with Daryl that he would propose with the diamond and then his fiancée would go in to choose the setting herself. Another rather unique shop is Vintage Hart actually located in the White Hart pub window. I believe this little gem is open at the weekends.

Further down toward the park we find a glorious mix of antique and retro shops.

‘Bambino’ is what is known as a ‘hub of the community’. It is far more than a shop. Andy has been trading in Church Road for over twenty five years now and has a customer base from far and wide. You should not come to Crystal Palace without visiting this shop. Open Thurs, Frid, Sat, Sun 12 - 6pm it offers an amazing treasure trove of antique, retro, hats, furniture, mechanical, memorabilia, curio, anything bizarre! Andy also specialises in vintage motor bike clothing.

Next door is Richard's lovely antique shop selling an interesting and ever changing range of antiques etc and next to him is Jerry selling higher end retro - a must for all those who love the 70’s whether they were there or not! Next is Bella Coco, a splendid retro emporium on two floors. For those who love the 50’s step back in time at ‘Crazy Man Crazy’ heaven on earth for all those who love that era and fashion.    

For those fashionable label conscious young guys there is Solos. Dennis is a real favourite with the smart young people in the area and most of our offspring have spent their wages in his lovely shop.

We have Kreative Kutz for all our wig and hair needs and next door is a very friendly and reasonable beauty salon.

Sitting nicely with the alternative image of Church Road, we have a Chinese remedy and massage clinic and the vegan cafe, another hub of the community. Even the most laid back amongst us have to facebook nowadays so we have an internet cafe and For our domestic needs we have a small supermarket. Like any other street in the world now we have a nail bar and if you are really intending to shop till you drop, we have Chappells!