The name was Gold and the building was in a kind of pale gold colour and blue. The company was an independent wholesaler particularly in the music business, distributing records, CDs and videos as well as confectionery. It moved to larger premises at Uplands Business Estate on Blackhorse Road Walthamstow in 2001 and closed down suddenly in 2008 putting its 200 employees out of work.
It was a family business which began outside Sidney Gold’s delicatessen in Ilford in 1955 when his two sons began selling records from racks in front of the shop. From there the moved to a stall in Petticoat Lane before deciding to set up as wholesalers in Leyton.
Just an ordinary house in a long residential terrace but enlivened by decoration by a rather idiosyncratic resident. All the houses in this part of the street have tablets between the upper and lower bays, but this one has its name, Lytham House and decoration pointed out in red and green paint.
Probably the name was chosen by the first residents when this street was built in 1894-7, but the paintwork was rather more recent, and to me suggested a Caribbean influence. The house and wall have now faded to a rather duller appearance in keeping with its neighbours but still has its decorated windows.
Shandar is a Hini and Urdu adjective for something. It is Hindi and Urdu to describe something very impressive, excellent, grand, magnificent or beautiful, and used for this high quality takeaway. The render was scraped off the wall in 2008 and the wall re-covered and is now blank.
A mural on the wall of Dyke Court shows different colour youngsters many with very odd hairstyles lamenting the loss of their Markhouse Youth Club.
You could get a steak and kidney pie for £1 and 60p of chips for a filling meal at Jimmy’s back in 1994, though I think you paid a little extra to sit at the solid wooden table to eat it in rather than take it away. But the colour scheme made me feel a little queasy.
A traditional English café with a wide range of puddings listed for 55p and a little more. Every table with an ashtray. This could well have been in Walthamstow but might have been elsewhere on my journeys around London.
A much more limited menu for this smaller cafe located somewhere in London – and again it could be Walthamstow. Two lists give the prices for TAKE AWAY and TO EAT IN CAFE.
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