don't come, it's a secret...

in the midst of a quiet couple of streets off Tower Bridge Road you can suddenly find yourself in a thriving alleyway - between a warehouse and a string of brick railway bridge arches - full, on a Saturday, of all sorts of specialist food, drink and natural products, to test, taste, buy, eat, give.

Items lying about such as rusty old radiators from tumbledown estate homes, or thick green peeling doors with a fisheye lens peephole from an extant lunatic asylum, are also all for sale.  Everything has some unusual and unexpected heritage. And everything is for sale.

image by Gram Hilleard

Everything that is, except for one thing - the wooden panelled walls of the Eisenhower Room.  Once upon a time this room inhabited the US Naval Headquarters in Grosvenor Square, Mayfair, whose offices General Dwight D. Eisenhower occupied during the second World War.  It is now, in the way of the current era, standing rather incongruously - yet beautiful in its makeshift state - in the middle of the LASSCO warehouse, like many a piece of a past empire uprooted from its native habitat, planted in a lofty showroom.

This is Maltby Street - The Ropewalk.  Saturdays here - due to the draw of the quickly growing market (Parma ham, local 'Little Bird' gin, Greek specialities, South African spicy marinated meats, olive tea, Moroccan argan oils, fresh-made breakfast waffles) - are busy with young families and artist-types milling and chatting and relaxing and buying.

To extend these halcyon hours (sadly the market is often starting to close up by 2 or 3pm) the Kings Cross Hot Club, and dancer Nikki Santilli have started a trend of tea dance-style salons in the Eisenhower Room.  Nikki teaches some Swing steps from 1pm until 2pm and then the band set up and play until 4pm.  Anyone is welcome to trickle in through the tassled-curtain-entrance and under the glowing glass chandeliers, to listen, dance, watch, meet.

But shush, be quiet, this is a secret salon...

Just a quick one to say...

Happy New Year!