sydenhamcentral

Seabag is right. The Guardian article you link to is misleading. There are stoves that are approved for smoke control areas and a new standard which is being phased in for new stoves bought. They are looking to ban the burning of wood and other fuels that produce lots of smoke and inefficient stoves. But there are already rules for this. Most of the stoves on sale now (or will soon be) Sia compliant, which is the new standard across Europe. They produce very little smoke. If you see smoke coming out of a chimney, it's very probably an open fire or poorly seasoned wood. They AREN'T banning stoves. It's a poorly written article.

Duvet meet very often? Sorry?I'll get my coat.

I'd look at the following as a bet: Donald Trump is forced from office and Pence takes over. Melania separates from DT. He declines to run for a second term as he needs to get back to his business/old life.

Did you ever splash out on that bet, Dovertheroad?

How much is it to sell stuff?

What is Trump's favourite song from the Sound of Music?: How do you solve a problem like Urea?

We went yesterday and had an amazing meal. We are often disappointed by restaurants (Babur in Crofton Park was average). But this place blew our socks of. The staff were brilliant, the meal was amazing. Can't wait to go back. We had dumplings to start and aubergine with a sesame sticky sauce which was fantastic. The truffle beef was really good too. Meals for two with cocktails was ?81 (about ?20 less than Babur) and we had 3 courses. One of the best meals I've had in a long, long, long time. We are also big fans of the Crystal Palace Market which sets the bar high. We will start saving again (we don't get out much so would rather have something memorable that we have to save for and feel special and do it less often).

Penge comes up a lot, as does Forest Hill as places to watch or move to. But no Sydenham. Why? (be as nasty as you like).

There are loads of ideas here on athread on the Sydenham Forum: https://sydenham.org.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=10131 Kew is great, as is their sister site in wakehurst (we are members and get to take guests in for free). Groombridge place is a fantastic day out too. BUt there are loads on the link above.

It's kinda weird that some people thing that the quality of food is the same across all supermarkets. It's not. Profit margins across most supermarkets is pretty low, around 3-6%. This has to take into account pay, sourcing, marketing, store costs, wastage, packaging and the original cost of the food etc. If operating costs are lower, which is the model of Lidl etc, and possibly goods are sourced cheaper for whatever reason (possibly due to dodgy ethics), then the price of food is less. Supermarkets do charge premium prices for some goods, Tesco Finest being a great example of marketing the ordinary as something more. Different supermarkets spent different amounts on ingredients for what appear to be similar products. Most curries for most supermarkets are made by Noon in Park Royal, Bakavor in Park Royal make soups and ready meals etc for most supermarkets, but they are all different and bespoke to each supermarket. Value supermarkets often have bespoke packaging and different sizes to give the illusion of being cheaper, but in reality there is little in it, and Lidl and Aldi have a majority of own brand products that are designed to look like Tertiary brands (goods bought in from an existing supplier in their own packaging, very often made to look like they are German, Polish or French) but these are the same as buying own brand Tesco or Sainsbury's products. I've never worked with Iceland, but the other supermarkets operate in pretty similar ways. Some products are sold at greater profit for various reasons, some are even sold at a loss and heavily advertised (loss leaders) to get people into store.

The Bath House in Sydenham will probably do it.

Word on the street is that they have taken over the Golden Lion in Sydenham. Not sure if it's the current landlords or previous owners. Hope it's the latter. Can anyone shine some light on this?

For Kids: Bod, Pure genius. Mr Ben Take Hart. Camblewick Green/Chigley/Trumpton. Dungeons & Dragons (did it ever end?) Hong Kong Fuey For big kids: The Invaders (did this ever end?). "michael vincent, a man, too weary to continue his journey pulls into a deserted diner?' The Prisoner (not the rubbish remake, the original). Anything by Lew Grade (Man in a suitcase, The Persuaders etc) Randal & Hopkirk Deceased (the original). Ever decreasing circles The World At War

Yes, it's really good. Sunday lunches are sublime (the owner came out with more Yorkshires and other assorted goodies. The food is really good and the music nights are fantastic. A brilliant addition to Sydenham. Love the place. Some good places are starting to emerge in Sydenham. Green & Brown in Mayow Park, Calabash of Culture do brilliant vegan food, The Marketplace in Lower Sydenham do amazing sandwiches and fantastic events, especially for kids. Bar 161 has had great reviews, a new such place has opened which is getting good feedback, the Lemon Tree is great and does something a little different in Indian food and it's nice inside. Late Knights are looking at opening a bar here too.

Thanks Mel. Great advice, will be in touch!