Community Pinboard: Ice Cream & Dandies, Veg & Ale

1. Indulge in an Ice Cream Daydream. Like some kind of crazy-beautiful gelato Willy Wonka fantasy come true, the King’s Cross Ice Cream Festival really does take place at Granary Square all weekend. The best ice cream purveyors from around London will be showing off their chilly creations and the entire manufacturing process will be on display, with an invitation to get your hands frosty. Everything from a chance to milk a cow, to making a cone, or indeed shooting the latest liquid nitrogen equipment at -196 degrees, brrr. KX has impeccable credentials for hosting such a hedonistic food event, as it was once the home of Carlo Gatti, the man who first brought ice cream to England in 1851. Gelato festivities, 11am-6pm both days.

2. Shop with the Dandies. Acclaimed vintage ware, affordable arts and unique crafts pop-up the Dandy Lion Market is re-launching this Saturday at The Oxford pub. It runs midday to 5pm (making for the perfect excuse to grab a heart lunch at the same time). It’s all about the handmade and the upcycled, with items priced between £1 and £50. Rumour has it those who come sporting the best dandy outfits will receive a free gift. Back again on the first Saturday of every month.

3. Pick (Up) Your Own. Sustainable living torchbearers Transitions Kentish Town launch their Veg Box scheme this Wednesday (5th Sept), providing seasonal, organic, local, fairtrade, low carbon vegetables each and every week. The earth-fresh boxes can be picked up from 3 points around K-Town; The Thanet Community Centre, Flapjacks Café opposite the Tube and how-exciting-it’s-about-to-reopen pub The Grafton. Selections come in at either £6.50 or £11 per week, depending on your veg consumption levels and include a handy newsletter featuring recipe ideas. All profits will be invested in food growing projects in the local area, so the scheme may be growing and selling KT’s very own crops shortly. Join up here.

4. Join the Paralympic buzz. Yes, we can all flick on Channel 4 and watch the Paralympics from our sofas this weekend, but what about getting in the thick of it and sharing the excitement? Following the success of showing the Olympics in their nice Quadrangle, UCL are providing the service again. With graduation ceremonies in the main site, screenings can be found in and around the Euston campus at venues such as George Farah Cafe Bar, Huntley Pub, Richard Mully Basement Bar, Print Room Cafe and Phineas Bar.

5. Congratulate The Admiral Celebrations involving large quantities of beer and pies (always the best kind of parties) have been taking place this week as the good folk at Tapping The Admiral have been bestowed with the title of ‘CAMRA Pub of the Season’. You should already know all about their ale selection and generously proportioned pies, but now’s as good a time as any to go and have some more and congratulate the team for placing another fine rejuvanated pub firmly on the local boozer map.

6. See the man who fell to earth. We know how Kentishtowners love a bit of Ziggy Stardust, and down at the Institute of Contemporary Art from tomorrow is the UK’s first David Bowie film festival, Bowiefest. Celebrating his decades in film and 65th birthday with 3 days of screenings, documentaries and discussions, they are also encouraging us to dress as our favourite era Bowie… Time to dust of the Lycra and go wild with gold glitter? The event runs from Friday 31st of August to Sunday 7th September, tickets are a reasonable £8-£12 from the ICA website.

7. Final Foodie Fling. It’s the last Camden Night Market of the summer tonight, so no excuses, it’s all about the chow-down at the canal. The range of stalls (both foodie and fashion) plus the waterside courtyard setting has proved to be a real winner over recent weeks, successfully drawing locals back to the lovely lockside area that they may otherwise have deemed lost to the tourist hordes years ago.
We look forward to seeing it return.

Words: Czaralee Anderson & Tom Kihl