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Pinboard: Eating & drinking special (with another closure, alas)



4. A six month long Korean residency at The Black Heart begins tonight (April 4)

Bulgogi Fries (try saying that after a few pints of Hell's). Photo: Kim Chi Kult
Bulgogi Fries (try saying that after a few pints of Hell’s). Photo: Kim Chi Kult

We hardly ever mention the Black Heart because it’s such an important oasis bang in the middle of central NW1, and we do like to be able to swing by and grab a booth should we wish.

However, those innovative Kim Chi Cult boys – big hits at Camden Brewery’s Streetfeasts last year – dropped us a line with the news that they’re based at the Black Heart till the autumn. So we thought we’d do the right thing and spread the word.

“We’ll be sticking to the Korean-style fast food format that we trialled at the pop-up,” says big guy Daniel O’ Sullivan, “meaning that our kimchi burgers, bulgogi fries and twice-fried chicken wings will all stay in the menu. We’ll also be trying out some new items, including LA-inspired Korean tacos, and will be experimenting with various banchan (Korean side dishes) on a weekly basis.”

Interesting. Will yours be a bulgogi? Prices in the £4-8 arena. Opening times 5pm – 9pm Tuesday to Thursday, and from 12 noon – 9pm on Fridays and Saturdays.

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Next: The return of the best vintage market in town?


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11 thoughts on “Pinboard: Eating & drinking special (with another closure, alas)”

    1. Luisa

      Whether you like the Victoria as it stands or not (and I think your comment is interesting because perhaps this is why it is not as popular as it should be!), if the owners get permission for the building to be converted to flats it will be gone forever as any kind of pub / meeting place, run by anyone else in the future.

  3. Albert Trinker (@AlbertTrinker)

    The Parrs Head : “no loss in terms of a pub” – sad you think that way but typical of Kentish Towner attitude! I personally preferred drinking in there than the rude, pretentiousness of the Victoria. Still, i shall be objecting. Camden are keen and more able to reject against change of use – like the Golden Lion and Bull & Gate (it seems) than a simple rebuild job like the Crown and Goose.

    1. Luisa

      Hi Albert, I am very sorry that part of my email to The Kentishtowner was reprinted in the article – it wasn’t meant for publication, I was just trying to alert people that we were likely to lose another local unless enough people objected and I wrote it in a flippant manner in the hope that it would attract the attention of the KT editors.

      In fact, with young children, I don’t really use pubs at all! But I do think it is really bad for our community that we are losing so many – particularly the ones that local residents go to, and not the ones on the High Street that are more likely to be filled with people coming to Camden Town for its so-called “night-time economy”.

      What worries me is that, whether you like the current Victoria or not, if permission is given for a residential conversion then it will never be a pub again, of any description. If permission is refused then I would hope that the place will be sold on as a going concern with the opportunity for a replacement Crown & Goose perhaps. I am sad that the Goose is going – not because I frequented it – but because it seemed like a popular and decent small pub and the building itself is good. Also the last thing we need in Camden Town is yet another large venue / restaurant!

      I’ve been in Camden Town for over 15 years now raising my family (having myself grown up at the other end of KT) and am committed to trying to help our local communities thrive in what is also Camden’s flagship “Town Centre”.

      1. Jakob

        I completely agree with Luisa. Those public houses (Old Parr, The Victoria) have been there for more than hundred years. Constantly changing, worse, better , worse, better. The market should regulate the approach every pub takes, but Camden Council should not permit a change of use. Changing the class of use to residential is irreversible. There will be always more profitable uses for pubs and if we don´t take care we get a party mile along the High Street and vast swathes of pure residential.
        The interesting thing in this case is that Camden has a policy of protecting pubs when they have a community use, eg. when they have a function room (Development Policy 15). In the planning application for the Victoria the applicant states that the first floor never ever saw any public use (see page 17 of http://planningonline.camden.gov.uk/MULTIWAM/doc/Supporting%20Documents-3134959.pdf?extension=.pdf&id=3134959&location=VOLUME3&contentType=application/pdf&pageCount=1). On the internet however, you´ll find many people writing enthusiastically about the concerts, meetings, etc they visited upstairs at the Victoria.
        So this whole planning app seems to be based on a lie (to make a very quick million for the current owners).

Leave a Comment

11 thoughts on “Pinboard: Eating & drinking special (with another closure, alas)”

    1. Luisa

      Whether you like the Victoria as it stands or not (and I think your comment is interesting because perhaps this is why it is not as popular as it should be!), if the owners get permission for the building to be converted to flats it will be gone forever as any kind of pub / meeting place, run by anyone else in the future.

  3. Albert Trinker (@AlbertTrinker)

    The Parrs Head : “no loss in terms of a pub” – sad you think that way but typical of Kentish Towner attitude! I personally preferred drinking in there than the rude, pretentiousness of the Victoria. Still, i shall be objecting. Camden are keen and more able to reject against change of use – like the Golden Lion and Bull & Gate (it seems) than a simple rebuild job like the Crown and Goose.

    1. Luisa

      Hi Albert, I am very sorry that part of my email to The Kentishtowner was reprinted in the article – it wasn’t meant for publication, I was just trying to alert people that we were likely to lose another local unless enough people objected and I wrote it in a flippant manner in the hope that it would attract the attention of the KT editors.

      In fact, with young children, I don’t really use pubs at all! But I do think it is really bad for our community that we are losing so many – particularly the ones that local residents go to, and not the ones on the High Street that are more likely to be filled with people coming to Camden Town for its so-called “night-time economy”.

      What worries me is that, whether you like the current Victoria or not, if permission is given for a residential conversion then it will never be a pub again, of any description. If permission is refused then I would hope that the place will be sold on as a going concern with the opportunity for a replacement Crown & Goose perhaps. I am sad that the Goose is going – not because I frequented it – but because it seemed like a popular and decent small pub and the building itself is good. Also the last thing we need in Camden Town is yet another large venue / restaurant!

      I’ve been in Camden Town for over 15 years now raising my family (having myself grown up at the other end of KT) and am committed to trying to help our local communities thrive in what is also Camden’s flagship “Town Centre”.

      1. Jakob

        I completely agree with Luisa. Those public houses (Old Parr, The Victoria) have been there for more than hundred years. Constantly changing, worse, better , worse, better. The market should regulate the approach every pub takes, but Camden Council should not permit a change of use. Changing the class of use to residential is irreversible. There will be always more profitable uses for pubs and if we don´t take care we get a party mile along the High Street and vast swathes of pure residential.
        The interesting thing in this case is that Camden has a policy of protecting pubs when they have a community use, eg. when they have a function room (Development Policy 15). In the planning application for the Victoria the applicant states that the first floor never ever saw any public use (see page 17 of http://planningonline.camden.gov.uk/MULTIWAM/doc/Supporting%20Documents-3134959.pdf?extension=.pdf&id=3134959&location=VOLUME3&contentType=application/pdf&pageCount=1). On the internet however, you´ll find many people writing enthusiastically about the concerts, meetings, etc they visited upstairs at the Victoria.
        So this whole planning app seems to be based on a lie (to make a very quick million for the current owners).

Leave a Comment

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The award-winning print and online title Kentishtowner was founded in 2010 and is part of London Belongs To Me, a citywide network of travel guides for locals. For more info on what we write about and why, see our About section.

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