Soho Landmarks
The original London coffee bar. Opened in the middle of the last century initially to provide workers in the Soho area a place to eat after they finished work in the local restaurants, it went on to became a beloved institution. Still family owned, it is now run by the grandsons of the original owner. Tony tells the story.
Started in 1871, Maison Bertaux still survives in its original premises. Such is the devotion to this wonderful pastisserie that one ex-Soho resident has been going there for over 60 years - even though he moved out of London 25 years ago.
Peter Boizot, MBE, is a Soho legend. In 1965 he introduced the pizza to Londoners when he imported an Italian oven into the first ever Pizza Express in Wardour Street. The popularity of the jazz club below his Dean Street pizzeria led to the founding of the Soho Jazz Festival. He fought the very successful Save Piccadilly campaign, was a founder member of the Soho Society and the Soho Restaurateurs Association and supported in no small measure Soho Housing Association. We interviewed him about those pioneering days at his home in Peterborough.
A thriving primary school in Soho's Great Windmill Street, Soho Parish School is a success story. And no better example of its success is its food. An enlightened head teacher, governors and parents seized the opportunity to break away from a long-term local authority contract to start producing school meals in-house. With Anita Coppins in charge of the new kitchen, the uptake rocketed from less than 30% to 95%.