The Perryvale [reopening for private events only]

Serving my favourite beer (Kernel Pale Ale), lovely crispy fries with the burger. Friendly service, good music too (electronica, Disclosure etc). Impressed with the Perry Vale

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They also do BYOB (bring your own bottle) on Tuesday nights I believe, so you can bring a special bottle and get someone else to cook a quality meal to match.

The guys here are a lovely bunch! There’s a half price steak night too

Wish I had got there earlier now @anon5422159 that looks nice. We shall have to go back there for sure. I can’t eat solo lol

Myself, @starman and two visiting US friends went on Sat night last and had a lovely time. Really impressed with the place. Nice food and good beer/wine list. And very friendly. Sister restaurant to the Dropping Well in Camberwell (which we also used to frequent when we lived there). Great to have something lovely like this 5 minutes walk from the house!!

It seems to have cut back its opening hours recently (closed Sunday evenings, closed all day Monday, lunch Friday-Sunday only). Also doing a lot of discount offers. I’m hoping that this is a case of finding its level rather than of struggling to be viable.

The squid is amazing – they do it as a starter, but a friend and I asked for (and got) it as a main course.

I love the chargrilled “picanha”

We popped in recently for a quick steak dinner on the 2-1 steak night. Ending up having three courses and a bottle of wine. The food is fab and the atmosphere is so relaxing. There were people coming in and out to drink and have bar food all the time we were there, and a regular stream of diners until about 9:30pm when it got a bit quieter. Seems an okay level of trade to me for a local restaurant mid-week.

Absolutely. Loved it.

Went for dinner on Thursday. Delicious food and treated myself to a v pricey rose. Weird location but seems to be busy enough. Jersey royals are to die for

We often go there for Sunday lunch, but since my wife isn’t that keen on sharing the chicken and they’ve ditched the pork, the remaining option is beef which puts me off, somewhat.

They also used to have a lemongrass creme brulee with cod (?) roe which was right up there as one of the best deserts I’ve ever eaten.

Not sure if covered on another thread, but this has had a rebrand. Signage now more contemporary and looks like a bigger focus on casual/comfort food rather than gastro. Slightly wider range of price points for the mains which is probably a good idea. Haven’t been in since the change though.

We went in a few Thursday’s ago for their burger and a pint for £10 deal. Was very impressed with the quality of the food and the service! The burgers are epic.

We’ve had the burgers delivered by Deliveroo - epic indeed!

The atmosphere inside has always been ‘refined casual’ (I just made that up) and it makes sense to widen their menu to reflect that. I’m not a fan of the giant purple and turquoise pears AT ALL, I loved the old branding, but I can see their thinking.

They need to get the website sorted out, though. It has shown a ‘sample’ menu since it opened!

Been there a few times in the last couple of weeks. The burger deal in quite good price wise and the quality is also good. The stakes are also pretty good.

Will definitely revisit.

Oh. I saw them on Deliveroo but didn’t look at the menu thinking it was its more sophisticated type fare.

Another delicious meal in there on Tuesday. So glad we have decent local steak!

Have eaten here many times. Food is good on the premises but I’ve been extremely disappointed when ordering via Deliveroo twice.
On the two occasions they sent me below average fries in a huge quantity (not the same crispy delicious ones they serve on the restaurant), and they got a dessert wrong. Also, in one order the burger was beyond dry.
It’s disappointing when you actually pay the same price.

That stated, I won’t ever re-order online but will happily eat at the restaurant.

I’ve had similar mixed experiences of Deliveroo from the Perry Vale. We ordered the fish and chips. The fish was as excellent as ever, but the chips were odd - a huge portion of soggy chips very unlike their normal ones. Which seems odd - wouldn’t it be more effort to have different chips for the deliveries?

On another occasion we ordered the calamari and the beet and goat’s curd salad for starters. Both excellent and larger portions than in the restaurant. My OH had the burger which he enjoyed. I had the pork belly which was all fat and no meat. But with the most delicious sauce ever.

We ate in the restaurant on New Year’s Eve and the food was great. If I order again and get odd chips I’ll definitely bring it up with them.

Haven’t tried deliveroo from the Perry Vale, but agree food on New Year’'s eve in restaurant was excellent.

Apologies for deleting my earlier post. I was trying to edit it but my phone was playing up and I ended up deleting it instead!

Anyway. We went to the Perry Vale last night and had a really nice meal - the beer battered artichokes (veggie option) were particularly good. Calamari was lovely too. It was full but service was still good.

I do like the fact that we can go for a good meal out and still walk home after

I haven’t tried Deliveroo myself but maybe not all restaurants work so well as takeaways?

Great start to the weekend:

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Those poached eggs look perfect.

Had a wonderful dinner at the Perryvale tonight. Their sharing dishes are becoming a bit of signature thing. Tonight’s special was a beef and ale pie for two. As you can see, it was huge. And all eaten.

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I saw you through the window with your family on my way home, bit stalking lol just smiled and thought glad people support it, I have never been there but the brunch pics from today made me want to go

Not a pie. Casserole with lid.

You people are great!

The way you’ve all jumped in to support a member of your local community who’s down - it’s lovely to see.

You didnt each the crusty bits!!!

Back to the Perry Vale today to try out their express lunch. Chicken, avocado and bacon sandwich plus a huge bowl of sweet potato fries. Delicious.

Visited at an off-peak time today but sad to see the place empty. It’s a great local business, really friendly and the food was great - fresh, hot and tasty.

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How much did that cost? There in lies the answer. Went into the Signal, chicken and chips for two plus gin&tonic not much change fron £40.00

£12.50 for fish and chips. Menu here: http://www.theperryvale.com

Great meal in the Perryvale tonight. The new menu makes it much more suitable for casual weeknight dining. It was pretty busy too, which was wonderful to see.

I had the buttermilk fried chicken which was just perfect. OH had Cajun salmon which he said was very nice, but not as good as the Cajun salmon I make.

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Are they still open for lunch Wed to Fri?

And Saturday of course plus Sunday roast?

It looks like they’ve given up on lunches on Wednesdays and Thursdays, which is a shame. Opening times here:

http://www.theperryvale.com/

That’s a bloody small burger judging by the size of the toothpick stuck in it!

Thanks Rachael… I did check that out but hoped it may be out of date.
Pity they’re not open for lunch on those days. I used to love going there for lunch and miss Roy, Damien and the others.
Was rather disappointed when I went with four friends a few months back but will try again.
At my advanced age I can’t let myself out at night too often!

Went to the Perry Vale yesterday early evening.
Really excellent cajun salmon, avacado, feta and salsa- couldn’t be bettered.
Lovely manager and staff; excellent service.

What a coincidence!
I was gonna go there for their excellent fish ‘n’ chips with a roll but as they’d run out of flour - couldn’t be battered.
Oh, and as a futher coincidence, their delivery of Lurpak hadn’t arrived - roll couldn’t be…

I remember now from going before that they did run out of things What a pity - it’s these small things that matter. Remember no tartare sauce at one visit - we couldn’t make it why they just didn’t go and buy it from the shop next door!

Er, think (hope!) @Anotherjohn was joking? (Bettered - battered -buttered)

We went again tonight and I had the buttermilk fried chicken again because it is so delicious! OH had a perfectly cooked lightly charred steak with a lovely peppercorn sauce. Plenty of people in - families, couples, groups of friends. Really good to see.

Got that but it did remind me of their running short of things - had forgotten

Fair enough. Hasn’t happened to me, though, and I’ve been pretty regularly recently. Hopefully any issues like that have been ironed out.

I’m sorry.

It’s a great business working hard to maintain good standards so I apologise for my stupid joke having reminded you of one of their early teething problems.

Hold tight, I’ll change my crappy joke to suit.

Nahh.
It’s too early.
Brain’s not working (as if it ever is!).

Hi All

Sorry to be the barer of possibly bad news & I definitely hope I am not

The Perryvale has not reopened after their holiday & a lovely customer of theirs & mine came to speak to me today to say they haven’t reopened after their holiday.

They then called The Crooked Well (the sister branch in Camberwell) to ask what was happening as they are regulars at the PV & love it, but were told they thought the management were closing it down.

I really hope this is not the case as I think this is a great business in FH.

@Jenn can you confirm anything either way for us please, I would be really sad to see The Perryvale go, and sure many more will be too xx

Me too - it’s a brilliant local business

I really hope this is wrong, but sadly don’t think it is.

If FH residents want certain businesses to stay they have to use them!

I can certainly tell all if locals don’t shop at independent shops they won’t stay, siimple as that and that’s sad as I think we all love the quirkiness of our High Street.

Says me that doesn’t eat sweets, so I can’t support my own shop - but thanks to all that do

Sad as it is, maybe that is just the locals speaking about their needs and likes.
There are some fantastic local businesses about, nifty ideas, innovative etc. But as we see time and time again, not all will work out.

Can’t simply start eating out more, consuming more fish, etc just because a local business is struggling.

Hope the assumptions about the PV are wrong, lovely place, but time will tell.

Opening a shop on that side of the tracks is just incredibly hard unless you’re a niche business like the outdoors/ski store (you look it up and go there with a purpose).

If you’re a business that relies on random people walking past, forget about it. You should see The Signal anytime there’s something on at Horniman. It’s rammed. And I bet most of that is just random people who see it when they come out of the station.

Guys, let me tell you it is no easy task opening a business in FH.

But if you have the passion, love where you live, and are prepared to go that extra mile for your customers - you can do it!.

It’s called giving it your all in my language, that’s just me

Happy weekend all

The Perry Vale has been on the market for a long time.

Sad if true. I agree about the location. I think to make a success of that unit you really need to make it a sort of destination place as the footfall isn’t high enough otherwise. I do think this is what they were trying but it’s very hard to achieve.

I hope this is not to do with that internet attack on them. That was terrible.

Completely agree with you on that appletree x

It’s no secret that I’ve loved the Perry Vale from its first incarnation as FH’s first ‘proper’ restaurant, all the way through to its current incarnation.

Several times over the summer I met OH from the train and we had dinner from their revamped diner style menu. It was always busy and perfect for a weeknight dinner - in and out in roughly an hour. I wonder if a new venture could build on that. A really good burger joint / diner would pick up more passing trade.

The thought of a community-run enterprise that flexes its muscles against small, true independents like Archie Parker and Aga’s Deli makes me feel quite sick.

I heard a few weeks ago from one of the staff that this might happen. It’s such a shame if true. I’m surprised because it seems to do relatively well.

This is such a shame. I am surprised as whenever I have eaten in there it was full.

Is it really 100% certified shut?

I hope not, as it’s a great business in FH, and it would be sad if it went

Perhaps Little Nans would consider it as a permanent venue?

It really would be a shame, it is/was a great addition to FH.

I’m pretty sure there was a private party going on in there last week sometime when I walked past. Maybe a one-off, or a closing down do?

This makes me very sad and I hope it’s not really happening. I always had a good experience eating there, the staff being lovely and the food was great. It felt like the perfect neighbourhood restaurant. Let’s just hope they’re a bit late re-opening!

I walked past today and it doesn’t look promising. No signs, no menus visible. No reassurance that the closure was temporary. What a shame.

This would be a real shame. I’m quite surprised as whenever I was there it was pretty busy. But I guess the amount of turnover you need to run a restaurant is pretty high

What are you referring to?

A post that has been deleted.

I see what you mean.
My comment was a response to an earlier post that has disappeared.

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Confirmation…

Maybe the various pop ups/supper clubs that have happened in FH could take on the PV for short stints?
Dont want to upset the Allinone but from what i have seen they proved popular and having a venue for guest chefs would be great?

Good to have the confirmation, but what sad news

Absolutely…I have no clue at all about running a business but it doesn’t sound very sustainable against how much they must be paying for the place. I’m really sad about it, like @RachaelDunlop I was fond of the place.

I’m surprised at the idea that because something is on the ‘other side of the tracks’ people don’t go to it. Similar comments made on the thread about Waters. Neither business is exactly miles from the centre of Forest Hill, and people do live on the other side!

I hope you’re not suggesting that I’ve said this.

I’ve been in Forest Hill for nearly 50 years and I remember Finches from way back then - and they’re still on of THE most important businesses we have here.

I was one of the first people to be shown around the whole of Water’s shop and I immediately got on the forum to tell everyone about their ambitions when people had already started to doubt it.

I campaigned hard for 2hrs free parking in Perry Vale car park to benefit all the businesses on both sides of the track.

So comments like these are barks up the wrong tree if they’re aimed at me!

I dont think anyone is suggesting that there are any comments on this forum that have led to the demise of any business wherever they are located.
It is simply market forces, price competitiveness and reputation that will serve up success.

Another John, my message wasn’t replying to you, it was replying to another poster who had suggested that being on the other side of the tracks was a disadvantage. I definitely clicked that person’s post to reply but I think maybe they had replied to you so it came out looking as though I had replied to you. I’m new to the site, so maybe I’ve not got the mechanics of it right yet - apologies if I’ve caused offence to you.

Hi @emmamay - apologies, the technology of this site can be a little fiddly to use and I’m always looking for ways to improve it. I don’t think any harm was done here, right @Anotherjohn?

Although they Perry Vale had promise, in all honesty, the 4 or so times I ate there it wasn’t great. Hence I’d not been back in about a year. It’s a shame that another food premises isn’t opening instead though and it will just be dead space

Thanks @anon5422159 . I was trying to reply to a post by @Hollow . I dont know how I ended up replying to @Anotherjohn - operator incompetence on my part!

I’m assuming this private functions operation is a stop gap to get at least some money in while they try to sell the business.

It was interesting yesterday to see a post about Parlez in Brockley alongside this news. I had a look at their website and opening for breakfast and lunch seems like a fabulous idea, I really hope they can sustain that. I was always surprised the Perry Vale didn’t really really push a lunchtime or coffee hour opening. They did it a bit half-heartedly and inconsistently and never updated the website so I was never confident they would be open during the day. Running a restaurant is a game of brinkmanship, and it only takes a few wrong decisions to put you on the back foot and unable to regain ground lost.

I do think the Perry Vale site can be successful. The All Inn One has done really well with pop-ups desipite being even further from the station and on the wrong side of the tracks. I understand that some pop-ups bring with them their own customers, and can be nimble with marketing. But I do think it demonstrates that any perceived disadvantages of location can always be overcome with the right offer.

Hello EmmaMay - and welcome!

I’m sorry to have stirred up a bit of a fuss over a mere misunderstanding.

On the Hoof bistro in Sydenham is now not open for dinner - just breakfast, lunch, coffee, tea etc but is open throughout the day. They appear to be a thriving business.

In my opinion, consistency is key in any business. Where a business changes in any way,if customers are told and given reasons, and there is only an occasional change, the damage if any is minimal. However, constant chopping and changing rings alarm bells and leads people to believe something is amiss.

With the Perry Vale there were many changes in a relatively short time in chefs, management and staff as well as in opening times.

It was a pretty understandable misunderstanding though, given it looked as though I’d replied to you! But on the plus side it was great to find out about the work you’ve been doing for perry vale. And thank you for the welcome :-).

We happily cross the tracks to places like Clapton craft, All Inn One, the Perry Vale in the past etc. just hope we can all keep our great independents going.

As a very regular Sunday dinner at the Perry Vale, I’m pretty gutted it’s effectively closed down. Their roast chicken was excellent and the only (minor) gripe was that the brilliant desserts they had on opening (the cod roe creme brûlée for example) were replaced with something less ambitious.

I think if I took the train more, I’d remember to explore that side of the tracks more perhaps on the way home. But I forget to take a wander across unless I am going for something specific like beer which invariably means I miss interesting openings.

This is a real shame. And surprising since I always thought it was fairly busy…?

I will say though that my partner and I had stopped going after a few bad experiences of very poor (and slow) service. We want to support local restaurants (we eat in Forest Hill a lot) but after having the same happen twice in a row, we didn’t go back. In theory, it was exactly the kind of place we’d want, but in practice it just didn’t work for us. Perhaps we just happened to have a couple of bad nights.

That said, it’s sad to see what seemed like a popular restaurant go. I always felt it added massively to that side of the station.

I always found the service to be slow, but also the last time I visited, the person serving couldn’t understand English, so they had to keep asking someone else to help.

Thought that the coffees were not good (how can you make a bad coffee?!) and food/drink was over-priced.

Still a shame though, and is a waste of prime space if another business cannot take over for general use. They probably need some signage to explain what they are actually using the place for.

I was actually going to ask about posible pop-up places in SE23.
I am a local chef and mum and I am doing a modern Romanian food pop-up in Nunhead on the 17 November but I would like to do a few locally.
I will contact them to see availability.
Find us here:
Facebook: /labounícapopup
Instagram: labouníca

5 posts were merged into an existing topic: Venues for pop-ups in SE23

The Perryvale tweeted this today:

A 1-day vegan kitchen I think. Unless its something more.

This is exciting news. It’s a great location, the inside is lovely and staff were great. They just got the proposition wrong. Fingers crossed for this.

“First clue”

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I saw that on Instagram earlier - could it be reopening as a vegan restaurant?

Looks like a pop up?!

Definitely just a one day pop up. This is on their Instagram:

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