Crystal Palace has been named Best Place To Live in London in 2022, in the Sunday Times annual national review and we couldn't be more proud at the Palace.
Taking London's regional crown from last year's winner Teddington, Crystal Palace has been rated highly for its local amenities, transport links, local schools, access to broadband, green spaces, community spirit and our many independent businesses.
We'd add that Crystal Palace's down-to-earth friendliness, kindness and creative talent, across all the arts, really shines through to anyone who lives here or pays a visit.
Crystal Palace has three main high streets with lots of unique independent businesses and more pockets of activity at Haynes Lane, Coopers Yard, Gipsy Hill, Crown Point and Anerley Hill, which all fall into the SE19 postcode.
We love any opportunity to celebrate our SE19 high streets. Getting this national recognition is a real tribute to what our businesses, community groups and local residents bring, and to all the hard work that goes on to make Crystal Palace a very special place to live and visit.
The Times feature name-checks: Bambino vintage (pictured above), Crystal Palace Antiques (Jasper Road) and our local reputation for antiques and vintage gear, Blowing Dandelion, The Bookseller Crow, our new Church Road fishmonger: Fishmonger's Place, Four Boroughs, the Crystal Palace Everyman, Cadence, Antenna Studios, Affinity Brew, The Alma, Crystal Palace Flowers, White Hart, Four Hundred Rabbits and plant-based fine-dining newcomer Morgan & Watson.
With more than 300 active high street businesses based in SE19 (we counted them in January), it was inevitable that not everyone got a mention. We'd add that what we love about our Crystal Palace is the diversity and variety on our high streets.
Here are a few extra picks and links from Shop SE19.
Eat
You can eat your way around the world and alphabet from Alistair's American Diner, brunch with Aussie eggs at a Brown & Green branch all the way to Nepalese cuisine at Yak & Yeti. Along the way try Sardinian deli delights at Mediterraneo, many pizza stop options, Caribbean tapas from Escape, authentic Greek savouries, sweets and coffee from Kamari, giant Persian portions at Kish Mish, Polish groceries from Piast, Vietnamese dining at Urban Orient, treats from Venezuela at Mi Cocina Es Tuya, wines of the world from Urban Cellar and back to SE19 with a locally-distilled gin and craft beers at Craft & Courage. We could go on!
We will. A well-deserved shout out to our wonderful weekly Saturday Crystal Palace Food Market at Haynes Lane, for organic meat, fruit and veg, and a vibrant rotation of stalls and regulars like cake maestros Brett & Bailey, non-dairy cheese wizards Palace Culture, and delicious cooking from Comfort & Joy and Simply Tay. The food market is open from 10am to 3pm every Saturday and is well worth a visit.
Shop
It's not just food. We have stylish hand-picked fashion from D Solos, Backstage and Josephine's, original menswear designs from Simon Carter, footwear from Merlin Shoes; indoor and outdoor greenery from Ivy & The Wolf/The Vaults Collective and The Secret Garden; gifts from around the world from Coconut Trading, Elkins, and The Indigo Tree. Lovers of arts, crafts and making are well-served with creative hubs like A L'Etage 2, The Paxton Centre and regular pop-ups at Free The Gallery, Haynes Lane and A South London Makers Market.
For minimalists, try Decorum for interiors and homeware. We're proud to be home to the UK's first high street Library of Things at Upper Norwood Library hub, who are busy expanding and taking their borrow vs. buy concept nationwide.
Crystal Palace's high street eco-credentials are pretty impressive. Three refill shops make it easier to source ingredients in manageable smaller quantities, cut down on plastics and packaging and bag some truly eye-opening affordable deals on household products and staples from The Walkthrough.
Treat
For the mind and body, Crystal Palace offers all manner of wellness, holistic treatments and fitness options. A pharmacy that has served the community for 45 years. Hair, nail and beauty salons, including high-ranking award winners like La Belle Jolie and Plaster and Afro-Caribbean hair and beauty product specialist OGB6 beauty all adding to our diverse high street mix and lots of opportunities to stop for coffee and cake.
Moving off the main high streets, we have the stunning views, the sunsets, the transport connections, all the green spaces and woodland, the festival season, the history, our resident Sphinxes and of course Victorian Dinosaurs.
Have we convinced you? We hope more people get to find out what makes Crystal Palace a great place to live. Come soon and discover more for yourself.
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