
It's the annual London Christmas Shopping Guide from The Daily Constitutional!
This year I'll be including museum gift shops and markets for gift ideas.
As well as gifts I'll be pointing you toward local London shops for the best in Christmas food and drink. Where relevant, I'll list the London Walks tour that finishes near the shop in question.
As usual, you can drop me a line with your own tips by emailing the usual address, by leaving a comment below or via Twitter.
As we enter the last week before Christmas Day, my thoughts turn to the table here at The Daily Constitutional – this week I'll be sharing foodie and drinkie tips along with last minute gifts.
Tony's Continental, High Road, East Finchley
On Friday, after
tending to business here at The Daily Constitutional, I have two major Christmas errands
to run. I'll be heading off to Porterford the butcher in Bow Lane to pick up
our turkey (more of that in a later post) and I'll be buying the veg for the
Christmas dinner at the finest little greengrocer in all the land.
The guys at Tony's
have been providing East Finchleyites with their five-a-day since 1971. By my rough reckoning that's more than 82,000 portions per Finchleyite over five decades.
Not bad, eh?
They also do great
work supporting the local community and local schools.
Yesterday David
blogged here on The Daily Constitutional that Artichoke in Hampstead is the best fruit and veg shop in London.
It was a lovely post.
But he's wrong.
(We'll be having a punch-up to settle the matter tonight at the London Walks Christmas Party.)
(We'll be having a punch-up to settle the matter tonight at the London Walks Christmas Party.)
The best fruit and veg
shop in London can be found at 140 High Road, N2.
[If you disagree with
us both, then drop me a line to sing the praises of your local London shop!]
It's not only the
quality of the goods at Tony's – organic fruit and veg and wide a range of
Mediterranean treats. It's the quality of the company, too. Off the top
of my head, here's a quick list of just some of the topics of conversation I've
enjoyed with the guys at Tony's this year alone…
Tottenham Hotspur
Brexit
Women's Magazines
Teenagers and Their
Wily Ways
Tottenham Hotspur
The Kray Twins
Primary Schools
Vinyl Records
Tottenham Hotspur
The 17th Century
Gibbet on Finchley Common
The Best Places To Eat
In Cyprus
The Health Benefits of
Running
Tottenham Hotspur
You just don't get
that in stinky old Sainsbury's Local ("local" my arse).
(Okay, they chat about
Tottenham Hotspur quite a lot, but it should be pointed out that Arsenal fans
are made to feel as welcome as everyone else. Tony's Continental is a most
ecumenical establishment!)
I would like to go so
far as to say that Tony's is such a great greengrocer that their Brussels
Sprouts are the only ones that kids will eat, often asking for second helpings…
but as you can see…
… not even Tony's can
achieve THAT feat.
I'll close with a song… in 1968 local boys The Kinks gave us The Village Green Preservation Society, which features the line "God Save Little Shops!" Hear hear! Enjoy the song, happy Christmas and Support Your Local Shops!
Find Tony's here…
Christmas 2016 With London Walks…
On Christmas Day there are TWO London Walks:
Walk up an appetite with The Christmas Morning 1660 Walk – meet at 11:00a.m by the big tree in Trafalgar Square

Walk off the pudding with The Christmas Day Charles Dickens Walk – meet by the big tree in Trafalgar Square at 2:00pm










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