Bar Story, Peckham, London, SE15 4QL
Opening Hours:
Bar: Monday to Sunday, 10am-10pm
Gallery: Monday to Sunday, 10am-7pm
http://www.thesassoongallery.co.uk/
If you peer out of the window when the train pulls into Peckham Rye Station you might be able to see a group of people enjoying a beer and perhaps the odd cigarette or two in a rather unusual-looking beer garden. What is that place? You might ask and am I still in South London? No you haven’t accidentally boarded the wrong train and ended up in a far corner of Eastern Europe, you are in Peckham, home to Bar Story, a boho bar that sits snugly underneath the railway arches, in between an ironmongers and a scrap yard.
Taking its influence (and from the looks of things its furniture and its fittings) from its surroundings, Bar Story boasts railway sleepers for benches, exposed brick for walls and corrugated iron for a ceiling. The arched roof gives it the feeling of an old air raid shelter and the regular rumblings of the trains overhead certainly add to that effect but the home cooked food and hand mixed cocktails that this place is famous for are a far cry from any of the war time rations that I’ve heard about.
But Bar Story is famous for more than just its good hooch and grub. Venture to the very back of the building, out the door and across the path and you will find The Sassoon Gallery, an exhibition space run by owners of the bar. The Sassoon Gallery primarily showcases the work of local upcoming artists and exhibits a wide range of visual art, as well as hosting performance art, events, lectures and workshops.
There aren’t many things that can persuade me to venture all the way to Peckham, but Bar Story is one thing that will. With its unusual setting, good atmosphere and exhibitions of local art, you can be guaranteed an interesting night.
