South London sun shone beneficently upon the glass dome of the Aylesham Centre and the hustle, bustle and bling of Rye Lane as E.J. and I navigated its narrow pavements in pursuit of Peckham Pye.

Just past the chunky, angular edifice of the public library, on a spur of Peckham High Street, stands Manze’s more modest premises. The gilded gleam of its traditional signage is a stamp of historical pomp in this fast-moving, multi-cultural milieu.

But this is no hushed and grim dining hall for the cognoscenti – friendly and valuable advice for novice noshers includes ‘use a spoon and fork’.

Here are Kathryn Schopflin and Douglas Benford in their winter coats. Kathryn’s last runout for the club was at BJ’s in March 2017, although our paths crossed recently on a snowbound Hampstead Heath. In a chance encounter, Kathryn was catapulted horizontally over a patch of black ice, before conforming to Newton’s Law. Dignity lightly bruised, but thankfully no harm done.

[Far right] E.J. Mosse and Richard Parry

Two highly experienced pie turners, Colin Price and Ray Goldstone

A Peckham two-and-one; pies are baked onsite in the Manze’s master kitchen below stairs.

Evidence of skilled spoonmanship.

Ray often takes stewed eels and mash as a second course – also excellent with chilli vinegar.

Scenes from within these walls, including that famous blue plaque commemorating this shop’s opening in 1927.

The press cuttings board.

Our ladies in green were [l to r] Kerry, Louise and Scarlett. The vibe was convivial, bordering on relaxed with a few giggles.

Putting the high into the High Street.

It may simply have been the Friday afternoon effect, but it had me wondering if the occasional aromatic wafts were contributing to the overall greenery of mood. Whatever their origin, the puffs added local flavour and got me considering the possibilities of a perfectly legal combination in Old Amsterdam: pie and hash? high and mashed? – liquor being the medium of choice for herbal cuttings.

A glass at table 13 of the Kentish Drovers. Copious refreshment can leave one with a pressing need for ‘convenience’, but if you’re shopping in the area, it wants for public flushing facilities. The bogs were last seen in a traffic island opposite the Jones & Higgins department store in 1955. It is alleged in this fascinating article from The Spectacle that they were filled in, which gives hope that ‘these substantial tiled, subterranean sanitary courts’ are still intact.

Up-and-comin Rye Lane lends its name to a recently released and well-regarded contemporary rom-com, currently screening at the Peckhamplex next to Primark. I haven’t yet seen it, but I doubt the lovers’ lavatorial quest made the final cut.

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