Back to Reigate

Some six months ago, we almost bought a new television from Richer Sounds in Reigate, as noticed at reference 1. Then a week or so ago, egged on by various friends and relations, we finally got around to it.

So off to Reigate via the cockerel roundabout at Dorking, marking down a possible Wellingtonia there for checking later. Parked near the top of the Bell Street car park, a car park with interesting views over Reigate; old, dilapidated and new.

The stairs being substantial, but with the scruffy appearance that seems to be near universal in these places. I associate this morning to scenes in the margins of spy thrillers from the 1980's, which, as I recall, made a lot of use of disused warehouses, rather than multi-story car parks. Perhaps not that common at that time, or at least not available for filming.

Took our first refreshment in a coffee shop in the High Street. A coffee shop in an older shop which had retained the original front windows and associated joinery and so forth. A shop which I cannot now recover from gmaps. But I do remember that they had a white wood box on the counter, a poor fake of the sort of wooden boxes once used by fruit growers, containing some shiny apples, packed in layers with white paper between the layers. On inquiry, I found that the apples came from the nearby Morrissons, nothing to do with fruit growers at all.

Being a little early for Richer Sounds, an afternoon establishment, we took a seat in Priory Park where we were able to watch a chap stolidly watering the beds around the fountain, mainly containing drought resistant grasses, but also some dried up bedding plants. Lots going on. Lots of mums and young children, some cute.

After which BH was able to acquire some vacuum cleaner bags for her Seibel from the Euronics in Bell Street. Not something which she can get on Epsom High Street. Bing has heard of them, turning up reference 3, even if the Blogger spell checker has not. Rapidly did our business in Richer Sounds, settling for the South Korean television already noticed at reference 4. At this point we were going for the installation option, being a bit intimidated by all its smartness.

And so to lunch. To find that the nearby Côte was not accepting any more customers for lunch, despite being no more than a quarter full. No staff. To find that Café Rouge was not selling lunch at all, although it could do drinks, for the same reason. Gail's - a place which I find rather expensive as well as having become pervasive - was unpleasantly crowded.

We settled for the rather florid place snapped above. Lots of plastic flowers all over the walls and draped around the windows. Tea, Eccles cake, bacon sandwich all good. Cake very fresh. Dab of salad with the sandwich sauce free, unusual these days. Sandwich only let down by the bacon being a bit salty. BH took baked potato with tuna mayo. Also good. Furthermore, while there were other people there, it was not crowded. So a satisfactory outcome, despite appearances. 

Sadly, I had to pass on this trolley, snapped on the way back into the car park.

Picked up the Wellingtonia with its cheerful attendant (from South Africa) on the way home. Previously noticed at reference 2.

PS: I remember now that the Duchess Belle of Battersea Park Road is another place which is rather into plastic flowers. But a public house rather than a tea shop. Part, I now know, of a small chain. See reference 5.

References

Reference 1: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2022/03/wellingtonia-68.html.

Reference 2: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2022/08/wellingtonia-91.html.

Reference 3: https://www.euronics.co.uk/.

Reference 4: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2022/09/cyber-flatpack.html.

Reference 5: https://www.bellepubsandrestaurants.co.uk/duchessbelle.