The History of Kardomah

More Southport Memories.......

2016-04-03T16:48:00.000+01:00

The Kardomah Cafe in Southport was at 347-349 Lord St. It's now a Pizza Hut. The ladies in your photo are approaching the junction with Nevill St.

1937

Hi All

Thanks for the restore Sylvia and bus destination close up!

Also I'm very grateful to Apwright and Tony for great detective work finding Lord st. Southport. I haven't been to Southport for a few years but if I remember right Lord st Shopping area has not changed since the Victorian times keeping the canopy fronts the same.

1937

The reason why the photo is special ? was my mother met my father just after returning home from that holiday that summer in 1937 and married a few years later before dad went to war but never knew where she went on holiday.

Again thanks (Great work)

Dobby

2016-04-03T16:24:00.000+01:00

Southport Memories.........
Geoff has found some old family photo's, do have any you want to share?
If so drop me a line...

Dear Sir/Madam, I have just come across your site and was interested because my Grandmother used to be the Manageress in the Southport branch. She was called Elsie Lawton, and I recollect the staff always having to refer to her as Madam, and what a Madam she was.

Somewhere I have two photographs. One of the inside and another of the staff outside, with my Grandmother, when she was leaving. A date I am not aware of. The staff must have presented her with a small round silver case which we still have.

Regards,

Geoff Smith.

2016-02-28T08:43:00.000+00:00

Jeff remembers.... Hi Just for the record there was a Kardomah in Little Wood Street off Clarence Street in Kingston Upon Thames in the 1970s/80s. I also think there was one in the King's Road, Chelsea, (opposite the Duke of York Army Barracks) in 1965. Keep up the good work, all aspects of a nations history are worth recording - and Kardomahs were such nice places and a lot more reasonable that Costa and Starbucks. Do you remember these branches? If so drop me line....

2016-02-28T08:04:00.000+00:00

2016-02-21T19:57:00.002+00:00

2016-02-21T12:57:00.000+00:00

Wow..... A great venue, great food, a real revival of the ethos of Kardomah.

If you're in the area please pay them a visit:

http://www.kardomah94.com/

Have you visited? tell us what you thought....

Would you like to see other Kardomah venues in other cities?

Let us know what you think...

2016-02-21T12:21:00.000+00:00

John has contacted us about a memory when walking in Hull......

Hi there. Happened to be down Whitefriargate in Hull, the other day, and remembered the Kardomah cafe from when I was a boy. My grandma used to take my two sisters and myself to the Kardomah, and we ALWAYS had oxtail soup. That must have been in the late fifties, as my gran died in 1961. Recognised the building straight away! Happy memories.

John

Do you have any memories about Kardomah in Hull? if so drop me a line........

More Cardiff Memories....

2016-02-21T12:01:00.000+00:00

Rebecca has been in touch... as suspected the picture I'm using for the Cardiff branch may not be correct Do you or someone you know have any photo's of the exterior or interior? If so please get in touch.

......You asked on your webpage if the small pic of a Cafe entrance was of the Cardiff Cafe

I'm pretty sure its not. The entrance in Cardiff was more retro looking, dark wood, dark, small curtained windows.

I was only 5 or 6 when my mother and Gran used to take me, but the overall impression was of dark, intimate and rather posh - we had a cake stand brought to choose from, and overall the smell of roasting coffee was delicious. To this day, I refer to that smell as being like the Kardomah, loved it in there but I don't think the Cardiff one is in your pic.

Best regards

Rebecca

Cardiff Memories....

2016-02-21T11:48:00.000+00:00

Louise and her farther have opened up a new avenue on the Cardiff branch... do you remember meeting up there with a group of your friends? If so drop me a line......
Please find their story below:

Hi,

I've seen your request for Kardomah memorabilia.

I'm attaching a couple of photos of a spoon belonging to my dad, who is now 80.

He was a student at the School of Architecture in Cardiff in the 50's. The architecture students used to meet at the Kardomah. He is still the proud possessor of the spoon which he found in his possession after celebrating graduation in 1959 and it has always been a favourite of his since, bringing back lots of good memories.

Sincerely,
Louise Rolfe

More Southport memories.......

2013-01-25T20:41:00.000+00:00

It's official Sidney Allinson of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada is now the most prolific contributor to the Kardomah Blog with his second photograph of the Kardomah on Southport's Lord Street,

"Yes, the current Pizza Hut on Lord Street, Southport, is situated in the building where there was a popular Kardomah Cafe for many years. Happy memories for me long ago of when I would often enjoy a mid-morning coffee at that Kardomah".

Thank you Sidney keep up the good work.......

Come on the North West..... Sidney found his photo's .... and he's 4000 miles away......! Why not have a rummage through those old photo's this weekend and send me your memories? :-)

Southport memories

2012-03-18T11:11:00.003+00:00

Hello, James.
Just now, I came across your Kardomah blog. Pleasant surprise,
as it brought back happy memories of when I used to quietly
sneak off work for a morning coffee break at the Kardomah on
Lord Street, Southport, Lancs., England.
I am sending along a 1921 photo of Lord Street that shows part
of the Kardomah there. It was still serving in 1951, when I
emigrated to Canada. ‘Wonder how long it stayed in business.
BTW, in several on-line lists of Kardomah cafes, not one ever
mentions the Southport location. Odd oversight.
However, my compliments to you for keeping some fond memories
alive.
Best Regards – Sidney Allinson,
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.

Kardomah History

2012-01-26T21:52:00.000+00:00

The company that created the Kardomah brand began in Pudsey Street,Liverpool in 1844 as the Vey Brothers teadealers and grocers. In 1868 the business was acquired by the newly created Liverpool China and India Tea Company,and a series of brand names was created beginning with Mikado. The Kardomah brand of tea was first served at the Liverpool colonial exhibition of 1887,and the brand was later applied to a range of teas, coffees and coffee houses. The parent company was renamed to Kardomah Limited in 1938. The brand was acquired by the Forte Group in 1962, sold to Cadbury/Schweppes/Typhoo in 1971, and became part of Premier Brands some time between 1980 and 1997. The brand still exists, selling items such as instant coffee and coffee whitener.

With Thanks: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kardomah_Caf%C3%A9s

Manchester Memories...........

2011-03-26T19:54:00.000+00:00

Fascinated to read all the material you have gathered on this great institution. My own Kardomah memories are of two branches in Manchester. First, the large establishment at the Lewis’s end of Market Street – a three-storey place with 'nippies’ and change humming in vacuum tubes. A delicacy to be had there was herring roes on toast. But the branch of K in which I spent most time was at the posher end of the city, in St Anne’s Square. As soon as you went down the steps into the fragrant interior it felt like being abroad. as the cafe was patronised by groups of Manchester’s Levantine communities. You could hear Arabic spoken there, Greek and Yiddish. The most distinctive feature of this branch of K was a large fireplace over which was the motto ‘Die werkt met lust verlangt geen rust’ – Dutch, I’m fairly sure, meaning something like ‘He who enjoys his work does not long for leisure’. I wonder whether the Kardomah company ordered this fireplace, or whether it was a feature of the building before Kardomah took it over?

Best wishes

Ian Buckley

Derby, Kardomah was the perfect place to watch world go by

2011-03-08T21:08:00.000+00:00

STIRRING STUFF: Above, the mid-1960s photograph of the Kardomah that sparked Gladys Allcock's memories and, left, as it looked towards the end of its days.
By [spowlson]

IT was lovely to see a photograph of the old Kardomah restaurant in Bygones.
I went there regularly from the 1940s until its closure in the early 1980s.
It was beautiful inside. The walls were oak-panelled, with each panel having an art deco motif in its top centre.
One remains today on the staircase in the restaurant that replaced it.

There were square wooden tables that seated two or four and crisp, white tablecloths or, sometimes, blue gingham.
The meals were simple but delicious British fare – mixed grill, toasted teacakes, little sandwiches and cakes.

It was rather like the Lyons Corner Houses that used to be in London. Right to the end, I think the waitresses were in smart black and white uniforms.

We used to call them "nippies" – presumably because they nipped around the tables so quickly.

I remember service was certainly always quick.

Up until the 1950s, you could buy loose tea in the downstairs restaurant, while upstairs was a coffee bar, where you could buy fresh coffee, which was weighed and put into little linen sacks. The aroma of freshly-ground coffee beans was heavenly, especially as instant coffee was not widely available at that time.

The decor upstairs was slightly different – sort of Moorish in design. It was rather exotic, I thought.

The Kardomah was usually open late and, after the cinema had finished, we'd go in there for a late-night coffee.

There were also often quite a few journalists from the Derby Telegraph in there, as it was an ideal place to conduct interviews.

Situated as it was at the junction of the Cornmarket and St James's Street, with a police officer standing in the middle of the road directing traffic, it was the perfect place to watch the world go by.

I always tried to get a table near to the window.

At a time when there were few eating places in Derby, it was THE place to go. Whether it be breakfast, morning coffee, lunch, afternoon tea or late supper, the place was always full of people.

My friend had a job there washing up in the kitchens – no dishwashers in those days.

I was sad when its closure was announced and had my lunch there on its final day.

It was packed out. Somehow, egg and chips has never tasted quite the same again.

I suppose its successor was the Swiss Cottage, in the Audley Centre – still a good, old-fashioned British cafe.

If I am in London, I like to eat at Simpson's, on The Strand. Its decor is almost identical to the Kardomah and the atmosphere is similar.

Happy memories come flooding back when I am there.

Did you frequent the Kardomah or were you a regular at the other popular Derby haunt, the Boccacio Cafe, in the Market Place? We would love to read your memories, contact details below.

With Thanks

By [spowlson]

http://www.thisisderbyshire.co.uk/news/Kardomah-perfect-place-watch-world/article-1557660-detail/article.html

Milton Jones

2011-03-04T22:13:00.000+00:00

The house of Milton Jones, uses Kardomah in it's theme song... Can anyone shed any light on Miltons conection with The Kardomah.

Click on the Title link to visit Miltons web site....

London for Food Lovers (Part 1) by Cynthia Clampitt

2010-11-29T20:29:00.000+00:00

With thanks to Cynthia Clampitt

Just click on the Title to link to Cynthia’s Food Blog……

England has long been on the cutting edge of culinary consumption. It was in England in 1700 that milk was first added to chocolate. Earlier still, it was England that initiated Europe’s love affair with coffee. Though coffee was being drunk in Muslim countries as early as the 15th century, it was not until a Jewish merchant from Turkey opened a coffee house in Oxford in 1650 that coffee culture really caught hold in Europe. France was next, then Vienna, and soon coffee houses were all over Europe. In England, coffee houses became the gathering places of intellectuals, politicians, and anyone else who liked to talk. One great chain of coffee houses, Kardomah, became a fixture in the high streets of towns throughout the UK. Welsh poet Dylan Thomas and his circle of friends frequented these shops with such regularity that they were known as “the Kardomah boys.” I can remember stopping at a Kardomah coffee house when I first visited London at age 14. They served coffee with amber sugar crystals, rather than plain, white sugar. I was enchanted. Today, though Starbucks has now displaced the majority of the old Kardomah cafés, there is still a lovely coffee culture in England.

Copyright Cynthia Clampitt ©2010
(This originally appeared in a different form in Hungry Magazine.)

Kardomah Cafe Newport, Commercial Street

2010-11-27T20:28:00.000+00:00

Thanks: http://www.oldukphotos.com/monmouthshirenewportpage4.htm

By Eiona Roberts

The Kardomah Kaff

Oh! The aroma
In the Kardomah
The coffee they serve you
Is truly to die for.
Oh! The aroma
In the Kardomah,
The Kenco they pour you -
A reason to live for.

Sunday roast, cheese on toast,
Lemon meringue, apple tart.
Luscious coffee, 'Please a top up'
These are things that warm my heart.
Chocolate eclair - (hope one's there!)
What I'd give for strawberry gateaux.
Toasted tea - cake, strawberry milkshake
Sweet and soulful, revives your heart.

Oh! The aroma
In the Kardomah.
And the staff are a wonder -
Always a smile
Oh! The whole aura
Of the Kardomah
Makes your brief stay there
Quite worth the while!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/southwest/sites/poetry/pages/eiona_roberts.shtml

Sue Lewis, Newport South Wales

Newport lost its Kardoma many years ago but those of us who are 50+ remember it fondly as a place to meet as teenagers and be "sophisticaed" drinking russian tea in glass with silver holders.

A generation earlier my mother had worked as a kitchen hand and in the 60s, she and I would have poached egg on toast in our lunch hours and she would tell me how she polished every brass band on the staircase. A lovely, innocent time.
Tue Dec 12 09:08:56 2006

Kardomah Cafe Princes's Street Edinburgh

2010-11-27T20:09:00.000+00:00

OLD POSTCARD OF WONDERFUL INTERIOR VIEW OF KARDOMAH CAFE, PRINCES ST. EDINBURGH . THE INTERIOR HAS VERY ART NOUVEAU LOOK TO IT. MESSAGE ON BACK SAYS ' YOU CAN DRINK THE MOST DELICIOUS TEA AND COFFEE WITH DAINTY BISCUITS AND CREAM FOR 3D A CUP ' . THIS CAFE IS LONG GONE BUT HERE IS A REMINDER OF EDINBURGH AND IT'S PAST GLORY.
VERY GOOD CONDITION, SLIGHT CORNER WEAR .

POSTMARK EDINBURGH BUT YEAR MISSING C1910

Does anyone know how long this cafe was open?

If so drop me a line.....

The Paris Kardomah

2010-11-22T20:52:00.000+00:00

The Medova Tea Rooms, ^ Ruede I'Echelle, and Kardomah,
184, Rue de Rivoli, are also much frequented by British
visitors.

The smart tea-rooms resorted to by the more elegant
Parisians and the wealthier members of the Anglo-American
colony are Rumpelmayer's

Could anyone put a date to this? Any help much appreciated……..

Kardomah Cafe Website

2010-11-21T20:52:00.000+00:00

Please visit the website..... just click on the title......

All the Cafes by location and much more....

https://sites.google.com/site/kardomah/home

Kardomah By Peter Finch (Cardiff)

2010-11-21T20:28:00.000+00:00

From a book by Peter Finch,Real Cardiff, published by Seren Books

Just click on the Post Tiltle to visit: www.peterfinch.co.uk

Kardomah

Billy's coming out of the KD fast with half a kilo of Moroccan Red making a bulge the size of a bible in his inside pocket. He could shift, easy, but there's a face at the far end he doesn't like. Safer in the street.

The KD's got old ladies in fox firs downstairs and mods up. Parkas. Hoods. Students. Youth.

The guy with the Italian bush shirt comes in bearing a copy of Adrian Mitchell's Peace is Milk … War is Acid, printed as a folded handbill by Peace News, sold cheap, in the style, exactly, of the penny ballads of centuries before. You read the poem. The hairs on the back of your neck stand up.

They won't have war. These people'll stop it. Girl in the yellow jeans. The ponytail. Stones haircut. The beard. The round-collared jacket. The one using the Rizla. The one with the bag from C&As.

Coffee arrives in the national consciousness like a post-war automobile, desirable shining. The stuff gives the heart a hit into overdrive but when you're young you don't notice. Not at all.

At the front, overlooking the street, the fifth form trying it with no money have one tea between six and eagerness like a rainstorm. Can cope with poetry, the bomb and the Beatles. Easy.

All this'll slide apart when commerce demolishes the walls and inflates Timothy Whites from small sensible next door into a vast Boots, grown enormously beyond pharmacy, spread from the JD delivery lane to Frederick Street and beyond. But that's not yet.

The guy with the guitar in the soft case can't play. Mouth matchstick. War Resistors International broken rifle in his right lapel. Sports coat doubling as hipness. Read Howl. Looking for angels.

Queen Street outside full of cars and choke. The stunning space of pedestrianisation, when it comes, shocking the city into wondering how ever had they let the past be like it was.

This was Crockerton Street until Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887. The KD was a slum of veg sold from pots, stink and bad drainage. Sludge. Sailors with sticks. Normans with swords.

By the time the bomb had migrated to missile and the ban had seeped like damp across the West the young had become older and no longer cared. Upstairs at the back of Boots they'd put in a coffee shop. Crowds of them in there. Mothers. Bags. Loyalty cards. Pushchairs with golf-trolley wheels. Cake. Café Latte. No Russian Tea.

Dope elsewhere. Anywhere. Hedonistic Cardiffian nightlife essential. No cultural trappings. Not any more.

Peter Finch

Cilla Black

2010-11-21T12:57:00.000+00:00

Cilla Blacks return to Mathew Street…..

Did you used to drink in the Kardomah at that time… if so drop me a line.

The return to Liverpool will also be nostalgic: "Mathew Street is great. They’ve still got the pub where The Beatles went. I just went to the Kardomah for coffee."

Cilla Black’s debut single was “Love of the Loved”, a Lennon-McCartney composition mainly written by Paul McCartney. Black (born Priscilla White) was contracted with manager Brian Epstein as his only female client. George Martin, who signed Cilla to Parlophone Records, produced her recording of the song. Released September 27, 1963, the single peaked at a modest number 35 on the UK Singles Chart, and was not to be one of her bigger hits.

“Love of the Loved” was one of Paul McCartney’s earliest compositions and the Beatles performed it in their live act in their early years. The band recorded the song during their 1962 audition for Decca Records, but it has never been included in any of their official releases. It was even left off of 1995's Anthology 1 (compilation CDs that covered 1958-1964), supposedly vetoed from inclusion by McCartney.

http://beatlestrivia.com/what-lennon-mccartney-composition-was-cilla-blacks-debut-single/

The Cavern Club

2010-11-21T11:58:00.000+00:00

Mike Remembers The Beatles in the Kardomah on the corner of Stanley Street, then onto the Cavern Club......

Mike Campbell, Liverpool, UK
I was fortunate to have been around at the time The Beatles were just taking Liverpool by storm. I used to have coffee with John and other mates including Paul and George at The El Cabala in Bold Street or The Kardomah on the corner of Stanley Street. I was able to see them at lunchtime sessions in The Cavern and all over the place at night gigs. I told my parents that I had seen this group who were going to change music forever. I was 16 and had had 2 pints of lager and they sent me to bed because they thought I was drunk !!! But they changed music and John changed my outlook on almost every aspect of life. Not a single day goes by that I don't miss him. Feel free to contact me Lennon People.

The Beatles

2010-11-14T16:16:00.000+00:00

Did the Beatles ever use the Kardomah Cafe?

If you have any recollections drop me a line......

The Candy Harlots at the Kardomah Cafe!

2010-11-05T20:43:00.000+00:00

Candy Harlots History

Candy Harlots were formed in 1987 in Sydney by guitarist Ron Barrett (aka Ron B. Gypsy; ex-Glam Savages), drummer Tony Cardinal (ex-What??!!, Soggy Porridge), guitarist Marc De Hugar, vocalist Mark Easton (ex-Suicide Squad, Kelpies, Soggy Porridge, Glam Savages) and bass guitarist Nick Szentkuti (ex-Glam Savages). Szentkuti spent six months as bass guitarist, he was followed by Scott Millard (ex-The Faith) and then Leeno Dee (ex-Roxx).

The band developed an underground following around Sydney and were offered a recording deal with Virgin Records after three shows but their manager turned down the offer. The contract was not signed until the band had got out of their management deal four years later. They played in suburban Sydney pubs, with their main venues at the Kardomah Cafe in Kings Cross and the St James Tavern in the city. Candy Harlots secured support slots with The Cult, Cheap Trick, Divinyls, The Angels, Sunnyboys, Danish rock band D-A-D and Kings of the Sun.