Dartmouth Road?

[portobello]

I am thinking of buying a property on Dartmouth Road, however I noticed a post about Miriam
Lodge bail hostel and that put the frighteners on me.
How is the area? I am female and often finish work late at night (I'll be coming home often as late as 11pm in the winter months.
Advice please?

[The Eagle]

Personally I would prefer moving to Sydenham There are quite a few properties for sale (flats, maisonettes etc) only a few minutes walk from Sydenham Station and on the well lit main road.
Whereabouts in Dartmouth Road is the property?

[pinkfizz]

hi there

i live on dartmouth road (the sydenham end) and i find it absolutely fine. to be honest, i would avoid the sydenham itself. the high street is not a great place to be after the shops shut, if you're a woman on your own. i live smack bang in the middle of both sydenham and forest hill stations and the service from both stations is brilliant. selfridges door to door, three quarters of an hour and with the new east london line, you can be in canary wharf within half an hour. i've never had any problems with crime (maybe i'm just lucky), but like anywhere else in the city these days, you need to be vigilant. if i've had a night out and got the last train home, i might jump in a cab at forest hill, or sydenham station to take me the few minutes up the road.

hope that helps.

[bag lady]

Hi I live in this area and like it. I feel safe and often come home late at night alone as i work shifts, no problem and i've been here 8 years.

You see the odd shifty character perhaps from the hostel, but in the past couple of months they seem to have not been around so much. The end of last year/beginning of this i had a few people asking me for money on my doorstep, but it's not happened for months now. Maybe it was a one or two off.

I'll be happy when the Woodman opens again, the bricklayers is ok if you like sport. Good takeaways and shops, alhambra around the corner is lovely.

Also looking forward to the pools being completed, that will add to the area.

[ALIB]

I think that must have been my rant about Miriam Lodge. As a general comment about urban living, i don't think any areas are 'safe', and all have their own pro's and con's.

Dartmouth Road is generally quite good. We get on with all our neighbours and have some nice shops and pubs. That's Amore stands out as one of the better Italian restaurants I have eaten in.

I have entered discussions with Lewisham over the Lodge and to see if some of its inhabitants can be better managed, and i have to say I'm generally pleased with the way things seem to be progressing.

[portobello]

Hi,
Wow-You are such a friendly and helpful lot-I was'nt expecting such a swift response!
I've always lived in the inner city but never in South East london so its all a bit of a mystery to me
and I'm anxious about making a mistake.
Are there any nice coffee shops or Health food shops in the area?
The main drag seemed to be a bit uninspiring although I did spot a good second hand furniture
Shop.

[Thomas]

Forest Hill and Sydenham both have quite a few coffee shops, many of which are fairly new - I would particularly recommend Sugahill, Blue Mountain and Kente in Sydenham - you should find plenty of comments on all these if you trawl back through past discussions here. There is also the "Wellbeing" health food shop on Sydenham Road which I admit I haven't used but does have good reviews. In general, the main drag has some shopping gems amidst quite a bit of tat, but the side roads do offer some really pleasant places to live.

Lived round here for just over four years and suits me fine - there are plenty of really nice parts of both Sydenham and Forest Hill with loads of green space, though some bits are less than scenic, but that mish-mash of good and not-so-good makes it a bit more interesting for me.

[ALIB]

Not wishing to undermine Sydenham, but living close to the Bricklayers Arms I am right on the border with Forest Hill.
Thomas is quite correct with his list of good cafes. I think it would be true to say a lot of local businesses have suffered over the past couple of years and there are quite a few empty shops both in Sydenham and along Dartmouth Road. However, I'm confident things will soon pick-up.

We had the fishmongers in Sydenham Road open last week. I notice 'The Brothers' cafe/bar open today opposite the pools on Dartmouth Road.There's the deli/cafe next to Sainsburys on London Road which opened a few weeks ago and seems to be very popular. Alambra home and garden has a coffee garden out back and opposite is the Jasmine Cafe which caters for those who like a good English breakfast.

Just because people like me moan a lot, doesn't mean there aren't a lot of very good things about Sydenham and Forest HIll.

[portobello]

Thank-you!

[rebeccawilde]

I'd also recommend the Dolphin pub - nice garden, good food etc and ghurkas on the high street - really good indian food, not expensive but you'll need a res on a weekend!

Re Wellbeing health food shop, it's pretty good - on a Saturday, ask for Lucy, she's really helpful and will sort you out with anything you need!

[mkoala]

Sorry to be pedantic but Gurhka's is more Nepalese than Indian - although I agree that it is very good.

There is a sister restaurant in Crystal Palace which is also good but the menu has less choice.