A real mixture - TrustNews Dec 16
Where in Winchester would you have found a complex comprising butcher's shop, furniture store, restaurant, dairy and youth club? Phil Yates remembers and reflects back to those halcyon days 75 years ago.
The elaborate facade of No 20 Jewry Street dates from 1906. For many years the premises were occupied by Winchester & District Co-operative Society, which was divided between a butcher's shop and furniture store on the ground floor and a restaurant above. This was a ‘British restaurant’, opened in 1942 under the name ‘Alfie's Kitchen’ - after King Alfred naturally! British Restaurants were communal kitchens created in 1940 to help people who had been bombed out of their homes, had run out of ration coupons or otherwise needed help. Another purpose was to feed members of the armed forces whilst on leave. Originally called Community Feeding Centres, the name British Restaurant was chosen by Winston Churchill. They were run for the Ministry of Food by local voluntary agencies on a non-profit basis, with meals sold for a set price of 9d. By 1943, there were 2160 British Restaurants serving 600,000 very inexpensive meals a day! They were disbanded in 1947.
After final lunches at Alfie's Kitchen were finished, tables and chairs were stacked away ready for the onslaught of teenage boys and girls, members of the Co-op Youth Club. I joined the club as a 14-year old and became involved in their drama group, the start of a lifetime’s obsession with dramatics and the theatre. Other activities included dancing to wax records and film shows. The first necessity on entering the ‘kitchen’ was to open all the windows in order to eradicate the smell of stale and left-over food! The dairy was situated at the rear, accessed by a passageway at the side which is still visible today.
The whole complex including the adjoining property, No 19, was tastefully restored and extended as part of a redevelopment plan by property developer Mohamed Bakhaty between 2005 and 2008, and is now occupied by Brasserie Blanc Restaurant. The entrance to No 19 was originally the Golden Lion public house which lost its licence in 1907.
Visiting the restaurant last October, l noticed a framed copy of Leonard Daniels’ painting of Alfie's Kitchen in 1942 - the original is in Southampton Art Gallery. It brought back fond memories of my wartime childhood. By the way, look at the wall as you enter the restaurant. The tiles with the cow's head and rails where the meat was hung are still there as a reminder that this was formerly a butcher's shop.
My thanks to Rod Youngman for information regarding British Restaurants and to the staff of Brasserie Blanc Restaurant for being so helpful.