Property

If you can date a country hedgerow by counting the species in a 30-metre stretch, you can make a similar deduction about Fairfield Road’s heritage from the medley of accommodation as you stroll along. Overgrown railway bridges, converted pubs and office spaces, purpose-built flats and trim Victorian townhouses all tell of Bow’s rich history, which dates back to the twelfth century and the bow-shaped bridge built over the River Lee at Queen Matilda’s insistence after a particularly soggy crossing.

There’s less pretension in Bow than other East End enclaves; larger properties mean it’s more of a family area, and industrial workspaces, including Bow Arts Centre, lure working artists rather than their posturing counterparts.

City workers keen to escape Canary Wharf have moved in alongside the old-time East Enders canny enough to hang on to their ex-council houses and wait for the Olympic effect.
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Ethnically, the area is less obviously defined than elsewhere. Working-class East Enders, Bangladeshis and eastern Europeans all rub shoulders. Beneath its industrial façade, particularly evident at the northern end, Fairfield Road is resolutely residential. Flowers dapple the modern mews and pushchair-toting parents head off to Victoria Park, ten minutes away.

A Tiddlywinks B Roman Road Market C Bow Quarter D Bow Arts Centre E Bow Bells

There are bargains, even in Bow Quarter, the converted Bryant & May factory which is Fairfield Road’s property jewel. You can rent and sometimes buy affordably, while a new build at the north end promises more affordable choices. Bow’s yet to arrive on the style map, but for those seeking quiet authenticity, that’s no bad thing.

Going out
Cheerful, old-school boozer the Bow Bells (116 Bow Rd, 020 8981 7317) is on your doorstep. Gastropub The Morgan Arms (020 9980 6389) is ten minutes away at 43 Morgan Street. Brick Lane is a bus ride away.

Local shops
Quirky finds like designer kidswear at Tiddlywinks (020 89817000) at No 414 enliven the shops on Roman Road. The market on the same street offers dog biscuits but not organic sausages…

Schools
Sir John Cass Foundation and Redcoat Church of England Secondary School is famed for its high standards and results.

Transport
Bow Road tube is on the District Line and Hammersmith and City Line. Bow Church DLR. Both are in Zone 2.

Local estate agents
Keatons, 397-399 Mile End Rd, E3 (020 8981 7788/www.keatons.com).
Felicity J Lord, 644/646 Mile End Rd, E3 (020 8981 3666/www.fjlord.co.uk).
Oliver Jacques, Fairfield Rd, E3 (020 8980 0999/www.o-j.co.uk).
WJ Meade, 391 Mile End Rd, E3 (020 8981 3331/www.wjmeade.co.uk).