Big Red

Time Out says

Tue Aug 16 2011

Quite how a No. 30 double decker ended up in Deptford is anyone’s guess – Toto, we’re not in Hackney anymore – but it seems to be having fun in its new location and new role as a pizzeria. Under the long concrete curve of an elevated section of the DLR, and with an unloveable portion of Deptford Creek tucked mercifully out of sight, it’s a surprisingly convivial spot, in part due to the boss who, despite coming across as a little otherworldly, is very friendly and thoroughly content with his eccentric operation.

What of the comestibles? Drinks, served off a short blackboard list from a small booth by the entrance, run from a too heavily limed mojito (£5) via a couple of wines to some Meantime beers, while the food, produced in a small kitchen beside the bus, is pizza and a few salads. We tucked into the chorizo and black pudding pizza (£8) – one of half a dozen options on a second blackboard. Although punchy with flavour, the sausages left the dough a little soggy with fat. Still, the size is generous and the delivery prompt.

There are seats and tables inside the stranded bus, of course, but also plenty more on the decking outside. Some sofas have a little shelter against sun and rain, as well as low tables that encourage poor posture among those nodding to a soundtrack of Billie Holiday, Sade and Depeche Mode. A sequence of tables for couples at the far end look like telephone booths built for the Chelsea Flower Show, awaiting wisteria, while planters of basil, honeysuckle, lavender and geraniums soften what might otherwise be too brutal an urban setting.