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Plough Way Cafe is in an area of new development in the hinterlands between Rotherhithe and Deptford, yet it feels like it’s been there for years. Set back from the titular road, and recognisable by a distinctive angular roof and large windows that make for an airy dining area, it’s an incredibly inviting place to be.
The space is filled with an eclectic jumble of stuff – dangling pendant lights in a multitude of colours and shapes, Formica tables and mismatched chairs, a back wall covered with golden mosaic tiles – all laid out across a striking marble floor. It sounds dangerously mish-mashed, like someone with a taste for the ’70s got drunk and went on a thrift store binge, but it totally works.
Thankfully, the menu doesn’t take the same tack. We started with a bowl of simple but satisfying fried mozzarella balls and a bruschetta of goats’ cheese and figs, before moving on to a generously sized pizza topped with knobbles of sausage and plenty of gooey cheese. The only disappointment came from a dish of ravioli stuffed with artichokes; enthusiastically recommended by our waiter, it turned out to be flat in flavour and altogether unappetising.
But no matter – a dessert of gnocchi filled with Nutella arrived soon after and instantly eclipsed everything else. Each bite set off an explosion of smooth, nutty chocolate, the crispy skin of the dumplings giving way to an intense squelch, followed by a cooling lick of custard ice cream. In a word: heaven.
Plough Way Cafe isn’t doing anything particularly dazzling or groundbreaking, but it doesn’t need to. For the new wave of residents arriving in this previously desolate part of town, it’s the perfect local hangout.