The Juice Bar

“Chatsworth Road is raw and diverse. I love it around here” says Lumiere, owner of the local juice bar. “It’s a real community, which is something quite special in London, but it’s not too in your face: it’s just right.” All of the juices on offer are named after local streets. Berry Blurton is made up of strawberry, peach, papaya and blueberries while a Clifden Cherry is a startling combination of cherry, strawberry, banana and mint. All around are heart shaped signs, “I opened this place because I wanted to give something back.“ It is hard to define: yes, it’s a juice bar with organic elements, not least the reclaimed tree trunks outside, but there is velour wallpaper on the walls, smooth jazz playing in the background, trickling from water features and the sound of the sea can be heard when you open the toilet door. There is even a VIP room downstairs, complete with red rope. Lumiere insists it is not a café. There is no tea or coffee on sale, but then he does a brisk trade in Yummy Mummy – a mixture of fig, date, vanilla and banana that is a clear nod to the changing demographic, Clapton Carrot, a refreshing blend of carrot, ginger, orange, apple, celery and a unique combination of banana, strawberry, orange, milk and granola, which he chooses to call a Homerton Hangover.

The French Deli

“We need the market to work. It really hurts to see empty shops and landlords just leaving”, says the owner of the French deli, L'epicerie at number 56. Along with Venetia at the coffee shop across the road, Remi was something of a pioneer on the street, a local resident who has been in business in Chatsworth Road since the end of 2007. Blackforest ham, bresaola, chorizo, fennel salami, fresh hummous and campaillou sourdough bread are all for sale at what he describes as a fine food shop as much as a deli. Much of the produce comes direct by van from Rungis, an enormous wholesale market outside Paris and from fair trade cooperatives.

Regal Pharmacy

“We have been in Chatsworth Road for 45 years’ says the owner, Jay. We used to own the pharmacy in what used to be the old post office, then in 1989 we moved to a place across the road, before moving here in 1998. We also used to have a sweet shop, where the internet shop is now, next to William Hill. It would be lovely to have a market. Beautiful.” Jay remembers when the market was here. “You couldn’t move it was so busy. One of the last market stalls was called Jack and Jill and sold fruit and veg. It sadly shut up shop in 1995. Our counter sales have dropped 50% in the last ten years but we are becoming increasingly health orientated, particularly in terms of natural health and we are also offering more services to the community.

In the photo is Harish, Pinar, Jay, Vipul, the manager, and Louise

East London Locks

'I think Chatsworth, which everyone calls Chats, is a fantastic road. I have had an office here since 1998 and if I don’t come here, I get withdrawal symptoms.' Mike the owner grew up on the old Bethnal Green Road and works here with his son, Huseyin, whose mother is from Cyprus. I think the market would suit the area, which I have seen really improving. There are lots of new businesses setting up, like the toyshop, the bookshop, the deli and the funky juice bar.

Too Sweet

This Caribbean takeaway, open every day from 11.30 to 10, does a brisk trade in patties, stewed chicken, oxtail, fried dumpling and chicken foot soup. Kevin, who is Jamaican, has owned this shop, which used to be opposite the funeral parlour, for ten years. ‘We have everyone coming here, not just Africans and West Indians. Even Vinny Jones comes here. There is a really nice community here and we are always very busy. We just want the market and to make people appreciate it.” One of Kevin’s customer comes here every day. He always orders ‘rasta man food like ackee and saltfish’ and Jamaican bun, which is a kind of cake, served with cheese, saying: “I wouldn’t come anywhere else; this place is the best. You get proper food and don’t ever get a belly ache”.

Star Discount Store

Ismail, Riza, Gazi and Huseyin are four Kurdish brothers who have been living in London for 20 years. The owners of the fruit and veg shop sold it in February 2009 and opened up this discount shop next door the same month. All now in their 60s, they were finding getting up at 2am to go to Spitalfields too exhausting, although they still work 12 hours a day, six days a week and struggle to compete with supermarkets as some cash and carry prices are higher than in the big chains.

BJ Fashions

BJ taught herself how to sew. In her shop are four industrial size sewing machines and in the window mannequins dressed in brightly coloured outfits. BJ works six days a week, listening to a Nigerian Muslim station and has been living just off Chatsworth Road for more than 18 years.

Kashmir Kebabish

Nadeem is from the Pakistani side of Kashmir, which he explains is a beautiful part of the world, half in India, half in Pakistan. The food he serves is Pakistani, which tends to be spicier than Indian dishes. On the menu are samosas, kebabs, curries, steaks and sweet lassi. “Our customers are from everywhere – they are Chinese, White, Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi” When I ask him what he thinks of Chatsworth Road, he shakes his head: ‘I work here 12 hours a day, so I don’t ever get to see it.”

Hop

One of the more recent additions to the street is Hop Toyshop hoptoyshop.co.uk, owned by local Maria Chalidze.

Chatsworth Laundry

There has been a launderette on this site for 50 years. Before that it was an Off Licence. 22-year-old owner Zak, originally from Gujarat, India, has been running things since he was just 18. With a penchant for expensive sports cars, when the smell of marijuana began to permeate the premises last year, all the old ladies doing their laundry assumed it was him. The police then discovered that his neighbour was growing and harvesting a plantation of 100, human sized specimens. Open until midnight every day, Chatsworth Laundry serves the local population as well as businesses throughout London, with pick ups from commercial premises throughout Hackney and the West End. 'We get everyone here really, but at one time there was nothing much here; now it is becoming really trendy.'