Lisa Jones, co-founder of The People’s Pantry in Muswell Hill, reveals her favourite places in Haringey to eat, drink and enjoy a night out

Home is…
Muswell Hill, for 25 years and counting.

Where do you go for a good time?
Comedy nights at The Village Green in Muswell Hill and Crouch End’s Downstairs at the King’s Head for a laugh. Ally Pally for gigs – we are lucky to have a global platform on our doorstep!

Why do you love Haringey?
For the community in all its wonderful diversity. Since launching The People’s Pantry we’ve been involved with all sorts of community projects and been blown away by the amount of volunteering that goes on, by the efforts to improve our lives and spaces and the support for each other that quietly runs through the borough – from foodbanks and churches to sustainability campaigners and food growers, to wider events that directly engage and galvanise the community.

Where do you go for a moment of quiet?
We are blessed to have so much green space around us in Haringey. My quiet times are spent walking the dog around Alexandra Palace Park and Highgate Woods. The woods, in particular, take on a new beauty and light with every season which is always uplifting.

What’s your secret Haringey spot?
Ludo’s Bar in Blue House Yard, Wood Green, which is a bar on a vintage double decker bus, and so much more. Charley and James, who took on the bus last year, have filled it with local brews, comedy nights, supper clubs and great music. Blue House Yard is a cool, buzzy little hub for local artisans.

If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Fave e Cicoria. It’s a Puglian dish of pureed garlicky fava beans and potato topped with wilted bitter greens.

Where in the borough would you recommend for a first date?
How about The Goodness Brewing Company in Wood Green for a pizza and one of their ‘beer and Beethoven’ nights. Relaxed, quirky, funky and cultured. That’s got to be a second date-winning combo, right?

Where do you get your culture fix?
Park Theatre in Finsbury Park rarely disappoints. It’s a tiny, intimate theatre, but with a quality of performers, innovation and writers that belies its size. At the other end of the scale, the cavernous Alexandra Palace Theatre is an atmospheric joy.

Best pint in Haringey?
The Muswell Hillbillies Taproom in Avenue Mews. They serve some really interesting craft beers, including local ones like Jiddler’s Tipple and their own Hillbillies range, made from homegrown hops. They’re passionate about real beer and it shows.

Where is your go-to coffee spot?
Hedgehog Café on Muswell Hill Broadway, which is an independent beacon in a sea of coffee shop chains.

What are you working on at the moment?
We’re continuing to expand our stock offer, listening to what our customers want and responding when it fits our criteria; we now offer over 250 sustainability-vetted products across pantry, beauty and eco-cleaning staples. We are also continuing to develop relationships with local, like-minded, independent businesses. Our coffee, honey and beer are all Haringey sourced and we’d like to keep promoting local producers.

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