A Treat In The Heart Of Hammersmith

Sharon Isaac-Upton and Tom Roche,
Brackenbury's Delicatessen, Hammersmith

Sharon Isaac-Upton tells how she once strolled through Hammersmith pushing her child in a pram. Eventually she came across this wonderful delicatessen. It sold amazing coffee, beautiful food and was an oasis of friendliness. But she could never quite recall exactly where it was. Many years later she found it. It was being advertised for sale and so, along with her business partner Tom Roche, she bought it last year.

Sharon had stumbled across Buchanan's Organic Deli and Coffee Shop which was run by the lovely and much missed Jim Buchanan, who sadly died last spring.

The store has been refitted out and re-named Brackenburys Delicatessen but it remains at the heart of what has become known as Brackenbury Village. Since taking on the deli, Sharon and Tom have sourced an eclectic range of fine foods. The coffee is still excellent but you’ll also find wonderful cheeses, artisan breads, charcuterie, antipasti and cakes.

The café is going strong too: mouth-watering salads are offered up along side luxurious sandwiches, pies and other delights. They do breakfast, lunch and tea and are open from 7.00am to 4.30pm week days and from 8.00am on Saturday and Sunday – when they close at 4.00pm and 2.00pm respectively.

It is good to see Brackenburys Delicatessen thriving. And it's good that this independent small retailer is bucking the trend in this tough economic climate. If you’re in the area, it offers a quite treat in the middle of any day of the week. But do take a note where it is or you might spend years wondering exactly where it was that you found this wonderful oasis of nourishing calm and delightful fare.

You can follow Brackenburys Delicatessen on Twitter; you can visit them on Facebook and you can visit them for real at 22 Aldensley Road, Hammersmith, London, W6 0DH. You can email them by clicking here or give them a call on 020 8748 7388.