It’s true that I might be biased when I make a sweeping declaration of love for Camberwell since I lived there for many years but I also lived in other areas of London too (Queen’s Park, Kings Cross, Oval, Paddington, Hendon and Ladbroke Grove) and I’m not claiming any of those as my favourite part of London. My love for Camberwell is based on community, the nature, culture and restaurant options it boasts.

Let’s look now at all the amazing things to do in Camberwell and I’ll also offer some hot tips for exploring Camberwell. If you’re exploring London with kids, Camberwell is an excellent place to chill out for a while, too.

Where is Camberwell?

Camberwell’s location is one of the best things about it, in my opinion. It’s close to everything yet barely anyone knows it’s there. Camberwell has no highfalutin’ aspirations, it doesn’t care if you know about it or not. It just gets on with London life.

📌 Camberwell is south of the River Thames in the London Borough of Southwark.

🚇 This small borough is in Zone 2 of the Tube but has no tube station of its own (this is part of what keeps it unknown). Use Oval (Northern line), Elephant & Castle (Northern or Bakerloo lines), Kennington (Northern) or Brixton (Victoria). You can then walk or take a bus to Camberwell Green.

🚉 Camberwell is also close to Denmark Hill station where you can use the London Overground and Thameslink train services.

🚍 The whole of South London is served by excellent bus routes.

🚶🏽‍♂️ When I lived in Cambwell I would regularly walk home from the South Bank and Westminster (1 hr) Waterloo (50 minutes) or Charing Cross (1hr10) Stations and other areas of central London. Getting around London is easy when you have a map and have taken a moment to figure out the transport system.

Why Visit Camberwell?

History, Nature, Culture, Food

History

Camberwell is a very old part of London. In fact, Camberwell appears in the Domesday Book (as Cambrewelle). Camberwell Green, today just a small green, was once a large area that hosted a large annual fair. Until the mid-nineteenth century, Camberwell was lauded for its rural tranquility and people visited for the supposed healing properties of its springs. The arrival of the railways in the 1860s changed Camberwell forever.

Up to the mid-19th century, Camberwell was visited by Londoners for its rural tranquillity and the reputed healing properties of its mineral springs. Like much of inner South London, Camberwell was transformed by the arrival of the railways in the 1860s.

Nature

Camberwell is surrounded by green spaces and parks. While some areas aren’t amazingly well kept, other streets are magnificent and the parks will melt even the hardest of hearts (or North Londoners!)

Culture

There is a surprising amount of cultural activity in this small area of south London. From the Camberwell College of Arts and trendy pop-ups and museums and cathedrals, you’ll find everything in and around Camberwell.

Food

Camberwell has some truly excellent restaurants and coffee shops. It’s also within walking distance of the world-famous Borough Market and Brixton Market.

Camberwell Is Surprisingly Green

Camberwell and its neighbouring areas are surprisingly green for an inner-city area (because make no mistake, you are definitely in inner-city London in Camberwell).

Parks Within Walking Distance Of Camberwell

🌳 Camberwell Green: A recently refurbished Green at the heart of Camberwell. I believe it is the oldest remaining Green in London. A good place to sit and watch life happen all around you. Camberwell Green is very much the beating heart of Camberwell. There is a farmers’ market here every Saturday and every year the Camberwell Fair and the Arts Festival take place here

🌳 Lucas Gardens: On Camberwell Church Street. It has a good play area for small and older kids.

🌳 Myatt’s Field: This 14 acre park is really something special and quite often makes it into top ten parks in the city. Not only is it strikingly beautiful but it also has a wildlife garden, a summer splash pond, weekly markets, an outdoor nursery school, a really good community cafe (Little Cat Cafe) and the park regularly hosts community events. It certainly made it into my list of best places to take kids in London.

🌳 Ruskin Park, just up the Denmark Hill, past King’s Hospital.

🌳 Brunswick Park, hidden off Peckham Road

🌳 Just behind St Giles Church on Camberwell Church Street is yet another tiny and basically unknown park

🌳 Burgess Park, down the Walworth Road (gotta say the Walworth Road if you want people to think you’re a local!) is a beautiful large park (seriously, it’s 56 acres and barely known to non-locals). After a huge makeover in the not so distant past it now boasts a large pond where people fish, two play areas, a bike track, some actual history in the form of a dry canal, tennis courts, some lovely formal gardens, an art studio and a great cafe.

🌳 Camberwell Secret Garden – see if you can find it.

📌 Kennington Park and Vauxhall Park (and the Vauxhall City Farm) are also just a walk away.

📌 If you enjoy strolling around the streets of London then I highly recommend walking down Grove Lane and Love Lane (this might just be the best secret road in the whole of London) and maybe even as far as Herne Hill (Another enormous park), Camberwell Grove and Denmark Hill.

Culture in and Around Camberwell

Camberwell and the areas around Camberwell have a vibrant arts scene. Let’s take a look at some of what’s going on:

🎨 Camberwell College of Arts (part of the University of the Arts, London) is here and it is regarded as one of the UK’s foremost art and design institutions.

🎨 There are regular tours of artists’ studios organised and an art market pops up every now and again. Check out camberwellarts.org.uk for more information on when these events are happening.

🎨 Just a short hop and skip down Walworth Road will find Elephant Park and Elephant Springs. It bills itself as a ‘creative hub’ for the community.

🎨 The South London Gallery has been open for over 125 years offering art, exhibitions, film and performance events. It also has a great cafe on site.

🎨 The Peckham Levels is an old multi-storey car park that has recently been converted into a place to help creative locals get ideas off the ground. I think I saw the Vagina Monologues here once.

🎨 The Black Cultural Archives in Brixton is one of the most culturally relevant and important heritage centres I’ve ever visited. It is the only national heritage centre dedicated to celebrating and preserving the histories of African and Caribbean people in Britain.

🎨 The Blue Elephant Theatre offers an intimate fringe theatre experience you won’t want to miss. The incredible Joanna Lumley (of Ab Fab fame) is a local and patron.

🎨 The Horniman Museum is a short bus ride away and is one of my absolutely favourite museums in the whole of London. It’s small enough that you can see everything in an hour or so, offers incredible classes and sessions for kids, and has beautiful gardens. Take a picnic or grab a snack in their delicious cafe.

🎨 The Crypt is a fairly well-known secret. It’s an underground jazz bar weirdly located under St Giles’ Church and for people who know, the jazz is apparently some of the best in the UK.

🎨 And this isn’t all. Camberwell has two art supply shops, the better being Cowling & Wilcox, the largest art shop south of the river. Find it on Orpheus Street.

Other Points of Interest Near Camberwell

Because of its fabulous location near central London, Camberwell is easily visited along with other cultural locations in a day. Westminster, Big Ben, The Imperial War Museum, Tate Britain, The Garden Museum, Covent Garden, The Sky Garden (for free and incredible views over the city),The Royal Festival Hall, British Film Institute (BFI), Hayward Galleries, The Globe Theatre, National Theatre, Tate Modern, St Paul’s, Southwark Cathedral and so, so much more.

Eating And Drinking In Camberwell

So after all that fun in the parks and culture all over the place, you need somewhere to rest and have a drink, right? Well, my friends, you are still in the right place! London, of course, is home to some amazing restaurants and there’s never a time that you can’t find somewhere to eat whether you’re after a top brunch spot or a post-pub kebab.

Camberwell has an incredible array of both independent shops and cafes for you to experience. In my opinion, Camberwell is worth exploring purely for the eating opportunities. Please arrive hungry.

Top Cafes in Camberwell

☕️ Love Walk (corner of Denmark Hill and Love Walk) – this little cafe is a proper Camberwell institution. It’s rare that you won’t have to queue here but the staff are so friendly and the decor so interesting, that you’ll find yourself ok with the wait. Definitely come for breakfast or just grab a smoothie on your way past (also, take a walk down Love Walk as it’s a lovely little road).

☕️ Brewbird Cafe – If you’re willing to walk just a little further then this is a real treat. Tucked away around the corner, in Georgian House, on Camberwell Church Street, this is a cafe well worth supporting. It was set up a couple of years ago by the brilliant St Giles’ Trust (based in Camberwell) ‘to give some of the most excluded people in society another shot by teaching them skills free from judgement or stigma’. It is my favourite place to hang out with friends if I have time for a long and lazy brunch as the food is delicious, the coffee great and the space so very welcoming.

☕️ Maloko – super chill spot for coffees and crepes. It’s apparently a “Cameroonian Creperie”. Everything is pancake based here, from sweet pancakes to savoury galettes, which are also wheat free since they’re made with buckwheat. We’re big fans.

Best Restaurants in Camberwell

🍽 Silk Road (Camberwell Church Street). No article about Camberwell is complete without a mention of Silk Road, the most interesting and delicious Chinese food you’ll find in London. When I say we used to eat their food once a week I’m barely exaggerating and I still dream about it today. Instead of serving up regular ‘English Chinese food, Silk Road’s specialty is Xinjiang cuisine. You must must must try the home-style aubergine because it is officially the most delicious dish on the planet. It’s like eating sunshine and happiness all rolled into one. Maybe even order two.

🍽 The Crooked Well (Grove Lane) is also a bit of an institution, being the nicest pub restaurant in the area. Other great pub restaurants include the Camberwell Arms, The Tiger, Grove House Tavern and the Joiners Arms. All offer a seriously great Sunday roast.

🍽 Falafel and Shawarma (Camberwell Church Street). Yes, truly, that’s its name but don’t let the lack of naming imagination put you off what must be some of the scrummiest food on offer and genuinely my favourite shawarma spot in all of London. Choose from a mixed meze, a falafel or shawarma wrap, combine it with a fresh juice and on a sunny day, join others guzzling it down on the Green! I was told by staff that when the owner had a moderate win on the lottery she invested all of it in improving her restaurant. Go in, have a chat and ask her yourself. I love this place for a meal post-swim in the Camberwell public baths, a Victorian swimming pool just next door.

🍽 Viet Cafe (Denmark Hill) is my final food offering. They serve rice / noodle dishes and street snacks including incredible Vietnamese sandwiches, most things laced with coriander, which is just the way I love my food. Everything is so fresh and tasty here. They also offer salads and more traditionally English fillings for sandwiches too.

🍽 Quick mentions to Theo’s Pizza for great pizza, The Dutchie for Caribbean food, FM Mangal for Turkish, Vineyard for Greek, Nandine for Kurdish food and Zeret for some of the best Ethiopian food in London.

It isn’t a restaurant but it’d be remiss of me not to include TFC, Turkish Food Centre, a supermarket on Camberwell New Road that stocks foods from around the Mediterranean. It is a veritable hive of interesting things. Their pide (Turkish bread) is freshly baked every day and is just yummy. The olive bar is also worth visiting and my mum loves their olive-based toiletries too, she says they’re fab.

So there you have it. What do you love about my home patch? Go on, drop me a comment and tell me!