Back in 1987 when I moved my bookshop to Ramsgate, this was partly to be closer to my mother who was getting older and lived at Preston near Wingham, I would have been just as likely to have moved to Deal. At the time there wasn’t a lot to choose between the two shopping centres, shop rents were about the same, if anything Ramsgate was busier.
We went to Deal today and having got used to the Thanet towns were struck by only seeing three empty shops, there may have been more, but what I was conscious of was being in a normal English town, with a normal balance of shops.
The other thing about Deal is that it has roughly the same catchment area as Thanet and the same problems relating to the decline of the seaside town.
We had lunch at The Coffee Shop, 1 High Street, very good value, food and drinks for my wife and I costing £10.20, I try to include this information as it may be helpful, not so much a review as a description, if the meal wasn’t good and the place clean I wouldn’t mention it in a blog post, so that you can say can be taken for granted.
I had a pot of tea for one
Pasta with mince sauce 
My wife had cappuccino
Baked potato with cheese
Everything came very quickly and I will definitely go there again.
The pictures are at http://www.michaelsbookshop.com/netbook211/id7.htm and I may ramble on if the mood takes me.
Yes Michael, I noticed the same about Deal it does have a thriving town centre, unlike Ramsgate and Margate. Could that be because there is not a 'westwood cross' in the vicinity?
ReplyDeleteThe REALLY sad thing about Thanet deprivation is that it is self-inflicted.
ReplyDeleteI had an occasion to visit Chelmsford and Essex Museum yesterday. It was full of children and students, had interactive exhibits, a new extension in 2010 holding a regimental exhibition and on top of all this, car parking and admission were FREE. *****