The Fount London business has changed. Head to fountlondon.com for more info.
What?: Trailblazing new venue for East London parents housing a top-notch nursery, trendy eatery and dynamic pop-up shop in a cool and creative mini-village nestled under the railway arches on the edge of London Fields. Set up by two East London mums, art graduate and property developer Rachel Munro Peebles and early years practitioner Elena Mackay, Fount is the sort of parental utopia you’ve always dreamed of but never believed could actually exist because life just isn’t that kind.
The cool, contemporary nursery has Montessori vibes and is based around two age-appropriate rooms designed to nurture and creatively stimulate your child based on their stage of development. The decor is totally gorgeous, with a calm and relaxing vintage scheme filled with warm, muted tones and eclectic retro furniture; think old-school classroom chairs, wooden floorboards, organic cotton teepees and quirky picture-frame walls. There is a stunning outdoor play area constructed using all-natural materials, while the on-site chef – ex-Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen-er Kerryann Dunlop – prepares nutritious, locally sourced meals daily.
Next door, the lively pop-up shop plays permanent host to East End Prints, a contemporary art brand selling affordable prints and greetings cards, while the adjoining space houses a rotating roster of exciting independent brands that to date have included Beau Loves, Molly-Meg, Urban Makers East and Indikidual. Finally, the third of Fount’s trio of railway arches is home to Il Cudega, an Italian deli, wine bar and restaurant offering the perfect place to chill with a charcuterie board and a glass of a red after you’ve dropped off the kids and shopped off your socks next door.
Where?: Arches 358-360, Westgate Street, a six-minute walk from London Fields Overground and 15 minutes from Bethnal Green tube (Central).
Best Bits: Fount offers a Saturday creche for 2-6s, with prices ranging from £40 for four hours to £80 for the whole day. There is a cash-only drop-off service for the month of May, but otherwise you can book via the website.
Worst Bits: Resident restaurant Il Cudega is described as family-orientated on Fount’s website but when we swung by in the midst of a code-brown situation we were told there were no baby-change facilities, which meant we had to take our empty stomachs and Bab’s very full nappy elsewhere. Obviously this won’t matter in the slightest if your little ones are safely tucked up in the nursery, but it’s extremely annoying if they’re not.
Did We Buy?: No, we’re trying to be good but the pop-up shop had so many great bargains we could have easily cleaned them out.
Would We Come Back?: I’ll be following Fount on Instagram to see what’s next for the pop-up shop and we’ll definitely try out the creche when Bab’s a bit older.
Bab can’t wait to get her hands on the bargains at Fount London’s pop-up shop, London Fields
bablands.com 