The Old Dairy

Gazing upon The Old Dairy, can you sense the echoes of its past? The Old Dairy stands at the intersection of Crouch Hill and Hanley Road. It’s not just a café, restaurant, and pub; it’s a living testament to London’s dairy industry. The sgraffito panels on the Crouch Hill side hint at this rich history. The Old Dairy’s story begins in the mid-19th century as a simple dairy. First Davis & Co., then George Taylor, and finally the Friern Manor Dairy Company operated within its walls. A hidden photograph, unearthed during restoration, reveals an 1880s advertisement for the dairy, a ghost of commerce past. The decorative building at 1-3 Crouch Hill, with its unique sgraffito panels, was purpose-built for the Friern Manor Dairy Company. These panels, depicting scenes of milk production, are rare for their pictorial nature and street-side location. Most sgraffito work from the late 19th century was decorative or found within churches. The Old Dairy’s panels are a true anomaly, crafted from hard red and white plaster layered onto bricks. The identity of the builder and panel designer remains a mystery. The red bricks, however, are attributed to Tommy Lawrence of Bracknell, a renowned 19th-century brick company that supplied Hampton Court. The Friern Manor Dairy Company, established in 1887, had branches throughout London. They specialized in Dr. Gaertner’s Humanised Milk, a preparation for infants and invalids. The Old Dairy, close to the railway, may have been a processing depot for this specialized milk. In the 1920s, United Dairies took over operations until 1968. The building then housed a variety of businesses until Regent Inns plc. purchased it in 1997, transforming it into The Old Dairy we see today. This transformation cost upwards of 1.5 million pounds and involved meticulous restoration to preserve the building’s historical character. So, next time you visit The Old Dairy, remember the clinking of milk bottles, the lowing of cows, and the innovative spirit of the Friern Manor Dairy Company. It’s a story etched in brick and plaster, waiting to be rediscovered.