Map

The overlays that highlight 17th century London features are approximate and derived from Wenceslaus Hollar’s maps:

Open location in Google Maps: 51.538539, -0.103086

6 Annotations

First Reading

David Quidnunc  •  Link

"Famous for its cheesecakes"
according to a note at L&M for 23 June 1661 (Vol. II, p. 125).

On 1 April 1663, Pepys calls it the "cheese-cake house" (L&M renders it "Chescake-house").

Cheesecakes of some sort have a long history. This site claims they were known in Ancient Greece:
http://inventors.about.com/librar…

The ancient Romans had them, and various cultures make a similar dessert in various ways, according to this site:
http://www.foodmuseum.com/ask.html

And in 17th-century England, of course they had cheese cake recipes, such as this one:
http://www.godecookery.com/engrec…

Interesting parallel, of a sort: In the U.S. today, there's a nationwide chain of restaurants called "The Cheesecake Factory" begun by a couple with a great cheesecake recipe in Los Angeles, which confirms (just as Pepys does) that the cheesecake is a strong foundation on which to build an eatery's reputation.
http://www.thecheesecakefactory.c…

Second Reading

Bill  •  Link

Islington was famous for its dairies, brick-kilns, houses of entertainment with their tea-gardens and ducking-ponds, cheesecakes and custards, and fields, the favourite Sunday resort of rural-minded citizens.
---London, Past and Present. H.B. Wheatley, 1891.

San Diego Sarah  •  Link

The ’old house’ was an Inn named the Kings Head. There has been a pub which includes entertainment on this site since the 1500s. It was probably called The Kings Head because Henry VIII would stop in for a pint on his way to see his one of his many mistress.

The current building dates from 1860, and is known for its music and its theatre in the back which has accommodated West End and Broadway shows, boxing matches, rhythm and blues, rock, soul, jazz and swing and has been the starting ground for many great bands.

To paraphrase a Latin tag: ‘the crowd in the Kings Head is always the same age.’

https://www.kingsheadtheatrepub.c…

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References

Chart showing the number of references in each month of the diary’s entries.

1661

1662

  • Apr

1664

1665

1666

1667

1668

1669