# shops in cardiff you wish still existed



## nightowl (Sep 5, 2005)

the bear (tobacco) shop down from the hayes, the home brewing centre in roath (happy days brewing 5 gallons at a time for 15p a pint), a place called the peace shop (?) in roath which had loads of left wing mags and books and a cafe out back, another tobacco shop in roath that used to have loads of good quality smoking gear


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## editor (Sep 5, 2005)

Sarsaparilla bar in the arcade!


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## RubberBuccaneer (Sep 5, 2005)

Joke shop in Wyndham arcade, remember the two old blokes who ran it?

I tried a root beer the other day, that's sasparilla isnt it.


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## dynamicbaddog (Sep 5, 2005)

nightowl said:
			
		

> a place called the peace shop (?) in roath which had loads of left wing mags and books and a cafe out back, another tobacco shop in roath that used to have loads of good quality smoking gear



Awww shame to hear the Peace Shop no longer exists   When did that close?


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## Lucky JACKSON (Sep 5, 2005)

the bear and tobacco shop just relocated, picked up some premium cigars for a friend's stag-do earlier this summer

Chapter and Verse (Radical Bookshop)


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## nightowl (Sep 5, 2005)

dynamicbaddog said:
			
		

> Awww shame to hear the Peace Shop no longer exists   When did that close?



donkeys years ago i think. used to go there in early 90s. unless it's moved of course. used to be somewhere in one of the side roads in the vicinity of the city road/albany road junction if memory serves me correct


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## 1927 (Sep 5, 2005)

nightowl said:
			
		

> the bear (tobacco) shop down from the hayes, the home brewing centre in roath (happy days brewing 5 gallons at a time for 15p a pint), a place called the peace shop (?) in roath which had loads of left wing mags and books and a cafe out back, another tobacco shop in roath that used to have loads of good quality smoking gear



When I were a lad the bear baccy shop was on the corner of St.Mary St and Wood Street in the place that was Coffee Republic,cant remember what it is now but it was next door to the Prince of Wales!


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## nightowl (Sep 5, 2005)

1927 said:
			
		

> When I were a lad the bear baccy shop was on the corner of St.Mary St and Wood Street in the place that was Coffee Republic,cant remember what it is now but it was next door to the Prince of Wales!



when i was there it was just down from spillers records. think its a restaurant now or something


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## phildwyer (Sep 5, 2005)

Don't Spillers claim to be the oldest record shop in the world?


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## King Biscuit Time (Sep 5, 2005)

They do indeed.

And the shop by the PoW is a bookies now.


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## phildwyer (Sep 5, 2005)

I wonder if its true?  None of the shops in the market have changed since 1902 or something.


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## zog (Sep 5, 2005)

miss the fishmongers in canton most. shite choice of fish in the supermarkets.


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## lunatrick (Sep 5, 2005)

editor said:
			
		

> Sarsaparilla bar in the arcade!



god thats going back a bit - I remember being taken there by my grandad as a kid in the early seventies......quality!


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## Brockway (Sep 5, 2005)

The shop that sold trusses in Caroline Street. And had one on display in the window.

"What's a truss mam?"
"Hurry up, or we'll miss the bus..."

Blimey, it's all coming back.


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## Brockway (Sep 5, 2005)

The Army and Navy shop before it was in Caroline Street (it was somewhere near the Golden Cross pub - but can't remember the name of the street). They sold borstal jackets - essential wear for burgeoning punks.

I don't suppose anyone can remember the Zebra lounge in Tito's can they?


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## RubberBuccaneer (Sep 5, 2005)

Brockway said:
			
		

> The Army and Navy shop before it was in Caroline Street (it was somewhere near the Golden Cross pub - but can't remember the name of the street). They sold borstal jackets - essential wear for burgeoning punks.
> 
> I don't suppose anyone can remember the Zebra lounge in Tito's can they?



Mill Lane


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## Brockway (Sep 5, 2005)

I can't remember what Mill Lane looked like before they built that 'orrible hotel. If it was Mill Lane it would have been on the hotel side of the road. Anyway it was situated next to a shop that sold fishing equipment.

Talking of Mill Lane - the Costa Rica Coffee House! Delicious aroma.

Two other things I currently can't remember: the name of that shop upstairs in the market that sold two-tone clothes and catered for ska-types.

And the name of that gay pub in the Oxford arcade that had a such terrible reputation that venturing into the arcade, even in daylight hours, was out of the question.


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## roger rosewall (Sep 6, 2005)

The Peace Shop has closed? Hurrah some good news!

Dunno about shops but I do miss the canal. If we could get it out back we could wash all the scum out of Cardiff like.


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## RubberBuccaneer (Sep 6, 2005)

I think Mill Lane ( correct me ) ran opposite Toys r us towards the Golden, where the Mrriott is now was a fruit and veg market.

Non Doctor and a vibrator in the window.


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## jannerboyuk (Sep 6, 2005)

That rather nice bookshop on salisbury road has just closed down which is a shame. It had a nice collection of cds and records as well some nice obscure books. They used to have a nice cat as well.
There is work going on in there at the moment but no clue to what is replacing the bookshop.


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## King Biscuit Time (Sep 6, 2005)

The day that shop closed down my mate phoned me to tell me they were giving away their stock.

I dunno if they took the good stuff out first, but he walked out with a couple of huge bagfulls.


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## pigtails (Sep 6, 2005)

I loved that shop.   

When I was an ickle girl I loved siop dance on welfield rd - they sold really good scratch 'n' sniff stickers!
I was very girly when I was younger!!


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## nightowl (Sep 6, 2005)

there was a greasy caf in albany road (think the name was some historic date) that used to have welsh menus and welsh speaking staff. loads of learners used to go in there trying to order their brekkie in welsh.


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## pyejammies (Aug 10, 2013)

I loved the Sarsaparilla Shop.  It was owned by a Mr Smith who didn't pass on the recipe when he retired so you'll never find sarsaparilla like it now.  I loved the decor in that shop.  All the wonderful mirrors and the Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe which opened up if you were lucky.


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## pyejammies (Aug 13, 2013)

The donut shop in Queen Street which was, I believe, near the Kardoma.  I used to love to watch the ring donuts being cooked in the window.  There's nothing like a freshly cooked ring donut.


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## la ressistance (Aug 14, 2013)

Early learning centre. I used to love the train track they had. Wish I could still play with it.


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## UncleRoly (Oct 29, 2020)

Brockway said:


> I can't remember what Mill Lane looked like before they built that 'orrible hotel. If it was Mill Lane it would have been on the hotel side of the road. Anyway it was situated next to a shop that sold fishing equipment.
> 
> Talking of Mill Lane - the Costa Rica Coffee House! Delicious aroma.
> 
> ...



The other side of Mill Lane was the open air market and also hosted the New Moon Club up a looong flight of stairs. The glass collector was deaf so would put his head in the bass bins and the floor was so bowed that the pee from the gents would flow out ward. Whatever night you went, it seemed that "Fire Down Below" was playing. Eventually, it lost its bar licence so had to provide a meal. This consisted of a hairy pasty that would be passed to you as you paid your 50p admission. You'd go "Uch! WTF is this?" and pass it back to the next person as they paid their 50p.

Costa Rica Coffee was a bare floorboarded warehouse just round the corner at the bottom of St. Mary St. more or less next to "Sir's Club" for clones. It moved up to Pontcanna Street but closed in about 2010.

The gay club was "Hunters", which I was about to say did give me the willies, but I ended up going with gay and bi friends and it was a cool mixed place and a bit upmarket from "The Square". "Sir's" was very leather and definitely no place for straights to widen their social circle.


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## UncleRoly (Oct 29, 2020)

On this subject, I remember Paradise Garage was down the bottom of St. Mary Street but where were Mark Taylor's other places: Cairo and Civilisations? Was one the fetish-ish clothing shop just down from (old) Kiwi's in Wyndham Arcade? I do remember Mark selling me a natty pair of La Rocka leather trousers cheap.


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## Supine (Oct 29, 2020)

Raja's Pool Hall on Cathedral Road. Unless it's still there, I have no idea!


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## nogojones (Oct 29, 2020)

Supine said:


> Raja's Pool Hall on Cathedral Road. Unless it's still there, I have no idea!


It's there, but not Rajah's any more. Charlie and his son Ayaz are both dead now, his son in quite tragic and somewhat suspicious circumstances if the rumors are true.

It's gone up in the world slightly and they've now unscrewed the tables and chairs from the floor.

Just in case you ain't seen it....


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## Supine (Oct 29, 2020)

nogojones said:


> It's there, but not Rajah's any more. Charlie and his son Aiaz are both dead now, his son in quite tragic and somewhat suspicious circumstances if the rumors are true.
> 
> It's gone up in the world slightly and they've now unscrewed the tables and chairs from the floor.
> 
> Just in case you ain't seen it....




Nice vid. Just how I remember it


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## 1927 (Oct 30, 2020)

Brockway said:


> Two other things I currently can't remember: the name of that shop upstairs in the market that sold two-tone clothes and catered for ska-types.


Alfred's or Gwynn's. They also had a shop outside the market that is now O'neill's I think. Cant remember which way round the names were!


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## davesgcr (Oct 30, 2020)

The Ian Allan Bookshop in one of the arcades - closed a few years now , in fact the whole Ian Allan "empire" is extinct with Waterloo just going. The best of the genre , spacious and smart and a good concentration of Welsh railway and industry stuff. Much missed.


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## 1927 (Oct 30, 2020)

davesgcr said:


> The Ian Allan Bookshop in one of the arcades - closed a few years now , in fact the whole Ian Allan "empire" is extinct with Waterloo just going. The best of the genre , spacious and smart and a good concentration of Welsh railway and industry stuff. Much missed.


Brilliant shop. Morgan Arcade I think.


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## davesgcr (Oct 30, 2020)

1927 said:


> Brilliant shop. Morgan Arcade I think.



That sounds right - the odd work meeting in Cardiff was a double joy for being able to call in there , and stock up with the odd Clarks pie or two from the market. The latter must have taken a hit this year.


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## Infidel Castro (Nov 3, 2020)

The shop I miss most is Encounter Games in High St Arcade. As a young fantasy hobbyist that place was a wet dream.


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## ddraig (Nov 3, 2020)

1927 said:


> Brilliant shop. Morgan Arcade I think.


Where Spillers is now I think


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## editor (Nov 3, 2020)

Buffalo Records.


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## nogojones (Nov 3, 2020)

Catapult Records was always the best in town. Miss them old Lazyhouse parties


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## 1927 (Nov 3, 2020)

editor said:


> Buffalo Records.


And Buffalo Jeans downstairs!


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## 1927 (Nov 3, 2020)

ddraig said:


> Where Spillers is now I think


Have Spillers moved again?


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## ddraig (Nov 3, 2020)

1927 said:


> Have Spillers moved again?


Depends where you last knew it to be! 27 Morgan Arcade now, in the middle next to the Plan cafe


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## 1927 (Nov 3, 2020)

ddraig said:


> Depends where you last knew it to be! 27 Morgan Arcade now, in the middle next to the Plan cafe


Sorry it was Royal Arcade where the bookshop was, opposite the camera shop.


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## _Russ_ (Oct 24, 2021)

Bud Morgan's


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## Gromit (Oct 24, 2021)

_Russ_ said:


> Bud Morgan's


The hobby shop?
The place I used to buy RC cars and parts if it is what I'm thinking.


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