Donna’s Place has a new trailer on Putney Embankment, a rose-gold-toned mirror-finish unit wrapped in lights that reminds Donna of a cinema.
The food trailer – and Donna herself – have been a riverside fixture for decades, and the new trailer stands outside the Star and Garter, a short walk from the bridge. “I’m thrilled with it,” she told Putney.news. She loves the colour in particular. “If it had been silver, I wouldn’t have had it.”
The embankment was wonderfully busy at the weekend. A wedding party had hired a double-decker bus and were at London Rowing Club, using its new balcony. Rowers were out on the water, the boathouses were open, and cyclists packed The Clubhouse. People strolled along the riverside, the London Plein Air Painters, who meet once a month, were out in force, runners were finishing a race at Winchester House, and punters were enjoying the weather at the Duke’s Head. Through all of it stood Donna and her shiny new trailer.
When the crowds thinned, she was relieved to have a bit of a rest.
For regulars, the obvious question is what happened to the old unit, which resembled a Swiss chalet. It has been sold, and Donna is glad to see it go. “It was getting old. There was always something going wrong,” she told us. Plus, because it didn’t meet the green road rules it cost £45 every she brought it into Putney. “So now we haven’t got that, and hopefully this will save us money.”
The replacement came from China, shipped “all the way, all around the world”, Donna said. It took seven months to arrive, which she says is still quicker than buying one in the UK, and it was cheaper.
The trailer is a big step up on the chalet, and it has more room. The counters slide out once she is inside, which gives space to move around, especially if there are two or more people inside, and there are fridges all along the back. “This is all push out,” she demonstrates. The new tank means she no longer has to refill halfway through the day. “I only have to fill up once,” she said. She also says the trailer does not need to be plugged in.
It has not been entirely smooth. One of the grills did not work at first, so they have had to put a grill on top while it is fixed.
The look was her choice. Donna had matching signs designed so that everything on the pitch looks the same. “I want it all uniformity,” she said. And the finish had to be right.
Then she saw it finished. “And I looked at this and I thought cinema.”
It is easy to see why. Two fold-out awnings are lined with rows of small warm bulbs, a strip of light runs along each side, and Donna’s Place is spelled out in lit letters on the roof (she has a second sign saying just “Coffee” with a loveheart as the ‘o’ for when she needs to sell it). The curved body reflects the trees along the embankment, and a skirt of autumn leaves runs along the base. Hollywood comes to Putney, in the shape of a coffee stall.
Card and contactless are taken, though a sign on the counter says cash is preferred. New menu items are planned. “Have to be one thing at a time,” Donna said.
