Comments on: Leo Giordani, K C Continental Stores

By: Adam Oakley

Adam Oakley — Tue, 10 Nov 2020 13:16:14 +0000

Leo’s funeral was held today at Our Lady of Muswell Church. He was 87. I remember him fondly, as I’m sure many of the other customers above do. He was one of a kind. RIP.

By: Julian Berg

Julian Berg — Thu, 03 Aug 2017 11:52:29 +0000

I shopped here from the age of 18 having been brought here by an Italian friend. Indeed, the first bottle of bear I bought from a shop, not a pub was from here and I drank it along the canal to Camden Lock. When ever I was in the area I would visit and buy a pound of super strong cheese from an enormous round cut with a huge knife..
Later I worked in the area and would frequently shop there for unusual pastas, cheeses, salamis The shop owner whom I now know to be Leo would make me the most exquisite and huge ciabatta sandwiches of cheese ham and tomato. I would always buy my Pandoro and Panettoni there around Christmas time. and we would always chat about how each others vegetables were growing that year. He bought his house in a development I looked at, but I bought elsewhere. It would have been nice if I had bought in Muswell hill near to Leo.
Very gentle, very quiet, very proud
I hope his tomatoes are doing well this year.

By: Robert

Robert — Thu, 22 Oct 2015 18:15:58 +0000

My late father used to shop at “Leo’s” at least once a week – usually on a Saturday morning – from not long after Leo’s shop opened until he retired about 15 years ago and then only ventured there occasionally, but he got to know Leo well over the many years. The long-established Italian community in the Clerkenwell/King’s Cross area was already in significant decline in the 1990s as cafes and restaurants closed when descendants no longer wished to continue family businesses that were probably no longer financially viable. Now it has virtually disappeared completely. Leo’s shop was one of the last landmarks.

Leo always had a friendly word for all his customers and above all the quality of the food was always superb.

I was last in the area before Xmas 2014 and popped in to buy a few things to take up north with me. Having returned to King’s Cross for the first time since a couple of weeks ago I was very sad to that Leo had left. A temporary pop-up gallery occupied the premises.

You are and will be much missed Leo – thank you. I hope you have a happy retirement.

By: michael bundy

michael bundy — Sun, 30 Aug 2015 21:15:34 +0000

I went to Continental Stores and found it empty. It looks like Sig. Leo has finally retired. He was such a lovely man, a real gentleman, and I am so sorry to see the shop empty after so many years. Molto Grazie, Signor Leo. Buon riposo.

By: Laura Weller

Laura Weller — Thu, 30 Apr 2015 09:39:04 +0000

My Grandfather used to live in the flats just round the corner, every time we would visit, he would make us a fantastic dinner of Tomatoes and Italian Sausage, he would cook it for hours on a slow heat. Just recently my 2nd cousin had put on Facebook asking us if we new what the sausage was called, it’s amazing how the memories came flooding back from that one dish. My husband googled to see if the shop was still and you are still running. So, hopefully, weather permitting, we are going to take a trip down memory lane and come and get some xx

By: Amanda

Amanda — Sun, 12 Apr 2015 21:05:25 +0000

So I was in and heard that he is finally shutting up shop at the end of this month April 2015.
So please go in and buy some stuff.

By: Rosalind Nowell-Smith

Rosalind Nowell-Smith — Tue, 31 Mar 2015 16:59:30 +0000

Lovely article about a lovely man and his shop. I was somewhat alarmed for its (and his) welfare, though, when I visited during a downpour. Rainwater fell through gaps into the shop, and buckets had to be produced. If Camden is the landlord it doesn’t seem to be doing much of a job keeping it in good repair. Surely something could be done to help?

By: Paolo

Paolo — Sat, 28 Mar 2015 21:29:05 +0000

Good quality food honest prices!

By: nick couldry

nick couldry — Wed, 25 Mar 2015 14:53:31 +0000

We discovered KCS 8 years ago and we name our pasta sauce after it (‘KC sauce’) because you cannot get better sausages for pasta. We will be very said when Leonardo retires: his is our favourite shop in London and there will never be another like it!

By: Justin

Justin — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 20:09:17 +0000

Wonderful, wonderful shop. London will be a poorer place if it were ever to close. “I get in here at nine each morning and I close at six because I’m not young anymore.” says everything. What a lesson to my younger office colleagues who get in at 9.15 and leave at 4.30 …