Pallion: The place to be for tripe, trotters and 1970s pastries
Tripe and trotters, shampoos and sets, and pastries to leave your mouth watering.
They were all on offer in the shops of Pallion in Sunderland 50 years ago.
Goderick’s for sea food
So how about a trip down Memory Lane to see how many of these favourites you remember.
If it was fresh food you were after, you were spoilt for choice in Pallion in 1971.
Frank Goderick in St Luke’s Terrace was the place to go to for seafood and fresh fish and had the logo ‘If it’s quality you want, come to Frank Goderick’.
High class butchers were another plus in Pallion. There was RR Brown which delivered daily. It was in St Luke’s Terrace and Hylton Road.
‘String of pork butchers shops in Pallion Road’
Our report at the time said: “Tripe and trotters have a place on the tables of most customers who frequent the string of pork butchers shops in Pallion Road, Sunderland.
“Their popularity lies undoubtedly in the fact that they are family butchers. Their businesses are family concerns and their customers known to them personally.
“Most do their own cooking of meat and make black puddings to their own recipe.”
Pastries and cakes at Walkers
But fresh meat was only one product which was made to a high standard at Pallion.
If you had a sweet tooth, how about Walkers where delicious pastries and cakes were made daily.
The Echo reporter at the time clearly felt that Pallion was a bastion for traditional values of what a shopping experience should be.
They said: “While Pallion Road is one of the busiest shopping centres outside of the town centre, it is also one of the friendliest.
That personal touch in Pallion’s shops
“There is that personal touch that is fast disappearing under a barrage of high-powered salesmanship.”
There was praise for the “selection of grocery and bakers shops and a string of cut-price food stores,” said the Echo reporter at the time.
Outside of the food section, there was Dixon’s the newsagent and tobacconist, which was so much more besides. You could get stationery, musical wedding and anniversary cards, and a big choice of Christmas cards.
“The boon of living near to a shopping area like Pallion,” said the Echo, “means that the customer can do all her shopping in a self-contained area at low price.
“With hardware shops and small drapery businesses stocking reasonably priced children’s wear, many shoppers prefer to take their trade to people they know and whose stock they trust.”
Luxdon’s for your laundry needs
You could keep all your laundry in tip-top condition because Luxdon’s was in Pallion Road.
If it was carpets you were after, Newmill was ideal and was selling broadloom at £2 per square yard with all leading brands available.
Once you’d got the carpets for your house, you would need the furniture to go on top of it.
Three-piece suites, kitchen sets and coffee tables were all available at Home Design.
Other shops in the area included Maxwells where you could get all sorts of glass doors, or Dhobi Appliances at St Luke’s Cross where you could get repairs and services for all sorts of washing machines and vacuum cleaners.
Tell us about the Pallion shops you loved in the past, by emailing [email protected]