Association of Jewish Refugees (AJR) Honors The Cosmo in London

The Association of Jewish Refugees (AJR) was delighted to unveil a special commemorative plaque in memory of The Cosmo restaurant, a famous meeting place for Jewish émigrés from Nazi oppression.

The Cosmo plaque was unveiled on Tuesday 19 November at its former site on the Finchley Road, Swiss Cottage, London NW3.

The Cosmo was a popular meeting place for many of the German and Austrian Jewish refugees who settled in the Swiss Cottage / Belsize Square area of North West London. As well as gathering there to be in each other’s company and discuss current affairs (and no doubt compare life in London to Berlin and Vienna), the émigrés enjoyed heimische continental cuisine.

Speaking ahead of the unveiling, Frank Harding, a Trustee of the AJR, said: “It gives us great pleasure to commemorate The Cosmo restaurant and, as a result, its owners for the comfort and friendships it created for the many immigrants to North West London over many years.”

Through its plaque scheme, the AJR is establishing permanent memorials to some of the most prominent Jewish émigrés who fled Nazi oppression and found refuge in Britain as well as places and buildings with a strong connection to the Jewish refugees. The first AJR plaque, to honor the life of Sir Hans Krebs, was unveiled at the Department of Biochemistry in Oxford in May 2013 and the second, unveiled in October 2013, commemorates the life of the neurologist and founder of the Paralympics, Sir Ludwig Guttmann.