Pitch, Fulham Broadway

A flat white from Pitch in Fulham Broadway in my Therma Cup, a double-walled, thermally-insulated china cup which I take with me on my travels.Not long ago, there wasn’t much speciality coffee around Fulham, just the long-standing Chairs and Coffee (shamefully, I’ve still not been!). However, it’s a rapidly-changing scene, which now includes the latest arrival, Pitch, which opened last week inside Fulham Broadway shopping centre. Pitch made a name for itself when it cut the back off a Cadillac and turned it into an espresso bar in Westfield shopping centre out in Stratford.

Now it’s got a slightly more conventional pitch right in the middle of the main drag at Fulham Broadway, serving Allpress coffee from an espresso-based menu, with decaf on a second grinder. There’s also hot chocolate, tea, sandwiches and an impressive range of cakes. It doesn’t stop there: Pitch has an astonishing seven types of milk-substitute! For what is essentially a takeaway place, there’s also seating at the counter (including power!), which is a nice touch.

Having started life in Westfield, which is about as mainstream as it comes, Pitch isn’t afraid of a little competition from the chains, and so it is at Fulham Broadway. Pitch has set up directly opposite Starbucks and there’s a Pret one door down. Who says speciality coffee can’t compete with the big boys?

December 2019: I believe that the Pitch Coffee location in Fulham Broadway is now permanently closed.

You can read more of my thoughts after the gallery.

  • Pitch, in Fulham Broadway Station, directly ahead of you on your way in.
  • Unusally for what is effectively a takeaway place, there's seating down the right-hand side.
  • The head-on view of Pitch.
  • Pitch, by the way, is not afraid of the competition: it'sright next to Starbucks...
  • ... and there's a Pret one door further down. Given the choice, I know where I'd rather be.
  • The seating is an excellent touch, by the way. Comfortable stools as well!
  • There are coat-hooks under the counter and there's even power!
  • Obligatory light-fitting shot.
  • The left-hand side is where Pitch keeps all its goodies. I was too late for the sandwiches...
  • ... but the cales and pastries (the latter from Halva) were out in force.
  • There are loads of gluten-free goodies from the local(ish) Pearl & Groove.
  • More goodies.
  • It's not just sweet things. There's granola for breakfast & an astonishing seven milk substitutes.
  • There's a variety of juice for sale as well.
  • Talking of drinks, here's the menu. Pretty comprehensive!
  • The business end of Pitch. The La Marzocco is temporary: there's a custom Linea PB on order!
  • There's coffee from Allpress, hot chocolate from Mork in Melbourne & Prana Chai from India.
  • I don't know a lot about Chai, but this comes with bits that you have to strain out.
  • I naturally had coffee: a flat white, while to the right, is Jamie from Bean There At's piccolo.
  • It's takeaway cups only at Pitch, so it's a good job I brought my Therma Cup with me.
  • I also had this wonderful gluten-free salted caramel mini-loaf, a gift from Pitch.
Pitch, in Fulham Broadway Station, directly ahead of you on your way in.1 Unusally for what is effectively a takeaway place, there's seating down the right-hand side.2 The head-on view of Pitch.3 Pitch, by the way, is not afraid of the competition: it'sright next to Starbucks...4 ... and there's a Pret one door further down. Given the choice, I know where I'd rather be.5 The seating is an excellent touch, by the way. Comfortable stools as well!6 There are coat-hooks under the counter and there's even power!7 Obligatory light-fitting shot.8 The left-hand side is where Pitch keeps all its goodies. I was too late for the sandwiches...9 ... but the cales and pastries (the latter from Halva) were out in force.10 There are loads of gluten-free goodies from the local(ish) Pearl & Groove.11 More goodies.12 It's not just sweet things. There's granola for breakfast & an astonishing seven milk substitutes.13 There's a variety of juice for sale as well.14 Talking of drinks, here's the menu. Pretty comprehensive!15 The business end of Pitch. The La Marzocco is temporary: there's a custom Linea PB on order!16 There's coffee from Allpress, hot chocolate from Mork in Melbourne & Prana Chai from India.17 I don't know a lot about Chai, but this comes with bits that you have to strain out.18 I naturally had coffee: a flat white, while to the right, is Jamie from Bean There At's piccolo.19 It's takeaway cups only at Pitch, so it's a good job I brought my Therma Cup with me.20 I also had this wonderful gluten-free salted caramel mini-loaf, a gift from Pitch.21
Javascript Sliders by WOWSlider.com v4.6

I became aware of Pitch’s latest venture while visiting Espresso by K2 earlier that morning, where the owner, Rick, advised me to try it out. So, on my way back from Muni Coffee Co., I made a spur-of-the-moment decision to call in, accompanied by Jamie from Bean There At, who bought my coffee for me (thanks, Jamie).

Fulham Broadway station has a shiny, new shopping centre built above it, with the station entrance at the back, down a long corridor lined with the usual high street names. And now Pitch, which occupies a U-shaped counter in the middle of the corridor, tucked away under the stairs/escalators to the upper level. The bottom of the U faces the entrance, espresso machine to the fore, flanked by a pair of grinders. You can order here, or around to the left, where the long side of the counter is lined with all sorts of goodies, including granola for breakfast, cakes , more cakes, pastries and cakes, and, if you arrive before six o’clock on a Saturday evening, an impressive array of sandwiches.

In contrast, the other side of the counter is free of any clutter. You’ll find four bar stools in an area obviously designed for sitting at. Having spent quite a while there, chatting first with manager, Alex, then with owners, Petar and Faye, I can attest to the comfort of the stools.  There’s plenty of under-counter leg room, plus hooks for coats, etc. Unusually, these are joined by power outlets, complete with USB sockets, so you can recharge your phone as well as your laptop.

So, to the coffee. Pitch uses the Redchurch Blend from Allpress, so there were no surprises there. I had an excellent flat white (takeaway cups only, so bring your own; fortunately I was carrying my Therma Cup), while Jamie was very pleased with his piccolo. Pitch, by the way, is dedicated if nothing else, and could easily have the tag-line “Speciality Everything”. There’s a Linea PB on order from La Marzocco and the latest Victoria Arduino Mythos 1 grinder. The milk’s from Estate Dairy (think the milk-equivalent of single-origin coffee) and, if you’re dairy-free, there are seven different alternatives. There’s Chai from India, Matcha Tea from Japan, and hot chocolate all the way from Melbourne. All the cakes, including a large range of gluten-free ones, are from local suppliers, plus there are plans for salads, pasta, smoothies and juices.

I tried the gluten-free salted caramel mini-loaf from Notting Hill’s Pearl & Groove, which was amazing. The cake was really moist, with a clear caramel taste. Normally I’m not a fan of salted caramel since I often find it far too salty, but this was just right!

FULHAM BROADWAY • FULHAM ROAD • LONDON • SW6 1BW
www.pitch.coffee +44 (0) 7885 385008
Monday 06:00 – 20:00 Roaster Allpress (espresso only)
Tuesday 06:00 – 20:00 Seating Counter
Wednesday 06:00 – 20:00 Food Granola, Lunch, Cake
Thursday 06:00 – 20:00 Service Counter
Friday 06:00 – 20:00 Payment Cards + Cash
Saturday 06:00 – 20:00 Wifi Free (with login)
Sunday 06:00 – 20:00 Power Yes
Chain Local Visits 11th June 2016

If you liked this post, please let me know by clicking the “Like” button. If you have a WordPress account and you don’t mind everyone knowing that you liked this post, you can use the “Like this” button right at the bottom instead. [bawlu_buttons]
Don’t forget that you can share this post with your friends using the buttons below.

1 thought on “Pitch, Fulham Broadway

Please let me know what you think. Guidelines for comments are in the "Posts" drop-down menu.