Once upon a time, there wasn’t much good coffee around Victoria station, particularly in the direction of Westminster, where the Flat Cap Coffee Barrow stood alone for many years. Then came Iris & June and Rag & Bone Coffee, and things started looking up. More recently, the Nova development brought Timmy Green, Crosstown Doughnuts, Sourced Market and Notes. Then, last year, another crop of newcomers arrived right next to the station, including Press Coffee, Hermanos and the subject of today’s Coffee Spot, Coffee Addict.

There’s not a great deal to Coffee Addict, with just enough room for a couple of tables outside and not much more inside. The main draw is the coffee, from old friends The Roasting Party, the Drake blend on espresso, backed up by batch brew, an impressive breakfast/brunch menu, plus cakes and pastries.

You can read more of my thoughts after the gallery.

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Coffee Addict opened at the top end of Vauxhall Bridge Road in May 2019, just around the corner from Victoria Station, opposite the Apollo Victoria Theatre. It’s run by Nina and Marco, a young couple who used to have a restaurant near Liverpool Street Station. Nina is responsible for the flower decorations that make Coffee Addict so visually appealing, and has already given it one makeover since opening, shifting the colour scheme from blue to pink.

The site has a considerable heritage, by the way, since brothers Sergio and Bruno Costa opened the first Costa Coffee here in 1978. More recently, it operated as the Costa Coffee Boutique before closing in 2016, so it’s nice to see coffee returning to the site!

Coffee Addict is pretty small, with a glass door on the left and the folding window on the right. Three small, round, two-person tables stand outside, sheltered under a large, stripped awning, useful for keeping off the rain and/or afternoon sun. Meanwhile, waist-high pink barriers separate the tables from people passing on the pavement.

There’s not much more in the way of seating inside, just two pairs of armchairs, each with a coffee table in the middle, and a three-person bar along the left-hand wall. The counter is recessed at the back, leaving effectively a cube-shaped space, with a lovely, high ceiling and an amazing, central light-fitting. The floral decoration continues with both left- and right-hand walls given over to floor-to-ceiling flowers.

Given its size, there’s a surprising amount to Coffee Addict, starting with a breakfast/brunch menu, featuring favourites such as peanut butter and banana toast, avocado on sourdough toast, fluffy pancakes and an amazing range of filled bagels. This is backed up by a selection of cakes and pastries displayed on the right-hand side of the counter.

A small retail selection sits on the back wall behind the counter, featuring blends and single-origins from The Roasting Party.

Talking of which, the Drake blend makes an appearance on an expansive espresso-based menu, with a daily batch-brew option through the Moccamaster using whatever single-origin takes the barista’s fancy that morning.

On my first visit in 2019, I had a cortado, the Drake blend, as usual, going superbly well in milk, producing a sweet, smooth coffee. I paired this with a generous slice of the Pear and Almond cake. This too was excellent, a lovely, crumbly cake with a subtle, almond flavour.

On my return last week, I had another cortado, with pretty much the same result, only this time I was there for lunch. I resisted the urge to order the pancakes, instead selecting an avocado, halloumi, hummus and tomato bagel, my poor bagel positively exploding from the overstuffed filling. And very tasty it was too!

December 2019: Coffee Addict has won the 2019 Coffee Spot with the Best Lighting Award.

August 2020:  this is an updated version of the original post which was published in August 2019. You can see what has changed in my Coffee Spot Update.

Liked this? Then don’t forget to check out the Coffee Spot Guide to London for more great Coffee Spots.

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