Climpson and Sons Café

The front of the Climpson and Sons Café, with the recessed door offset to the right and with wooden benches on the pavement in front of the windows.Located between Cambridge Heath and London Fields stations on the suburban line out of Liverpool Street, and just a stone’s through from the Climpson and Sons roastery (at Climpson’s Arch), the Climpson and Sons Café on Broadway Market is a lovely little spot. The most sensible approach is from London Fields Station, from where you can head directly across the open, green space that is London Fields, heading south until you hit Broadway Market, a delightful street of local shops, cafes and restaurants, several of which spill out onto the pavements. Trust me, this is a much more picturesque approach than wandering the streets from Cambridge Heath…

Coming from London Fields, you’ll find Climpson and Sons a few doors down on the right. It’s not a huge spot, roughly square in layout, with the counter taking up the back third of the store, the front two-thirds given over to seating. Unsurprisingly serving Climpson and Sons beans on espresso and filter, there’s also a comprehensive range of beans for sale. A decent cake selection is joined by breakfast and lunch menus until three o’clock. Impressively, given how busy it is, Climpson and Sons still manages to serve food at the weekends.

Continue reading

Terrone & Co, plus the Irrepressible Edy Piro

Edy Piro making a Shakerato at the Village Green Market.Sometimes a coffee shop/company becomes inalienably associated with one individual; for example Newcastle’s Flat Caps Coffee is always, in my head, associated with founder, Joe Meagher. So it is with Terrone & Co and the irrepressible Edy Piro. Although Edy wears many hats (DJ, web-designer and ex-architect rub shoulders with roaster/distributor and barista), if you say “Terrone”, I’ll immediately think of Edy.

This Saturday Supplement was going to be about Terrone’s stall in The Village Green Market. Sadly, since my visit last month, Edy’s decided to rationalise the number of pop-ups that Terrone runs and the stall at The Village Green Market is no more… The Village Green and the Market, however, are still going strong, well worth a visit in their own right.

Instead, this is going to be a little feature on Edy and Terrone, plus a short tour of the Market, which you’ll find on the opposite side of the railway line from Hackney Downs in north east London. Don’t worry though; if you want some fine Terrone coffee, Edy will happily sell you some and there’s still Terrone’s Saturday stall at Netil Market, plus the exciting new café coming to Kingly Court in early August.

Continue reading

Wood Street Coffee

Wood Street Coffee logo, white writing on a black circle, "Wood St" above the line, "Coffee below it.The first and perhaps most difficult task I had was finding Wood Street Coffee. Tucked away in Walthamstow, in north-east London, this little gem of a place is well worth finding, and, thanks to Google Maps pulling its finger out, it’s now a relatively easy task.

As the name suggests, Wood Street Coffee has its origins in Wood Street. Google Maps used to helpfully place it right there in Wood Street Market, just off Wood Street. All was well and good until I actually got there, when I discovered that the market is closed. A boarded-up-don’t-come-in-here kind of closed. That’s when I realised that Google Maps, bless it, had Wood Street Coffee in its original location, although cunningly, with the correct address (39 Orford Road) listed, which is why I didn’t discover the error until I got there. Fortunately Google Maps now has it in the correct location!

A brisk, 20 minute walk later and I found Wood Street Coffee, tucked inside a shared shop on a lovely stretch of Orford Road. With coffee from Climpson and Sons and some splendid home-made cakes, Wood Street Coffee more than made up for the difficulty I had in finding it. Add to that a friendly welcome and quirky interior and you’ve got a winner on your hands!

December 2014: Whatever you do, don’t go to Orford Road! Wood Street Coffee has moved again, this time to a permanent home! It’s still in Walthamstow, but now at Blackhorse Workshop, 1–2 Sutherland Road Path, E17 6BX. You can see what I made of it when I visited in July 2019.

Continue reading

White Mulberries

White Mulberries in St Katherine DockWhite Mulberries is one of those hidden gems of the London Coffee Scene that you really need to know about if you’re going to find it. Tucked away in the lovely St Katherine Docks, opposite the lock with the Thames, it’s not the sort of place you’d casually walk past. However, once you’ve found it, chances are you wouldn’t want to go anywhere else, even though the area is awash with cafes (I walked past five on my way to White Mulberries).

Run by husband and wife team Peyman and Rana, I was immediately struck by the friendly, welcoming atmosphere. It helps that the coffee, from London roasters, Allpress and Nude Espresso, is very good, while the cakes are excellent, but what makes White Mulberries stand out from the crowd is the warm welcome you get. It’s not a huge space and there’s not that much in the way of seating, but it’s the sort of place that makes you want to come back time after time.

April 2014: White Mulberries won “London’s Best Coffee Shop” in the inaugural London Coffee Stops Awards!

Continue reading

Brick Lane Coffee

I was going to start by describing Brick Lane Coffee as “funky”. Or maybe “quirky”. Or something like that. But that’s lazy and unhelpful shorthand. Brick Lane Coffee is very much its own place. My love-hate relationship with it started with an argument over misplaced apostrophes on Twitter and went up/downhill from there.

I love the attitude; I love the décor and the feel of the place. I even love the loud music, which is rare. So that’s the love part. But, but, my espresso was served in a paper cup! A paper cup, I tell you. Hang on a second while I go bash my head against a wall… Okay, that’s better. Oh wait, the room’s started spinning. I’d better sit down.

Espresso in a paper cup? Noooooooo. And it’s good espresso too, the sort that deserves a proper cup. On the plus side, I was told that I could have a discount if I brought my own cup next time. I’ll let you know how that goes…

August 2016: Brick Lane Coffee has closed its doors for the last time…

Continue reading