Party on Pavilion

Some lovely latte art in an equally lovely piccolo made with the Party Blend at Party on Pavilion, London and served in a glass on a black saucer.From Australia to Sloan Square via Winchester: Party on Pavilion is the first (for now) coffee shop of Winchester-based Aussie imports, The Roasting Party. It opened in August last year and I popped along during its second week with a promise that I would return the following month after a trip to Chicago. Seven months later and slightly shame-faced, I finally made my return on a sunny Friday afternoon after a hectic travel schedule that had seen me return to Chicago and China at the end of last year with two trips to the USA this year.

From the street, Party on Pavilion looks to be a tiny spot, just a counter and a bench, but don’t let that put you off. There’s a staircase off to the right which seems almost an afterthought. This leads to the Party’s best feature, a sunny loft space which runs the full length of the building, where there’s plenty of seating.

When it comes to the coffee, the Roasting Party’s Drake Blend is on espresso, with the Party Blend reserved for milk-based drinks. There’s also a selection of two or three single-origins which change every few weeks, available through either Chemex or Aeropress.

May 2020: Party on Pavilion has reopened for takeaway service using the downstairs counter. There are no plans to reopen the upstairs, but Pavilion Street is now pedestrianised (in response to COVID-19), providing much needed outdoor seating which you are free to use. You can see what I made of the new-look Party on Pavilion when I visited in August.

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Coffee Lab, Stockbridge

The awesome latte art in my flat white at Coffee Lab, Stockbridge.Stockbridge, between Winchester and Salisbury on the A30, is, in many ways, a stereotypical English country town. The long, broad, straight High Street which runs through the centre of town is lined with quaint cottages, independent shops, country pubs and old-fashioned tea rooms. And a speciality coffee shop. Well, maybe not that stereotypical after all.

Coffee Lab is the rapidly-growing mini-chain, spreading out from its home in Winchester through Hampshire (as far east as Chichester) and Wiltshire (as far west as Gloucester), with a Midlands outpost to the north in Leamington Spa (opening soon). Meanwhile its march southwards has only been stopped by the sea. The Stockbridge branch is towards the Salisbury end of the High Street, above a pizza restaurant with excellent views up and down the High Street.

The coffee, as ever, is from The Roasting Party, with two blends on espresso, the house-blend (Create) and a second (Thrive). If you want filter coffee, there is a choice of two single-origins (a Kenyan Peaberry or a Brazilian during my visit) through V60 or Aeropress, while there’s also loose-leaf tea. If you’re hungry, the Coffee Lab has limited selection of four sandwiches and small selection of cake.


October 2020: the Coffee Lab is down to just three locations, this one and two more in Winchester, while the coffee is now roasted by DT Coffee, set up by Dhan Tamang, one of Coffee Lab’s founders.

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Coffee Lab, Salisbury

The new Coffee Lab logo, taken from the counter in the Salisbury branch.Coffee Lab is the rapidly-growing mini-chain, spreading out from its home in Winchester across Hampshire and into Salisbury, led by head-barista and six-time UK Latte Art Champion, Dhan Tamang. When I visited in November, this was the westernmost outpost of the Coffee Lab empire, although since then the Gloucester branch has opened its doors. Meanwhile, its march southwards has only been stopped by the sea. The status of its eastern and northern borders remain unclear, but I expect news in the near future…

Meanwhile, back to Salisbury, where the Coffee Lab is tucked away on a busy corner on the evocatively-named Blue Boar Row, just to the north of Salisbury’s medieval centre. There’s seating outside on the broad pavement or inside in a modest ground floor space. The coffee, as ever, is from The Roasting Party, with two blends on espresso, the house-blend (Create) and Thrive (Heisenberg). You can also have filter through V60 or Aeropress, with a choice of two single-origins, each of the stores having their own selection.

There’s also a wide selection of tea and soft drinks, while if you’re hungry, there’s a modest selection of sandwiches (which can be toasted) and an excellent range of cakes.


October 2020: The Salisbury Coffee Lab has now closed, while the Coffee Lab as a whole is down to just three locations, two in Winchester and one in Stockbridge.

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Dinner at Timmy Green

The Timmy Green logo from outside Timmy Green on Sir Simon Milton Square near Victoria Station.Timmy Green, the latest addition to the growing Daisy Green/Beany Green collective, opened at the start of the year. It was, from the beginning, a fully-fledged restaurant as well as a rather splendid coffee shop. When I visited and wrote about Timmy Green in March, it was only as a coffee shop. This Saturday Supplement is going to redress the balance and consider Timmy Green as a restaurant.

Layout-wise, Timmy Green is much the same as ever, although there have been a few changes since I was there in the spring, which has made the downstairs feel even more like a restaurant than a coffee shop. The grand piano in the corner has gone to make way for more tables, while the window-bar and high tables to the left of the door have suffered a similar fate.

When it comes to food, Timmy Green serves breakfast, lunch, brunch and dinner, complete with desserts, wine, beer and cocktails. And, of course, Roasting Party coffee. Not that Daisy/Beany is a stranger to food. The original Daisy Green, plus the Paddington and Liverpool Street Beany Greens, have a reputation for innovative brunch menus, but in Timmy Green this has reached its logical conclusion.

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Timmy Green

The Timmy Green logo from outside Timmy Green on Sir Simon Milton Square near Victoria Station.The latest addition to the growing Daisy Green/Beany Green collective is a rather different beast from those which have gone before. Spread over two floors on the corner of the prodigious new Nova development near Victoria Station, Timmy Green takes the strengths of Daisy/Beany and builds on them. The original Daisy Green, plus the Paddington and Liverpool Street Beany Greens, gained a reputation for innovative brunch menus, but Timmy Green goes one better, turning this into a fully-fledged restaurant, serving breakfast, lunch, brunch and dinner, complete with desserts, wine, beer and cocktails. And, of course, Roasting Party coffee.

The bulk of Timmy Green is downstairs, a triangular space providing restaurant-style table seating to the right and, in a tapering section to the left, cocktail tables and window-bars, plus a couple more intimate spaces. Upstairs, the mezzanine shares space with the kitchen as well as housing a few more tables.

There’s a large outdoor seating area in front of Timmy Green, with a narrower strip down the right-hand side. If all you want is coffee, a barrow with a bright yellow La Marzocco serves takeaway from half-an-hour before opening until three in the afternoon from its spot just left of door.

August 2017: I went back to Timmy Green for dinner to discover a few minor layout/seating changes. Don’t forget to check out what I made of the experience.

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Coffee Lab, Winchester

Two flat whites from Coffee Lab, Winchester, seen from front on and from above.The Coffee Lab is a rapidly-growing chain of coffee shops covering, for now, Winchester (where it all started), Salisbury and Chichester. I’ve been told that there are further shops in the pipeline, which is all the more impressive when you consider that the first Coffee Lab opened less than a year ago. Bucking all established Coffee Spot trends (which usually sees me visiting the most recently opened shop in a chain rather than the first), I started at the original Coffee Lab, a lovely little spot in the narrow lanes of Winchester, just west of the Cathedral and south of the High Street. Be careful though, since the Coffee Lab’s second branch is just around the corner on Little Minster Street and Kings Head Yard. It’s literally a minute’s walk away!

The Coffee Lab serves coffee from local roasters, The Roasting Party, with a blend (Einstein) on the main grinder and a guest blend (Heisenberg) on the second grinder. There’s also a decaf from Costa Rica, plus a Kenyan AA Ndeki on filter through the V60. If you don’t fancy coffee, there is tea from the local WAA Teas, while if you’re feeling hungry, there are sandwiches, cakes and pastries.


October 2020: the original Coffee Lab closed some time ago, although there are two more Coffee Labs in Winchester, one around the corner on Little Minster Street and the other just one street further over on The Square. A third Coffee Lab is in Stockbridge, but all the other Coffee Labs have now closed.

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Beany Green, Regent’s Place (Beany Green Euston Update)

A pair of Beany Green deckchairs, blue on the left, pink on the right. Each shows a half-peeled banana with the word "YOUR" above the image, and "NEEDS YOU" underneath.Those folks at Beany Green are at it again! No sooner do I visit/write about a place, than Prue and the team are changing things about! The latest example is the Beany Green at Regent’s Place, or Baby Beany as I think of it, which has undergone something of a facelift/reorganisation since going on the Coffee Spot this time last year.

The offering (healthy and innovative breakfasts, lunches and salads, backed up by Aussie-inspired cakes, all washed down with The Roasting Party espressos/flat whites) hasn’t changed. However, the look-and-feel has. The bench and tables along the left-hand wall has gone, replaced by two far more utilitarian high-tables at right-angles to the wall. Similarly, the counter’s been reorganised, the espresso machine being moved from all the way at the back to right at the front. Fortunately, the most important ingredient of all, the Beany Green goodness, is still available by the bucket-load!

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Brunch at Beany Green, Paddington

Brunch at Beany Green (Liverpool Street) - Shakshouka (Baked Eggs) and Sour Dough ToastThis Saturday Supplement is actually a two-for-the-price-of-one deal: it’s a Coffee Spot Update on what used to be my local, the Beany Green branch at Paddington (aka Sheldon Square, aka Little Venice), plus I take a look at Beany Green’s (relatively) new brunch service (available until 3pm, all-day at weekends).

From the summer of 2013, until the end of 2015, when my contract finished, I worked in Sheldon Square, just around the corner from Paddington Station. When Beany Green opened in early 2014, it immediately became my local, coffee trips from the office forming a vital part of my working day. Although it’s only been seven months since I left, Beany Green has made plenty of changes. There’s been an extensive refurbishment, while the opening hours have been extended into the evenings, when Beany Green morphs into a wine bar. Keen to check it out, I returned to my old haunt last weekend for coffee (Friday) and breakfast (Saturday).

Meanwhile, there have also been changes to the menu. Always known for its food, Beany Green has gone one step further with an impressive brunch menu. I tried this out at the end of March over in the Liverpool Street branch.

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Espresso by K2

"Aussie bros, slinin' epic espresso | Espresso by K2 (just around the corner)"Once upon a time, there wasn’t a lot of good coffee around Fulham. In fact, once you’d crossed the river at Putney, it was a bit of desert all the way to the West End. How things have changed! One of the more recent additions is Espresso by K2, just around the corner from Parsons Green tube station on the District Line and practically on Parsons Green itself.

It opened in October 2015 and, despite being tucked away down a dead-end street (Heathman’s Road) off the busy Parsons Green Lane, it has already built up a loyal following of locals and is starting to attract people from further afield. It’s a fairly small spot, with seating for seven inside, and maybe another three on the bench outside, but don’t let that put you off.

The coffee is from Winchester’s The Roasting Party, the Captain blend & decaf on espresso, plus, during the week, single-origin filter on batch-brew courtesy of the ever-popular Moccamaster. If coffee’s not your thing, there are loose-leaf teas from Scotland’s Jenier, a new name to me. There is also a wide range of cakes and pastries, and, joining the Moccamaster during the week, a selection of sandwiches.

March 2018: I have learned that Espresso by K2 has closed, although the good news is that the owner, Ricky, is opening a new coffee shop… in Lisbon!

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Coffee Under Pressure, St Mary’s Butts

A saucer, seen above, with the outline of a cup drawn on the base of the saucer. The words "Coffee Under Pressure" are written around the circumference of the outline. In the centre is a black circle with "C.U.P." written in white in the very centre.Reading’s Coffee Under Pressure is better known by the acronym, C.U.P. A recent addition to the local scene, it opened in August last year, tucked away in a lovely setting behind the Reading Minster. It’s a sun-drenched, south-facing place, with sheltered outdoor seating and a warm welcome inside, which flows from C.U.P.’s Greek owners, Maria & Nasos.

The coffee is from Winchester’s The Roasting Party. Unusually, there are two blends on espresso, plus decaf, as well as several single-origins available as individual filter coffees through the V60. As well as the usual offerings, there are some Greek specials, the Freddo Espresso & Freddo Cappuccino.

Not content with that, there’s also an impressive range of 16 different loose-leaf teas of various types, as befits C.U.P’s full name, Coffee Under Pressure, Speciality Coffee and Tea. All the tea is from Edinburgh’s Pekoe Tea and every bit as much care and attention goes into making it as goes into the coffee.

Finally, the small kitchen to the left of the counter turns out an impressive range food, mixing traditional(ish) British sandwiches, cookies and pastries with some interesting Greek dishes, such as the bougatsa, flaky pasties that can be either sweet or savoury.

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