Evening Standard
David Ellis followed up on the news that the iconic Regency Café is for sale by revisiting what he called the “archetypal ideal of a Propa Caff”, whose good looks – “the art deco signage, the black frontage… the boxing posters and portraits of Spurs in the Sixties, the chequered curtains on the windows, the tea urns” – have made it a Mecca for both tourists and filmmakers (Layer Cake, Rocketman, Pride etc).
Looks aside, David reckoned it fulfils its function well. “I’ve never had a bad breakfast here, and nothing is ever messed with. But you cannot rave about food like this, even if, after a big night, it might inspire grateful prayers.”
Given that the council has said the Regency won’t be sold to developers, David gave a cautious welcome to change, and offered his own suggestion for an improvement: “Someone might even put in loos.”
David Ellis - 2025-01-19