London, Sandwiches, Cakes, Etc Restaurant Guide

2019 Review: At the foot of a new aparthotel near Aldgate East tube, this year-old venture comprises a coffee shop and terrace downstairs, and a restaurant and bar upstairs, which – under seasoned chef George Tannock – tries harder than you might expect in this location: “a welcome, local, go-to business lunch place, with an excellent and varied menu and staff who are efficient but welcoming”.

2019 Review: “Fabulously busy… in a good way (as it feels like you have come to the right place)” – this cute tea rooms near Holborn Library spawned a chain of the same name on the back of its inviting-looking cakes and “tasty lunches and snacks” that are “worth a little waiting for”.

“A caffeine hit and empañadas, obvs” – that’s the deal at this well-liked small coffee bar, off Chiswick’s main drag, which, as well as its trademark Latino bites, serves a selection of baps, pastries and other brunch-ish fare from early morning till afternoon.

Come on in... Our stylish interior features handmade, bespoke furniture; all tables, chairs, lanterns and shelving fashioned from salvaged timbers and Corian. The charming outside area with heating and a retractable roof offers intimate alfresco dining within the heart of the Bi...

This “eccentric but marvellous treasure” is a Soho landmark and “one of the few remaining original London pâtisseries”. “Gateaux to die for” and “wonderful tea and scones” provide a “trip down memory lane” in premises opened by a Parisian exile in 1871 and graced by Karl Marx and Virginia Woolf as well as generations of Soho bohos.

This “stylish and serious”, coffee-shop operation with two sites in Fitzrovia is “still one of the best independents in London”, 10 years after pioneering modern Antipodean-style coffee culture in the UK. They serve “brilliant coffee” (naturally), “a nice range of pastries” and “excellent sandwiches”, and have a “good vibe at both locations”. “Only the slightly monastic seating lets things down” – and there’s “not enough” of it!

Max Halley’s cult Stroud Green café has won renown as an “outstanding, cheap ’n’ cheerful” gourmet option, thanks to its wild, wacky and wickedly enjoyable selection of sarnies, each of which amounts to what’s effectively a meal between slices of bread (be prepared to get your hands dirty).

“A lovely, local independent coffee shop” on the distant borders of Chiswick and Gunnersbury combining “laid-back music on vinyl (some of which you can buy)” and a “cosy” vibe with “great pastries” and other simple fare, plus some fine brews (using Union coffee).

London’s original Flat White was served at this early-wave, Kiwi coffee stop, which first hit Soho’s Berwick Street Market in 2005; and its legendary brews and “great staff” have maintained a fair following over the last 15 years. Its brunch-friendly options include pastries, smashed avos on toast and homemade banana bread.