My Favourite Coffee Haunts (thus far)

Kaffeine

I was just having a conversation the other day with SW, about our favourite cafes. And she asked me to rank my favourite few.

"It's actually quite hard to say actually, " I replied. "It all depends on what you want to go there for."

I know that there are so many around London. More than I can count. More than I could ever visit, but here's a short list of what I told SW.


If it's just purely for the coffee?
- Store Street Espresso
- The Espresso Room

If it's for the atmosphere, I would divide it into a few categories:
a) For BOTH very close friends and acquaintances (the two extremes)
- Notes, Music and Coffee (St. Martin's Lane)
- Fork, Bloomsbury

b) For friends
- Kaffiene
- Wild and Wood
- Fleet River Bakery

c) For Family
- Lantana
- Look Mum, No Hands!
- Tom's Kitchen

d) For serious conversations
- Milkbar
- Salt (Great Queen Street)

e) For inspiring conversations
- Flat White
- Look Mum, No Hands!

A nice and quite place to study?
- Bloomsbury Coffee House


Do try them out and tell me if I got them right.

Flat White

Flat White. Supposed to be one of the best places in town for a flat white (as the name says. lol) Went there with a friend of mine after his exam. Like I said in my previous post, I really really wanted to try it out. Been told about it's fantastic coffee and I told myself that if I didn't get it then, the inertia would ensure that I'll never get around to it. 

Hey Dudes.

It's quite a cool place really. Very Arty-Farty, if I may say so. Nice, comfortable chairs. It seems to be full of people who bring in their art work (like the guys in the picture on the right). Some come with sketchbooks and pencils and.. I don't know. Lots of stuff. On the (white) walls behind me are framed pictures of cameras, and it adds a whole other dimension to this place.


They sell retail coffee here too. Their own brand I think. Not too sure about that. It's like, £7 for a bag of coffee beans.

Hmm.. Anyway, the big question from this visit would be.. Whether Flat White really has the best flat whites in London?

Well... This I must say.

The flat white was good. But, it wasn't the best that I've tasted. In fact, I actually think that the one in Wild and Wood was nicer. It doesn't seem strong enough for my liking (yes, I do like strong coffee. I don't particularly like putting sugar in my cuppa either). I guess it'd be perfect for those who would actually like their double shots to fuel their caffeine reliance, but who doesn't actually like their coffee to be so bitter. 

I'd rank this place high for the overall atmosphere though. That is, if you want to enjoy music and if you like the whole arty farty thing going on. If you want a place for a quiet read then maybe Store Street or Wild and Wood would be the place for you. 

More coffee/ travel places to come! Yes, I did intend for this blog to be a travel-cum-food/cafe blog, but I'm having exams at the moment, and blogging about travelling just isn't the most convenient thing for me right now. 

Cheers!

Store Street Espresso

And so I started off my day looking for a cafe to sit down and study for a bit. And as usual, not just any coffee would do. It had to be good. And so I did what I always did; i consulted my good friend, Google.

This particular place got my attention simply because it's relatively near to where I live, and not far away from Senate House library. It's called Store Street Espresso, and as the name indicates, it's on Store Street.

It's a place which makes you feel really happy inside. The decoration plays a major part I think. Frames on the wall with modern art, books for customers to read, tables that are at just the right height.. the list could go on. But what they definitely got right, is the quality of their coffee.

I got myself a flat white. God that was amazing.

It looks like an ordinary cup of coffee all right, but I assure you that it isn't.

Sounds like I'm raving about it too much? Maybe.






You can probably tell that all the other customers in there probably loved it as well. I did try to find a nice and quiet cafe to study, but if you were looking for a quiet place to concentrate and do your work, this would probably be the wrong place.

Though, it is perfect to just chill out with a book, or some friends for a nice chit-chat.

Try it out some day. 

All in all, it's a great place to grab a bite. I was so blown-away by the coffee that I had a second cup to take away! Got myself a latte this time. It was just as good, but I think the flat white trumped it. Hands down.

And the guy has really nice handwriting too.