BEST SPECIALITY COFFEE SHOPS IN LONDON

Whether it’s revising for an exam, staying awake and alert during an early morning photography session, editing photos, writing blog articles, planning adventures, slaying at my day job, catching up with friends or indulging in a spot of me time, over the last twenty years of living in London my life has been pretty much fuelled by coffee. So I guess it’s no wonder that discovering new coffee shops whether at home in London or whilst traveling has become one of my favourite pastimes. It’s not unusual for me to travel over an hour across town on a Saturday morning just to check out a newly opened coffee shop but equally there are some spots I just love going back to time and time again.

I also know how overwhelming it can be when visiting a new city for just a couple of days to decide which coffee shops to include in your itinerary. Especially a city like London: with its thriving specialty coffee scene and new places opening up pretty much every week.

So I’ve put together a list of my absolute favourite independent specialty coffee shops in London. These are the spots I return to time and time again and which consistently deliver on the quality of coffee, friendly relaxed atmosphere, awesome staff and stylish interiors. I’ll keep updating this list with my future finds too.

15 GRAMS COFFEE

15 Grams is a small batch specialty coffee roastery with two cafes, a cute little OG spot on the entrance corner of the Greenwich Market and a second, larger site in Blackheath Village that serves an all day brunch and turns into an atmospheric wine/cocktail bar on Friday and Saturday nights.

The interior is super cosy with lots of dark wood panelling, leather chairs and orange glass coffee cups all creating a very mid century aesthetics.

But the most unique thing about 15 Grams is their dedication to creating a positive impact for the environment and the communities that produce the coffee. They do that amongst other things by taking the time to getting to know the individual farmers and their stories and paying at least 2.5 times the minimum fair trade price.

ROSSLYN COFFEE

Rosslyn has three locations in the City - London’s financial district, and it’s a favourite with the local office workers patiently queueing up on the busy weekday mornings.

If you’re not a visitor with free time on weekdays or you don’t work in the area, their Queen Victoria Street location is open on Saturdays and well worth going out of your way to visit. The staff are super friendly and only too happy to have a chat, offer coffee recommendations or let you take tons of photos of the beautiful interior when it’s not busy.

But what’s really special about Rosslyn is what’s not on the menu. After scanning a QR code pinned to the wall you will be presented with one of the most extensive specialty filter coffee menus anywhere in the capital showcasing some of the rarest, highest quality coffees from the world’s leading roasters.  If you’re serious about your pour over you can’t miss it!

PRUFROCK COFFEE

If you’re into the specialty coffee scene and you live in London, you’ve definitely heard of Prufrock Coffee. An institution within the London coffee scene, it was founded in 2009 by three friends including the former World Barista Champion Gwilym Davies and has maintained a loyal following ever since. Even though Leather Lane in Clerkenwell is mostly deserted on weekends, there’s always a queue outside of Prufrock right from the time they open the doors in the morning.

They’re also home to a Barista Training Centre offering professional courses accredited by the Speciality Coffee Association (SCA) as well as a selection of home enthusiast courses and workshops.

They serve Square Mile coffee along with a rotating menu of roasters from across the world including Koppi Coffee, Coffee Collective, Tim Wendelboe, La Cabra, Kawa and many others. It’s also one of my favourite place in the city to pick up coffee to brew at home as their shelves are always stacked high with a selection of beans from some of the best roasters in the industry. The staff are super friendly and nice and always happy to offer recommendations.

There’s also a small selection of pastries and a short menu of simple, seasonal breakfast / lunch dishes to enjoy alongside your coffee including my favourite heritage tomatoes on toast.

NOLA

NOLA is one of those neighbourhood gems which make me a little sad about no longer living in Peckham and not having it on my doorstep. It’s also one of the friendliest coffee shops I’ve ever been to with both the staff and the local customers adding to the welcoming and inclusive atmosphere. So it probably won’t surprise you that despite no longer living locally I still go back to visit regularly.

There isn’t anything that I don’t love about NOLA. The simple, minimalist interior leaning into the japandi aesthetics is fresh and welcoming, and I love how it gets absolutely flooded with light on sunny days! I also love the light casting shadows of the shopfront signs onto the stripped back walls. And the attention to detail definitely doesn’t go amiss: the branded greaseproof paper the pastries are served on and the custom designed stoneware clay coffee cups by Stick Ceramics engraved with the coffee shop logo are such a nice touch.

And I can’t not mention the brunch menu: the scandi inspired NOLA plate looks straight out of the trendy cafes in Copenhagen and the grilled cheese toasties are the ultimate comfort food.

NAGARE COFFEE

If I had to choose just one favourite coffee shop in London, I’d pick Nagare without hesitation. This charming cafe just a stone’s throw from the Spitalfields Market ticket all the boxes for me: a cosy, beautifully designed interior, super friendly staff, amazing pour over / filter coffee selection and delicious cakes.

The name is inspired by a famous line by Bruce Lee - "Be water, my friend...Be formless, shapeless, like water."; the line directs to a state of mind and body which is flexible, adaptive, and open-minded.

The shop is located on the ground floor of a grade II Listed Georgian building. The owners kept the original facade including the hand painted Verde & Company sign above the shop and the interior has been filled with a combination of unique vintage pieces such as a pair of 1939 school chairs and a handcrafted walnut coffee counter.

I also can’t get enough of the absolutely stunning calligraphy adorning the product labels, take away coffee cups and branded tote bags!

The big focus here is filter coffee with a dedicated filter menu and monthly changing guest roasts. In addition to coffee beans from small independent roasters around the country, expect some truly unique, rarely found in the UK names such as Tim Wendelboe from Oslo, April from Copenhagen and AOMA from Osaka, Japan.

There’s no wifi here and instead the shop is a perfect spot to escape the hustle and bustle of the city, rest, reflect, and recharge.

WATCHHOUSE COFFEE

I usually stay away from coffee chains as most of the time with mass production the quality of coffee goes down so I hesitated whether to even include WatchHouse in this round up. But despite rapid expansion from a tiny coffee shop in an old shelter for men guarding the graveyard of St Mary Magdalen’s Church on London’s famous Bermondsey Street to nineteen locations in two countries and counting, WatchHouse somehow hasn’t lost its independent coffee shop identity. Each cafe is uniquely designed taking inspiration from its surroundings and the history of the local area from modernist architectural features, clean lines and grid patterns in Fenchurch Street to Art-Deco and Neoclassical textures and finishes in Marylebone. I visited most of them and so far Seven Dials, Somerset House and Spitalfields are my favourites.

Their own roastery under the railway arches on Maltby Street ensures there’s always a selection of seasonal filter coffees on the menu alongside a collection of Rarities available on pour over. There’s also a good selection of pastries and cakes and most of the locations offer a full on brunch menu too.

DUDLEY’S

If there’s one coffee spot I’ll happily trek all the way from South East London to Walthamstow for (1.5 hour one way trip on a good day) it’s Dudley’s.

Dudley's is a friendly neighbourhood cafe in Wood Street serving Assembly coffee, Good & Proper Tea and a short but pretty spectacular brunch menu (try the chilli folded eggs). It’s also a local community hub that hosts music event On Rotate and offers yoga and meditation in the summer.

As you might have already figured out, I’m a sucker for a pretty, atmospheric interior and Dudley’s certainly delivers on that front! Think terracotta tiled floor, wood veneer seating benches and serving counter, and whitewashed exposed brick walls. The kind of space you could easily spend a whole afternoon in. There’s also a large cosy garden at the back, perfect for enjoying an iced coffee on a hot summer’s day.

OMOTESANDO KOFFEE

Just a few seconds away from the touristy madness of Oxford Street, you’ll find the oasis of calm that is Omotesando Koffee. This boutique asian coffee house concept originated in Tokyo and takes its name from the original location in the Omotesando Hills. Built on the forever enduring Japanese principles of shokunin (a lifelong dedication to one’s craft) and omotenashi (hospitality) it has since gone truly global with outposts in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore and of course London.

I love the striking minimalist, monochromatic Japanese inspired aesthetics with a wood panelled cube shaped counter taking the centre stage. The attention to detail and the craftsmanship really come through in the interior resulting in a space that’s just super nice to spend time in. There are no pictures on the walls or fancy pastries on display and the whole focus is on great quality coffee making ritual taking inspiration from the traditional Japanese tea ceremonies. The staff are also some of the friendliest I’ve met anywhere in London, always up for an interesting conversation and clearly passionate about the city’s coffee culture.

This is a great spot to enjoy a moment of calmness reading a book and journaling your thoughts whilst sipping on an expertly made cup of coffee away from the hustle and bustle of London’s most touristy shopping streets.

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I hope you enjoyed this guide as much as I loved writing it. If you would like to show your support and contribute towards future content (or if you just want to fuel my caffeine addiction) you can buy me a coffee here .