UPDATE: Sadly, Spike + Earl has now closed, although you can still visit Old Spike Roastery.

I've long been an admirer of Old Spike Roastery — a roastery and cafe based on Peckham Rye that combines speciality coffee with social enterprise — and was excited when I heard that the team were opening a new all-day venue in Camberwell. Spike + Earl (motto: doing good without compromise) opened a few weeks ago in Southwark Town Hall on Peckham Road, about equidistant between Lumberjack and No 67. I didn't make it to their busy soft-launch weekend, but my good friends live just up the road, we made a beeline for Spike + Earl for an Easter weekend brunch.


The Spike folks obviously put a lot of thought into design (the retail bags of coffee at Old Spike are stunning) and the design of Spike + Earl won me over right away, from the clean lines and light colours of the interiors to the minimalist typography on the menus and on the signs indicating the main cafe-bar (Spike + Earl) and what will be the roastery and cupping room (at the back).



There are plenty of tables outside, on the grand building's large terrace, but the bank holiday weekend weather was a little too unpredictable on our visit so we took a seat at one of the high marble tables that line the main cafe area inside.



We arrived at around 11:30 am on Good Friday and it was already busy. We didn't have to wait for a table but there weren't many free seats. We ordered some coffees and dug into the food menu. There were six brunch dishes, available until 4 pm and involving various combinations of avocado, bacon and eggs served on sourdough toast.


The brunch dishes sounded nice and looked great but we were more interested in the Dutch Crunch sandwiches. We didn't know what these were — my friend wondered if Dutch Crunch was Cockney Rhyming Slang for 'lunch' (it isn't, but totally should be) — but a quick bit of Googling indicated that it was a kind of bread with a mottled crust popular in the San Francisco area. There were four fillings available, including one fish and one veggie, all of which sounded bloody brilliant. We did have to wait until noon, when the Dutch Crunch shift starts, but it was well worth the wait. Between us, we tried two of the buttermilk chicken (with crispy bacon and hot sauce) and one of the sticky Korean beef. The former was the winner — perfect crispy-juicy fried chicken that contrasted nicely with the toothsome roll — but the beef also went down very nicely. Both sandwiches were a very reasonable £7.50. Despite the wait, we were very happy customers.


The coffee was very good too. In the Dutch Crunch panic, I hadn't managed to ask whether there were any hand-brewed filter coffee options; I don't think there were, but the two piccolos I tried were well made, if lacking in latte art. An Old Spike Nemba coffee from Burundi was in the hopper and although it tasted nice with milk, I think it would have made for an excellent pourover. There are also a couple of coffee cocktails on the menu and various beers and wines.




It's still early days for Spike + Earl and the busy wait staff seemed like they had been caught unawares by the bank holiday rush, but the service was good when we visited, and the food and coffee really great. There was a lively ambiance too and I'd be interested to return at night when I think the vibe will be quite different.


Spike + Earl. Southwark Town Hall, 31 Peckham Road, Camberwell, London, SE5 8UB (Denmark Hill or Peckham Rye Overground). Website. Twitter. Instagram.

Barely a month ago, I was enjoying a very fine cortado at Blackburn Coffee in Paris when I made a resolution to try more coffee from Curve Roasters, the Margate-based roaster whose coffee was in the Blackburn hopper that weekend. By happy coincidence, I didn't have long to wait because last weekend, Curve came to me. Well, technically, they came to open up a pop-up brew bar at Nape, the excellent new charcuterie bar and deli in Camberwell, but who's counting?


Camberwell's main drag, Camberwell Church Street, has some great restaurants (Silk Road, of course, among many others) and three of my favourite south-east London coffee shops: Daily Goods, Lumberjack and The Pigeon Hole. Nape itself is located just down from Camberwell Green, near the junction with the wonderfully named Artichoke Place. They open at noon at the weekend and from 5 pm during the week for cured meats and drinks, and I've noticed a few tastings on their website — both gin and whiskey.


For the next few weekends (excluding London Coffee Festival, of course) Curve will be taking over the bar from 9–2 pm and serving brewed coffee and doughnuts, and as I'm not going to be in London for many weekends in April, I prioritised a visit last Saturday after a brunch nearby with the girls.

Beyond the understated, grey exteriors of the shopfront, Nape was bathed in sunlight and its minimalist interiors accented with cheery daffodils when I visited, and the welcome from the lovely Jon and Teresa from Curve was just as warm. There are a few stools perched next to the bar with plenty more — of both high and low varieties — towards the back of the space. The interiors are very industrial-chic: monochrome stools paired with the white tiles and non-nonsense steel of the bar itself.




As well as a selection of doughnuts and croissants, there were no fewer than five filter coffees on offer when I visited, three hand-brewed (£3) and two batch brew (£2). Overwhelmed by the selection and (if I'm honest), more than a little caffeinated already, I ordered on the basis of the flavour profiles — the delicate, floral washed Chelelektu from Ethiopia seemed to go with the gloriously warm sunshine. Brewed through the V60, the coffee was light but flavoursome and came beautifully presented (I particularly love the cups, which were made especially for the pop-up).


I realised too late that I had missed the chance to try a Papua New Guinean Maga variety, so I'll have to cross my fingers and hope there will be other opportunities when I next return. My friend, who lives just around the corner, stopped by on Sunday and was impressed by her coffee too, and she and her young daughter were made to feel very welcome.



Curve's brew bar will be at Nape (21 Camberwell Church Street, London, SE5 8TR (Denmark Hill Overground) on 1 & 2, 15 & 16 and 22 & 23 April — but keep an eye on their Twitter feed and Instagram. You can also catch them at the London Coffee Festival, which is on from 6–9 April.

1. High-Rise
I've always enjoyed a good Ballardian dystopia and although I haven't read High-Rise, I was keen to see its big-screen adaptation, directed by Ben Wheatley and starring Tom Hiddleston. In High-Rise, life in a luxury apartment building in — "a future that had already taken place" — begins to spiral out of control as the (literally) higher-ups clash with the residents from the lower floors. "Successful people don't want to be reminded when things go wrong," one character notes. The film is dark, satirical, often wickedly funny and with meticulous attention to the 1970s period details. Hiddleston is excellent as ever as the enigmatic newcomer. High-Rise isn't perfect but it is a keenly observed, if troubling, piece — a must for anyone who loved SimTower.

2. Brunch at Beany Green
I mentioned a few weeks ago that I was keen to try the brunch at Beany Green but wasn't expecting it to happen so soon. Fortunately, the wonderful Brian of Brian's Coffee Spot organised an Easter Sunday brunch outing for a few coffee bloggers — Dan from Cups of London Coffee, Jess from Eating East and me.



I am generally of the opinion that broccoli is too healthy to feature in a brunch dish, but I can happily make the exception for Beany Green's broccoli and corn fritters, which came with all of the basic brunch food groups — avo, poached egg and bacon — as well as chilli pesto. Delicious and very filling, although I still had room for some toasted coconut bread (almost, but not quite, as good as their banana bread) and a couple of coffees. Beany's diminutive Broadgate Circle location was the perfect place to shelter from the bank holiday showers with excellent company.

3. Shotgun Lovesongs by Nickolas Butler
I've had Nickolas Butler's 2014 debut novel on my iPad for months but only just got round to reading it. I'm glad I did. Shotgun Lovesongs is an understated and rather old-fashioned story of four close friends from a small Wisconsin town. Henry is still farming his family's land; Leland has become a famous musician; Kip is a commodities trader; and Ronny is a washed-up rodeo star. The friends — and the wife of one character — take turns to narrate a chapter, with the story skipping forward (and sometimes backwards) to significant events in their lives. There are weddings, separations and a number of secrets that have remained hidden for years. Male friendship is central to the story, though, and Butler has created a warm and sympathetic group of characters, whose friendships seem very realistic.

4. The Camberwell Arms
There are so many great restaurants on Camberwell Church Street that it takes a considerable amount of time to visit them all. Last Saturday, we had a family lunch at The Camberwell Arms, which was another new one for me. The gastropub is cosily decorated and it was bustling when we visited, with several other groups. The menu is complex and interesting — you probably won't see steak or fish and chips featured. I liked the sound of the gigantes plaki (butter beans in a tomato sauce) but wasn't keen on the feta it came with, so I went for the cod with new potatoes and wild garlic. The fish was delicious, although (perhaps ignorantly) I was expecting a more garlicky taste. The service was great and we had a lovely relaxed meal.


5. Coffee update
I have drunk between two and five cups of coffee per day for the past 15 years or so; that's over 15,000 cups of coffee! But much as I love the drink, I've decided it's time to cut down. In fact, I'm going cold turkey and won't even be drinking decaf. My last coffee was a delicious single-origin Flori Opal from Peru, brewed through my Aeropress. The only problem is that I'm now going to need a new blog name. Suggestions on a postcard, or in the comments, please!

Oh, and happy April!

It used to be that whenever I wanted to spend an afternoon checking out a new speciality coffee shop, I had to go to Soho, Shoreditch or Hackney, but the coffee scene in south-east London has blossomed over the past few years. I live in Bermondsey and it's a delight to have an abundance of great cafes within a 30-minute walk or a short bus ride. I've put together a map and guide to some of my favourite coffee shops in the area — this is far from comprehensive and, in the interests of concision, I limited myself to two cafes per neighbourhood.



Bermondsey
Hej
When Hej opened up in a cheery green building on Bermondsey Square in 2014, I was pleased to finally have a good coffee shop in my neighbourhood. With its Scandi-inspired décor and food menu, Hej is a great place to hang out with a good cup of coffee. They don't do hand-brewed filter coffee but the espresso drinks are really good and there is usually cold brew available in the summer. You can also buy gorgeous flowers from the stall just outside. 1 Bermondsey Square, London, SE1 3UN (Tube: Bermondsey or Borough). Website. Twitter.


Monmouth
The Bermondsey branch of this popular London roaster isn't the biggest location or the most famous, and it's only open on Saturdays from 9–1.30 pm, but it's probably my most visited coffee spot in London, and the queues are much shorter than at Covent Garden and Borough. They serve espresso-based drinks and pourovers, which are always excellent, and they also sell coffee beans. There are no seats but you can perch at the bar underneath the awning. Arch 3 Spa North (bet. Dockley Road and Spa Road), London, SE16 (Tube: Bermondsey). Website.


Borough
Gentlemen Baristas
Possibly the most dapper coffee shop in all of London, The Gentlemen Baristas is a cosy venue on Union Street. The gents themselves — Henry and Edward — and their staff are very friendly and they serve great Aeropress- and Chemex-brewed coffee as well as espresso drinks. 63 Union Street, London, SE1 1SG (Tube: Borough). Website. Twitter.


Brockley
Browns of Brockley
Browns has been serving delicious coffee and food to the denizens of Brockley since 2009. Their coffee is from Square Mile (filter and espresso drinks are available) and the cakes are excellent. There is also a lovely relaxed atmosphere, especially at the weekend. 5 Coulgate Street, London, SE4 2RW (Brockley Overground). Website. Twitter.


Camberwell
Daily Goods
Camberwell has a booming speciality coffee scene and it was hard to pick just two cafes, but Daily Goods with its always well-brewed coffee had to make the cut. They serve Workshop coffee in a bustling, artsy cafe on Camberwell Church Street. Don't miss the avo toast! 36 Camberwell Church Street, London, SE5 8QZ (Denmark Hill Overground). Website. Twitter.

Fowlds
Fowlds, located on the western side of Burgess Park, gets a bonus point for its cute cat and another for being the only cafe–upholsterers hybrid in London (possibly the world), but doesn't need either. It is tiny, with a few small tables inside and a few more out front when the weather is clement. The coffee is from Square Mile and the baristas make a mean macchiato. They sell delicious fresh bread and serve sandwiches and cakes too. 3 Addington Square, London, SE5 7JZ (Tube: Kennington). Facebook. Twitter.


Deptford
London Velo
There aren't quite as many options for good coffee in Deptford as in some of the other south-east London neighbourhoods, but London Velo will serve both your caffeine and cycling needs. The cafe and bike shop is located on Deptford High Street and serve great Union coffee (espresso drinks and V60 pourovers), as well as bagels from Brick Lane. 18 Deptford High Street, Deptford, London, SE8 4AF (Deptford Bridge DLR, or Deptford rail). Website. Twitter.

Forest Hill
St David Coffee House
The most southern, although not quite the most eastern, coffee shop in this list, St David is worth the trek from central London to leafy Forest Hill. The cafe is cosy and cheerful — more shabby chic than minimalist — with friendly staff and great cakes and brunch. The coffee, from Square Mile, is also good and Aeropress and V60 brew methods are both available. St David Coffee House. 5 David Road, London, SE23 3EP (Forest Hill Overground). Twitter.


Peckham
Old Spike Roastery
Coffee with a conscience! This petite Peckham roaster and coffee shop was set up to support local homeless people by providing jobs, training and housing. They serve coffee and beans and sell doughnuts from Crosstown — you can walk off your treat on the nearby Peckham Rye Park. Old Spike's coffee is also served in Camberwell-based Lumberjack. 54 Peckham Rye, London, SE15 4JR (Peckham Rye Overground). Website. Twitter.


Small White Elephant
A block south of Peckham Rye station, this cosy cafe feels like a particularly colourful, comfortable living room. The coffee is from Alchemy and each cup is made with love. They serve V60-brewed pourovers and the wonderfully named 'Al Pacino' (an almond-milk cappuccino, of course), among other drinks. The cakes are particularly good too. 28 Choumert Road, London, SE15 4SE (Peckham Rye Overground). Website. Twitter.

Over the past few years, Camberwell has jumped to the forefront of the south-east London speciality coffee scene. With the arrival of Daily Goods and The Pigeon Hole, Camberwell Church Street alone has become a hotspot for fine coffee — and now Lumberjack makes three. The new cafe opened up a few weeks ago at number 70, just across the road from The Pigeon Hole.


Lumberjack's USP is its focus on what it terms the three Cs: coffee, craftsmanship and community, all of which were in rich supply when I stopped by for coffee a couple of weeks ago. Huge glass windows adorn the shopfront, which let in a lot of light, even on a rainy Saturday afternoon. Inside, the café is light and airy with plenty of locally sourced wooden furniture (from London Reclaimed). There are a handful of seats near the coffee bar in the front room, and a few more small tables in the back room. The downstairs isn't quite finished but will be opening soon.



The coffee is from Peckham roaster Old Spike, another local favourite of mine, and there is a pourover bar for V60-brewed coffee as well as the usual espresso-based drinks. The coffee bar was garnished with some gorgeous looking cakes — the Jaffa cake looked particularly epic — but I had just eaten brunch at Honest Burgers and was too full for cake. Instead, I ordered a pourover (£2.30) and took a seat at one of the tables in the front room.


My coffee came in a gorgeous ceramic mug, which is produced by a local artist, whose wares are on sale at Lumberjack. They would make wonderful gifts — or gifts to self! The V60 itself was very well brewed: the fruitier notes of the Ethiopian variety came through very well. I wanted to try the espresso too, so I also ordered a macchiato (£2), which was also very good — the cup it came in wasn't quite as unique as the mug, but I could never be disappointed with Acme crockery.



There was a steady stream of customers while I was there — both locals and passersby — and it's nice to see that Lumberjack's little community is already taking off. They are Kickstarter funded and reinvest all of their profits back into supporting the training, support and career development of young people aged 16–25. The staff are very friendly too and it's a really lovely place to hang out with a good cup of coffee and a slice of cake. Stop by, and soak up Camberwell's flourishing coffee scene.


Lumberjack. 70 Camberwell Church Street, London, SE5 8QZ (Denmark Hill Overground). Website. Twitter.

Regular readers will know that November is birthday season in my family: my parents and I all have birthdays during the first half of the month. This year is a big birthday for both of my parents, and my brother have planned some surprise celebrations for them this Saturday, which is my birthday. Instead, I gathered a few friends for a casual lunch in Camberwell on Saturday. 'Laid-back', 'pizzeria' and 'cocktails' were all high on my wishlist and so Theo's Pizzeria came up trumps.


Theo's opened last month on Grove Lane, just off the bustling Camberwell Church Street. The restaurant occupies two rooms, with a series of tables and booths. It isn't the most spacious of venues, although the minimalist, white interiors make it feel larger, and the large front windows mean that it is bright and airy inside, even on a dull, rainy November day. As there were seven of us, I booked a table. There were a few smaller tables available over the lunch period, but it's worth booking if you are a larger group.

We took our seats at a table near the windows and pondered our drinks options. There are a handful of wines, a reasonably priced Prosecco, a few beers (including table beer from The Kernel) and several cocktails. Most of the cocktails are around £6, including the Basilico Fizz (gin, Prosecco, lemon and basil), which I ordered and which was refreshingly sharp.



Unsurprisingly, the main courses on offer at Theo's are all pizzas, but there a few antipasti choices available to start. We ordered one of each: olives (£3), garlic foccaccia (£3; basically, a delicious mini pizza), aubergine parmigiana (£5) and bombetta (£6). The latter was the clear stand-out: a super-delicious, posh version of pigs-in-blankets, with pork shoulder and provola cheese wrapped in pancetta. Next time, I would definitely order a whole portion just to myself! Naturally, they all disappeared before I thought about photographing them.

Then came the main event. The Neapolitan pizzas range in price from £5.50 for a marinara to £10 for the sausage or the calzone. When I visit a pizza joint for the first time, I usually order the margherita because if the tomato, cheese and base are good enough, no further toppings are needed. This time, though, I was drawn to the Camberwell scotch bonnet 'nduja (£9). 'Nduja think I enjoyed it? Hell yes! The pizzas are cooked in the wood-fired oven and the crust was deliciously puffy and chewy. 'Nduja, if you haven't had it, is a sort of spreadable spicy sausage, which contrasted very well with the creamy deliciousness of the mozzarella. I would have liked a little more 'nduja on the pizza, but there were also slices of soppressata salami on top.



The pizzas were pretty big, but so tasty that I didn't have any problems finishing mine. If you are bested by your pizza, the staff will box it up for you to take home (they do take-out too). Despite the busyness, the staff were friendly and efficient, and we had a lovely, relaxed meal. Until Pizza Pilgrims open up a south-east London location (and possibly even beyond), Theo's Pizzeria will definitely be my local pizza joint of choice.

Theo's Pizzeria. 2 Grove Lane, Camberwell, London, SE5 8SY (Denmark Hill Overground). Website. Twitter.

Saturday was another one of those London weekend days where my friends and I just ended up wandering between places to eat and drink. The day started, as usual, in Maltby Street for gin bloody marys and "little pink cocktails" (AKA the Hummingbird Martini) at Little Bird. Much, much later, we found ourselves in a new pizza restaurant called Sun Café in the Camberwell–Peckham borderlands. I didn't have my camera with me, and my iPhone died during the meal, so the photos aren't the best, but you get the idea.


Some of my friends now live in Camberwell, and they tend to be my best source of new openings in their neighbourhood. Sun Café is on the corner of Havil Street and the bustling Peckham Road. It's also just across the road from Theatre Peckham so there's a lot going on nearby. The restaurant was pretty quiet on Saturday night — it's still pretty new — but because it was a nice evening, we chose to sit at one of the tables in the spacious courtyard at the back rather than in the spacious, well-designed interior. The courtyard has a built-in arch at the back, which would be great for live music.


Although there are a few salads — including the pun fans' favourite, You Feta Believe It — pizza is the main deal here. They have six well-priced regular pizzas and a pizza of the week. The special pizza last week was a bolognese pizza with green mozzarella (made using the colour, but not the flavour, of celery). I was very tempted, but I'm a bit of a purist when it comes to pizzas, especially in a new restaurant where the Margherita represents an excellent baseline to measure the restaurant's pizza quality.



To start, we shared some olives (£3) and a mini marinara pizza (£4), and got some drinks in. The cocktail menu is short but carefully curated; everything sounded creative and delicious. I ordered a Monsoon (£6.50), in which the coriander made a fab twist on the standard Dark & Stormy. It slipped down way too easy, but the strong, fresh smell of the coriander also gave me the impression that I wasn't being entirely unhealthy. They also do juices, a few wines and Prosecco (£5 for a glass or £22 for a bottle).


Between the four of us, we sampled three Margheritas (£7.50 each) and one Sorrentina (£8), which featured parmesan mousse, homemade pesto and parma ham. The pizzas were huge, but had quite a thin base and with the chewy, puffy crust that I always enjoy. The base also tasted a little like sourdough, but I'm not 100% sure about that; either way, the pizza was really good and we had to get a doggy bag for the extras. I say we but actually, I ate pretty much all of mine because I really like good pizza and because I'm greedy!


Afterwards, we went for a nightcap at The Pigeon Hole, which I've visited before for coffee, but not at night. A nice little Old Fashioned in surroundings that are like being in the living room of a very cool, stylish friend was a great way to finish the night.

As for Sun Café, I hope it does well. The food and drink were great and very reasonably priced. There isn't a huge amount of competition at present, but it may even be the best pizza I've had in south-east London. Praise indeed.

Sun Café. 29 Peckham Road, London, SE5 8UA (Tube: Denmark Hill or Peckham Rye Overground). Facebook. Twitter.

In a quiet side street off Camberwell Church Street — not too far from Daily Goods — is another new Camberwell café. This one is a cosy nook called The Pigeon Hole, which opened its doors to SE5 about a month ago. I would probably never have come across it, but luckily some of my friends live nearby and they gave me one of their pigeon-stamped business cards, so I was able to check it out.


The Pigeon Hole is open all day for coffee, cakes and sandwiches, and they have just started to open late on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, serving cocktails, wines and local beers. I had just had lunch when I visited, and even the magnificent carrot cake on the counter couldn't tempt me. Instead, I ordered a macchiato (£2.20) and took a seat at one of the tables inside.



The décor of The Pigeon Hole is gorgeous — shelves books organised by colour, neatly arranged jars of homemade preserves, quirky objets d'art and vintage furniture. Eventually, they hope to sell second-hand furniture. The café is funded by Kickstarter, and just underneath preserve shelves is a pinboard with the photos of all of their Kickstarter supporters, which is a nice touch.



The coffee itself was very good: a strong, rich macchiato that slipped down very nicely. They use south-London-based Volcano coffee, which is one of my favourite London roasters. More than that, though: The Pigeon Hole is a lovely place to hang out, that has obviously had a lot of put into it by the owners, Holly and George. I really like the look of the new cocktail menu, so I'm sure it won't be long until I'm back in the ever more up-and-coming Camberwell for another visit.



The Pigeon Hole. 2 Datchelor Place, Camberwell, SE5 7AP.