London has welcomed some truly special new specialty coffee shops in recent months. One of my favourites is Special Guests, a beautifully designed cafe in Marylebone that serves an exceptional range of coffees.

Since I moved back to London 15 years ago, I have spent a lot of time eating my way around the city's increasingly diverse and impressive restaurant scene. To help me keep track — and for when friends and family asked for recommendations — I started jotting down my favourites in a Moleskine City notebook, which eventually evolved into a Google Sheet and then a blog post in 2016. An update was long overdue and here it is: my 50 favourite restaurants in London. 

I first visited the original Second Shot — Julius Ibrahim's coffee shop and social enterprise in Bethnal Green — during its launch event three years ago and have been back a number of times since then. It's been great to watch Second Shot, which aims to bring people together to tackle homelessness 'one espresso at a time', grow from strength to strength.


And now there's a second Second Shot, which has just opened on Church Street near Edgware Road, funded in part by a crowdfunding campaign. I was out of the country during the pre-launch event, but I was in the Marylebone area on Saturday, their first full day, and so I was glad to be able to stop by and say hi to Julius and his team.


Long-term readers will know I lived in Marylebone for three years before I moved to Bermondsey, and my old flat is only five minutes' walk from Second Shot. There weren't any speciality coffee shops in the neighbourhood when I left, in 2012, but I did used to enjoy visiting the busy market on Church Street, where Second Shot is based. The market was bustling when I arrived and a steady stream of local residents, shoppers and coffee lovers alike had found their way to the new coffee shop.


The social enterprise element of Second Shot works in several ways. They train and hire people who have been affected by homelessness and then help them to find longer term jobs. There is also a 'pay it forward' system, where customers can pre-pay for a coffee or a meal, which people in need can then receive free of charge. I pre-paid for a meal when I paid for my lunch and coffee, although was a little embarrassed by my drawing skills when I added it to one of the bricks on the 'pay it forward' wall. It is, of course, the thought that counts.



As for the coffee, as usual, there were several single-origin coffees from some excellent roasters available. I first tried a washed Peruvian San Ignacio coffee from Cast Iron, a Sussex-based roaster, served as a very fine macchiato. Afterwards, I sampled a Guatemalan Red de Mujeres coffee from Square Mile, which was available as a batch-brew filter coffee, and which had very nice apple and gooseberry notes. There will also be some exciting coffee coming soon, so it's definitely worth keeping an eye on what they have in their hopper.



As well as pastries and cakes, Second Shot are serving smoothie bowls and chia bowls, and several sandwiches. I had a ham sandwich on focaccia, which was tasty and very filling.


The cafe shares common design elements with the original — most notably the bricks, which here line the coffee bar and repeat in the pegboard on the back wall. In the main seating area, a handful of small tables face the bar, with teal chairs that coordinate with the coffee cups. There's another seating area in the basement, including a large communal table, helpful for those who need more space to work. There will be a second brew bar down there too in time, which will serve as a training area.


If you haven't yet had the chance to visit the original Second Shot, now you have a second shot — the new cafe is a short walk from Edgware Road and Marylebone stations, and offers a very warm welcome and coffee as good as its ethos.

Second Shot. 49 Church Street, London, NW8 (Tube: Edgware Road).

For 100+ more of my favourite coffee shops in London, please check out my speciality coffee guide.

In the five years since I moved from Marylebone to Bermondsey, my former neighbourhood has seen only a slow influx of speciality coffee shops. Before I left, there wasn't much: the excellent Workshop Coffee (then named The Sensory Lab and located on Wigmore Street) and the Borough Barista were about the only options. Seymour Street's Daisy Green and Monocle Cafe on Chiltern Street are among the new additions, but these are both south of the dividing line that is the Marylebone Road.


Although I no longer live there, I welcomed the news that one of my favourite Islington coffee shops, Saint Espresso, had opened a branch on Baker Street. The coffee shop is on the northern section of Baker Street, next to Baker Street Tube station and just opposite Sherlock Holmes' place. It would have been so convenient for my old flat, which is just five minutes' walk away. Now, I tend to return to northern Marylebone primarily to catch the coach back to Oxford or to get my nails done at California Nail Bar (I'm a creature of habit but it's good and cheap). I was doing the latter a few Sundays ago but decided to stop by Saint Espresso first.

The Baker Street coffee bar is smaller than its Islington sibling but just as sleek. (My review of the photogenic Islington coffee bar often features in my 'popular this month' section because some of my photos therein seem to have been pinned extensively on Pinterest.) With its black tiled exterior, sexy black espresso machine and dark wood counter, it's an attractive spot. There are a couple of small tables on the pavement, although sitting there may designate you as the official tourist information officer. Inside, the remaining seats line up along the narrow table that runs the length of the shop's front window.



I was in the market for a black coffee so I asked what coffees were on offer as a pourover. They had both a natural Ethiopian Guji Hambela and a washed Kenyan Marimira AA, but the barista recommended the Kenyan for a V60, so I went for that (£3.50). The coffee menu also included the usual espresso-based drinks, and various cold and iced coffees. There was also a big selection of pastries, cakes and sandwiches available.


My coffee was very well prepared and the lovely, fruity berry notes of the Marimara came through very nicely.


As in the Angel branch, there is a great selection of coffee kit for sale, and bags of Saint Espresso coffee beans to buy; there was also a guest coffee from Round Hill Roastery near Bath. It was relatively quiet on an overcast Sunday afternoon, although I'm sure it's elbow-room only during the weekday commuter peak. Very handy for anyone travelling to or from Baker Street or Marylebone stations, Saint Espresso is a great addition to a part of Marylebone that is by no means overwhelmed with speciality coffee shops.


Saint Espresso. 214 Baker St, Marylebone, London, NW1 5RT (Tube: Baker Street). Website. Twitter. Instagram.

It's hard to ignore the presence of Workshop Coffee in the London speciality coffee scene. There are three coffee bars and a café in their small chain, but more than that, you will see their house-roasted coffees in many of the coffee shops around the city. I often visit the Marylebone coffee bar, now located on Barrett Street although in its former life, it was known as The Sensory Lab and was based just around the corner on Wigmore Street. I've tended to frequent the Clerkenwell Road café less frequently and in fact, the last time it featured on this blog, it was still called St Ali, although about to be rebranded as Workshop, along with its sister coffee shop.


This is a long way of introducing my recent return to Workshop's Clerkenwell Road café. Suffice to say, I had forgotten how much I loved the place and I had a very enjoyable brunch. Figuring that the café was likely to be busy at Saturday brunchtime, even on a rainy September day, I arrived just before noon. Most of the tables were already occupied but I managed to nab a seat at the central coffee bar (not dissimilar to that in Portland's Case Study), which is a great place to sit, especially with baristas as friendly and charming as at Workshop. The non-bar seating is around a series of high, wooden sharing tables; there is also more space upstairs, although I didn't go up to take a look.




It is one of London's most beautifully designed cafés — I love the central coffee bar, but the fancy pendant light bulbs add a cosy glow to what might otherwise be a slightly dark space, and the living wall, back near the poster boards that provide information about Workshop's roasting process, makes a welcome addition. The various Workshop coffee spots use different types of espresso machine, but they are all unified by their gold 'Workshop Coffee Co' customisation on the front (the powder-blue Synesso in the Marylebone branch is still my favourite).




I ordered a filter coffee while I made up my mind about what to eat. I went for a Kagumoini coffee from Kenya, brewed through the Aeropress (£4), which was sweet and citrusy, with the flavour notes growing more intense as the coffee cooled.


The brunch menu included a lot of classic brunch dishes and, intriguingly, a burger. It's rare to get the opportunity to have a really good burger alongside a great cup of coffee, but unfortunately, I wasn't quite hungry enough this time — the barista told me that it was a real beast of a burger. I'll have to go hungrier next time. Instead, I went for the eggs Benedict with smoked ham (£9.50). The eggs were done just right and the ham really tasty; the Hollandaise sauce was quite tart, but I like it that way.



Finally, for 'pudding', I had a piccolo, brewed with Hunkute coffee from Ethiopia, which was brewed perfectly, with a rich, smooth taste and characteristically lovely latte art. If you have more of an appetite than me and have room for pudding, they also have St John doughnuts, but I always think that coffee is the best way to round off a meal.


Afterwards, I browsed the selection of coffees available for purchase and picked up a bag of Loma Linda pulped natural beans (£9.50), which I've been enjoying at home in my Aeropress all week. Aren't their new ceramic cups lovely too?



This visit really cemented Workshop's position in my list of top London coffee bars, and the Clerkenwell café is also one of my favourite places in the city for brunch. Although I've been to their Holborn branch a few times, their Fitzrovia location has still eluded me; another one to add to the list.



Workshop Coffee. 27 Clerkenwell Road, London, EC1M 5RN (Tube: Farringdon). Website. Twitter. Instagram.

A few weeks ago, some of my friends and I decided that we needed to plan a lazy Saturday brunch to get us through the damp and chilly days of March. I consulted my London restaurant spreadsheet (yes, I know) and pulled together a shortlist of five or six places and The Lockhart was the near-unanimous victor.


Located in the south-western corner of Marylebone, The Lockhart is only a few blocks from my old flat, although I was long gone by the time it opened. There are many lovely independent shops and restaurants on that stretch of Seymour Place and although The Lockhart's pistachio exterior was hidden by scaffolding on my visit, the pretty interiors more than made up for it.


The main dining room on the ground floor is light and wonderfully airy (the reflective ceiling helps), with exposed-brick walls and rustic wooden tables. On the wall next to our table was an Instagram-ready selection of decorative plates. We arrived around 11 am and there were still a few empty tables, although they soon filled up. There is more seating — and a bar — downstairs.




The brunch menu is filled with southern American classics — luckily, we had a couple of Americans in our group who could translate "grits" and "biscuits" (the latter, which come with sausage gravy and a fried egg, are a far cry from your soggy Digestive). I was tempted by the eggs Benedict (£10.50), especially when I heard that it came with bacon instead of ham, but in the end, I went for the fried chicken and waffle (£14.50). I also made good use of the bottomless Union filter coffee (£3.50) and drank three or four cups over the course of the meal.


Once I'd absorbed enough caffeine, it was time for a cocktail. There were only two brunch cocktails on offer (the evening menu has a more impressive cocktail list) and I ordered a gin Bloody Mary (£9), which came with celery bitters and an okra garnish and was suitably spicy.


As for my food, it was great. There was a generous serving of fried chicken and it was beautifully crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. The waffles were also huge — slightly softer than I was expecting, but still tasty, especially with a large helping of maple syrup. I was very happy and the Americans also agreed that the food was very authentic (the chef is Mississippi, so it ought to be!). If you're an American in London, check out the events page for special evenings for US holidays.


The Lockhart. 22–24 Seymour Place, London, W1H 7NL (Tube: Marble Arch). Website. Twitter.

After hearing Brian, of Brian's Coffee Spot, sing the praises of Beany Green, I have been wanting to pay a visit to the Aussie-inspired mini-empire. There are four Beany Greens around London, but none of them are in my regular stomping grounds. But their relative — parent, I believe — Daisy Green, which is just a couple of blocks from both Marble Arch and Selfridges was in just the right neck of the woods when I was in need of a coffee break while shopping in Marylebone on Sunday afternoon.


Daisy Green is in the heart of Portman Village, on the corner of Seymour Street and New Quebec Street — it's actually just a five-minute walk from my old flat, so it was nice to re-visit my former neighbourhood. There are a couple of deckchairs outside, ten or so seats in the cafe's sunny ground floor and further seating in the whimsically decorated basement. I arrived just at the sunniest point of Sunday afternoon and although it was gorgeous to sit in such a bright, sunlit cafe, the combination of the sun's rays, large mirror and white walls led to some challenging photography. Not that I'm complaining.



Mid-afternoon, Daisy Green was still bustling but the staff were all remarkably unflustered, and friendly to boot. I had already eaten so wasn't able to sample the Aussie brunch menu — I'll have to come back for the broccoli and corn fritters and for the shakshouka (both £9) another time. Instead, I ordered a piccolo (£2.50) and a slice of banana bread (£2.50) and took a seat at one of the bar stools that surround the ground-floor cafe.



With its vases of colourful flowers and flower-inspired décor, Daisy Green is one of the prettiest cafes in London. I also liked the way the neon pink and green of the bags of coffee beans — from The Roasting Party — matched the flowers. The weather was nice enough to sit outside but I settled for people-watching near the window instead.




My coffee was good — a rich, chocolatey piccolo — and came in one of the loveliest, and most colourful cups I've ever used. The banana bread arrived slightly afterwards; I had it toasted, as recommended by the barista, and it was so good that I could easily have managed a second slice.



My visit to Daisy Green has persuaded me to check out some of the Beany Greens. The Broadgate Circus location is the most local to me so I'll have to make time to stop by next time I'm in Liverpool Street.

Daisy Green. 20 Seymour Street, London, W1H 7HX (Tube: Marble Arch). Website. Twitter. Open: M–F: 7–6, S–S: 9–5.