Freestyle Espresso, South Melbourne

Black walls, '60s armchairs, cool tunes and a hideaway lane way location - Freestyle Espresso is another gem in Melbourne's cafe scene.

It's another one to wander into to escape the throng of the Saturday morning market. There's a big communal table loaded up with newspapers and magazines, and a few smaller tables inside or outdoor seating to catch the morning sun. But it's quiet and cruisy - totally freestylin'.

The brew here is good - quite heavy on the crema but strong, rich and full bodied. The all day brunch menu includes things like smashed avocado on toast and corn fritters with bacon and relish, while the front counter is stacked with thick sourdough sandwiches, tarts, salads and cakes.

Go for the coffee if nothing else. Open 7 days.

www.freestyle-espresso.com.au

Chez Dre, South Melbourne

Crunchy baguette with brie, walnuts, witlof and chutney

 On my wanderings between Gas and the South Melbourne market, I must have walked past Chez Dre a dozen times over the past few weeks without noticing it. Typically for Melbourne's cafes, it's tucked away discretely from the throng in a cobbled lane way with just a small sign above the door opening the way to a spacious patisserie/boulangerie/cafe.

The flat whites are true to Melbourne form ($3.50), and my crunchy half baguette with lashings of brie, walnuts, witlof, fruit chutney and a side of sweet shredded carrot are terrific ($7 half, $12 full).

The croissants and cakes are gorgeous - look out for the passionfruit tart topped with a mini macaron. I also love that there's a "Mac attack" - a coffee and macaroni tasting board consisting of short black, macaroni and a short macciato. There's lots of all day breakfast and lunch options for something heartier.

The space is fantastic - curved open kitchen, velvet booths, big wooden communal tables with colourful vases of flowers, or little round French style cafe tables opening onto the sunny outdoor courtyard. A lovely place to sit back and read the daily papers on route to the market - it's almost close enough to smell the sweet aroma of dim sims in the air.

Emporio Sao Paulo, Parsons Green

Parsons Green. Who knew? I stepped off the tube on my way to Emporio Sao Paulo on a summery, very Brazilian-esque evening in London and there before me was a thriving, village of cafes, shops, beer gardens, and after work picnics and kick to kickers on the leafy green itself.

So this is how the other half live, eh?

Amongst all this is Emporio Sao Paulo, a little cafe cum deli established by Brazilian manager, Carminha. It's not strictly a Brazilian cafe, but the flourishes are there - little savoury meat pies ("empadas") filled with chicken, prawns, palm heart or cheese and, my favourites, fried "coxinha" - bite sized drumstick shaped bundles of shredded chicken and spices, both on the counter. But really it's about a relaxing place to enjoy good coffee and good food from around the world.

I attended a Brazilian themed event with fellow bloggers, The London Foodie, Gourmet Chick, Tamarind and Thyme and Hot & Chilli, and tasted the feijoada (a comforting blackbean stew served with rice, spring greens and farofa (manioc flour)), comfort food normally served on Wednesdays and Saturdays in Brazil which has the same standing for the Brazilians as the Sunday roast holds for the English. 

We also tried the Moqueca de Peixe e Camarao, a seafood stew cooked with a light tomato based sauce, peppers and in this case olive oil - although the Mooqueca Capixaba version from Spirito Santo state is more influenced by African flavours and made with palm oil and coconut milk.

Finally, sweet little brigadeiros de frutas - condensed milk with chocolate, passionfruit, grape or pistachio. Heavenly!

The food is home made by various off site suppliers. It's not all Brazilian, and the deli at the back is stocked with all sorts of supplies, Italian, French and other. But I have a feeling that part of the draw for the customers of Emporio Sao Paulo is that touch of Brazialian sunshine that manager, Carminha's, personality brings to the floor.

Having never been to Brazil, I was happy to continue my education with some more of the national culture - caipirnhas and Brazilian wine. I'll drink to that.

A true caipirinha should be made with cachaca, a type of rum produced in Sao Paulo and made from crushed cane sugar. We drank caiprinhas with Salto cachaca and they were summery perfection. A good cachaca should be enjoyed neat, like a whiskey, or for a twist we drank the Salto blended with lime, which is dangerously easy to drink. 

Nick from Go Brazil Wines introduced us to some Brazilian wines which he sources directly from Brazil - a crisp, citrussey sparkling (the Casa Valduga Gran Reserva Brut 130) that would rival any fizz in its £18 price range (a good party wine) and an unoaked chardonnay (the Casa Valduga Premium Chardonnay 2009) which made for inoffensive easy drinking in the hot weather.

That's it. I'm heading to Brazil.

Emporia Sao Paulo, 197 New King's Road, Parson's Green, London SQ6 4SR (Tel: 020 7736 5188)

Greedy Diva was a guest of the Emporio Sao Paulo

Alimentari Cocorino, Marylebone

Chiltern Street is quaint little street near Marylebone High Street where people go for extra large sized shoes, bridal boutiques or whiskey specialists. So don't ask my why I stumbled across Ailmentari Cocorino.

Cocorino is cute and stylish in a Marylebone/Notting Hill kind of way. Its white walls are well stocked with high end Italian biscotti, sauces, salamis, hams and fresh pastas sourced from artisan suppliers in Italy. It's a "boutique Italian delicatessan and espresso room" - the coffee is good, and you can have them make you up a fresh foccaccia or nibble on some of the gorgeous little cannoli and Italian cakes or biscuits.

It's owned by Linda Yau, sister of Alan Yau (restauranteur behind Princi, Hakkasan etc). Apparently there's also a Cocorino Focaccia and Gelato bar around the corner. Very sweet. One to try if you're in the neighbourhood.

Cocorino, 18 Chiltern Street, Marylebone, London W1U 7QA (Tel: 020 7935 0860)

The Riding House Cafe, Fitzrovia

Chorizo hash cakes

I thought it might be love at first sight when I first walked into the dapper Riding House Cafe in Ftizrovia. But the love slowly waned, and now I think we might just be distant friends.

It's a great set up, with super potential. But it doesn't quite hit the mark - yet, anyway.

The Riding House cafe has recently come to Fitzrovia from the team behind Village East and The Garrison (a pub in Bermondsey which I love). It's an all day brasserie with a very funky, smart, yet comfy fit out - a restaurant area with big yellow light fittings and orange banquettes (which its own website accurately describes as Heinz Tomato Soup colour), a lovely long bar with high turquoise stools, bunches of lavendar are scattered along a big communal wooden table where groups of girlfriends meet for brunch time Bellinis, spacious round tables by the window and a loungey area for browsing through the papers over your coffee. So far so great.

The menu reads well too - breakfast includes buttermilk pancakes with berries, vanilla clotted cream and maple syrup, chilled grapefruit with ginger, sugar and mint (which is a staple of all our New York brunch favourites), or a peanut butter, banana, strawberry and apple juice smoothie. Lunch and dinner includes a lovely list of small plates (piperade, anchovy, basil; baby squid, chorizo, smoked paprika, chilli olives; slow roasted pork belly, cumin, salt; or lamb cutlets with smoked aubergine - from £3 to £5 each) and mains such as the Titchfield Burger with foie gras and fries (£13.90 or sweet potato and chickpea cake with halloumi and tomato jam (£12).

They only opened in April, so let me preface this post with a disclaimer on their behalf that they are still (obviously) settling in. But things were not running smoothly over Sunday brunch as we waited an age, as did surrounding tables, for some just alright fare to arrive. At least it did, which is more than I can say for my flat white (so, sadly I can't report back on the Caravan coffee). If there's one thing not to forget, it should be a patron's first coffee of the day (fortunately, I had already had one earlier and could see they were struggling so I didn't bother them with a reminder). I believe this was their first Sunday brunch opening, so it would be unfair not to put this down to some teething problems, but after 2 visits, I'm not overly inspired.

TPG's poached eggs on a very lightly, toasted-no-further-than-albino muffin, were fairly plain Jane - the eggs were oddly flavourless if poached to perfect gooeyness (£4). Same goes for those on my more exciting chorizo hash browns with spinach leaves, mushroom and 2 poached eggs (£8.50), which would otherwise have been good.

A Bloody Mary was a little light on the vodka and a little heavy on the Worcester, and the apple, beetroot, carrot and ginger juice (£4) was oddly super sweet as though there might have been some packaged rather than fresh apple juice in there.

The day before, I'd been for a light lunch with girlfriends. The small plates of bitter chicory, sweet pear, fine shavings of radish and lovely, creamy gorgonzola (tiny, but only £3) and cured sea trout with jalapeno and creme fraiche (£4) were gorgeous. You would need at least 3 or 4 small plates for a complete lunch if you're not having a main. The heritage tomato and pesto tart with buffalo mozzarella (£12.80) looked nice, but was the one thing I thought overpriced on an otherwise reasonably priced menu. Most of the girls went for the large chopped salad, with lettuce, avocado, palm heart, radish, Dijon mustard and grilled poussin (£13) which doesn't look special but was a taste hit with them all.

The front of house staff greeting you on entry are absolutely lovely, although service can be a little over attentive in areas where you don't need it - waiters filling up your water glass after each sip and explaining how a rather self explanatory menu works (it's pretty clear what small plates are - it's our first time in the restaurant, not our first day on earth). And while I'm very forgiving on hiccups to a newbie restaurant, and particularly one I walked in with such a soft spot for (even the tone of the website makes you want to love them), I can't help but think that some extra care and rapport developed between waiters and tables might help to hook people in to return just a little bit more.

At the moment, I'm putting this one down as one I thought I'd love, I'm disappointed not to, I hope they do well, but for now I'd rather grab my brunch from Kaffeine across the road. The earth didn't move.

The Riding House Cafe, 43-51 Great Titchfield St, London, W1W 7PQ (Tel: 020 7927 0840)

St Ali, Farringdon

Nothing like starting off your weekend with a flat white and a Mexican.

And now we can. No need to be shy about it. Because one of my favourite Melbourne coffee shops has just hit London. St Ali has opened a new outpost in Farringdon. *High fives the computer screen, moonwalks backwards across living room, does the Risky Business dance on the coach*.

St Ali is said to be named after "the patron saint of coffee", Ali ibn Umar al-Shadhili, the man who first introduced coffee beans to the Muslim mystics. They make some of the best coffee in Melbourne, where the competition is hot, and now they're doing it in style in London.

My flat white was seriously good. I don't even know what blend it was, so enthusiastic was I to wallow in the smooth, coffee, heavenly goodness that I last tasted in South Melbourne. There was no time for inquisitive banter. TPG had a rich and pure drip filter coffee which was well worth the wait.

But, best of all, the Mexican has come to town. The Mexican, oh the Mexican. The Mexican is, my friends - crispy corn fritters, creamy, salty halloumi, sweet sliced tomato, sour kasundi and 2 poached eggs. Happy, happy days.

Another serve of poached eggs came with 4 large pieces of thick sourdough (too much for even us to eat) and 2 runny poached eggs - bargainous value at £5, while I think the Mexican was about £9. (This probably better value than most breakfasts in Melbourne these days).

The interior at St Ali in Farringdon is along the same lines as the industrial, hollowed out factory look in South Melbourne, although slightly more polished and newbie looking - and I don't like it quite as much. But it's a huge space (the bathrooms are bigger than my flat) with high ceilings, big impressive looking coffee machines and a chunky wooden communal table in the window. The stools there are at an annoying, knee hitting height, and it's a bit dark inside, but otherwise it's all good.

This part of town is becoming quite the foodie hub, with Bistrot Bruno Loubet across the road and St John and Vinoteca around the corner. As far as breakfasts and coffee goes, St Ali can hold its head high amongst them.

St Ali, 27 Clerkenwell Road, Farringdon, EC1M 5RN (Tel: 0778 011 2631)

Proud Mary, Collingwood - Australia (Greedy Diva's Gluttonous Travels)

Avocado on toast - oh yeah

I've been completely out of the online loop. Beaching rather than blogging, Twisties over Tweets. More specifically, I've been on holiday in Australia, soaking up the warm weather and an endless supply of flat whites good enough to bring a tear to the eye.

It is, apparently, impossible to have a bad coffee in Melbourne now. I can't believe how easy it is, even in the most random, untrendy, tucked away neighbourhood place, to order a coffee and be blown away by the fact that they actually know how to make one good enough to make you weep. The cafe culture is thriving. People are smiling. The waitresses are friendly. Melbourne is a coffee mecca.

One of my favourite coffee and brunch places from this most recent trip is housed in what looks like a converted factory in the back streets of Collingwood - Proud Mary.

Avocado and corn chilli salsa on toast had me at hello. A whole avocado is mushed and piled onto a thick wedge of toast with grilled chunks of corn fresh from the cob, sweet roasted tomatoes and a spicy chilli salsa with a splash of lime. It's huge, it's fabulous.

Ricotta hotcakes

Ricotta hotcakes with poached pear and vanilla ice cream are good enough to snuggle up to. TPG informs me that the potato hash will make me want to move in.

And then there's the coffee. Aaah, the coffee. It's rich, it's smooth, it's comforting, it's joyous. Perfect. They do a range of whizz bang coffee stuff like siphoned coffee and have both a Synesso and Clover coffee machines and high end teas. But give me my flat white and avo on toast in a seat by the window, and let me sit back and worship Melbourne in all its glory. I can feel a surge of proud patriotism pumping through my blood with every sip. We may not have won the cricket, but we know how to make a coffee.

Proud Mary, 170 Oxford Street, Collingwood, Australia, Phone: (613) 9417 5930

Kopapa, Covent Garden

Coconut sticky pork ribs

I absolutely love The Providores - its flat whites and sweet corn fritters have saved my life on many a (slightly hungover) Sunday morning. I love Peter Gordon's creativity and his skillful ability to show why "fusion" food, in the right hands, is anything but a dirty word. So I was sure I would be equally enamoured with his newest restaurant, Kopapa, in Covent Garden.

Kopapa is an all day cafe and restaurant, specialising in small dishes and sharing plates, but with some mains thrown in. And Kopapa is interesting and different. And good value. I quite liked it. But more in a slightly-luke-warm-and-lacking-in-the-expected-raptures way, at least for dinner. For me, Kopapa's brunches hold more appeal.

At dinner, I was certainly in fabulous company. I visited on a blisteringly cold winter's evening last month with Gourmet Chick and An American in London - both of whom have beaten me to the punch with their reviews. [Star Award for the biggest holiday period lazy-arse goes to the GD. On the other hand, I was extremely efficient at sleeping in and reading recipe books on the couch with a constant supply of chocolate at hand - thanks again, Mum for the Haighs.]

The menu is extensive - not only does each item sound exotic and enticing (sometimes more than it actually is), but there are so many pages of items to consider that it took us some time to focus our thoughts. 

The duck liver parfait - although
for some reason, I've focussed on the flat bread

Butternut squash

Duck breast

We start with a dense, creamy duck liver parfait, cleverly caramelised on top, with sweet and sour chutney and billowy sheets of grilled flat bread (£5.00). Wedges of butternut squash are crumbed in spices and cumin, deep fried and topped with a generous splodge of coconut cucumber raita (£4.20). A slightly bland smoked magret duck breast was saved by some tangy goats curd, beetroot confit and diced pickled pineapple (£6.50).

Exotic aubergine

If you weren't told what the above dish was, you'd never guess it was plain old aubergine. Here it's chargrilled and turned into exotica with tamarind caramel, coriander, pickled ginger & za'atar (£4.80). It looks the part, but the fact I can barely remember what it tasted like exemplifies some of my reservations about Kopapa - I love the sound of everything, but I'm not sure all the effort is coming through in the taste and textures in any memorable way.

Tuna tartare

Parmesan & bone marrow on toast

A delicate arrangement of sesame infused tuna tartare is livened up with soy wasabi tapioca, crispy lotus root and shiso (£6) - it's lovely. Parmesan and bone marrow sauce on toast with horseradish (£5.20) was also good - indulgent and rich, with a neat little punch. Glistening, tender coconut pork ribs are sticky and gloriously messy - one of my favourite dishes, and the most gluttonous.

Pork belly

Although our waiter wondered whether we'd get through it all (are you kidding?) we decided to share one main dish and, if you're only having one, of course you make it the crispy pork belly, right? (£15.80). It comes with a smooth, thick almond skordalia and buttered kale with salty moromi miso and a tarragon dressing. Keh? Never mind - the pork belly is pleasingly fatty with crispy - to the point of hard as marble - crackling, but nothing extraordinary.

Chocolate brownie

Orange and almond cake

The desserts were, for once, contenders for my favourite dishes of the evening. A warm chocolate brownie with "golden crunch" ice-cream is decadently creamy with crispy honeycomb bits (£5.80). And if you ever doubted our enthusiasm, see An American In London's fork diving for the pud before the photo shoot has commenced - a delectable, uber moist orange and almond cake with passionfruit custard is a cheeky mix of tart and sweet (£5.80).

Like at Providores, there's a good wine list to work through. With a bottle of red wine, our bill for 3 came to £109 (or £36 each) - a very reasonable price for the quality and volume consumed. And the "small plates" bear decent portion sizes too.

Soft boiled eggs with Vegemite soldiers

I felt the Kopapa love a lot more when I visited for a lazy Sunday brunch this weekend with friends Mr and Mrs P. The breakfast/brunch menus are very similar to those at The Providores - including such famed staples as the Turkish eggs from changa restaurant in Istanbul - 2 poached eggs with whipped yoghurt and hot chilli butter (£6.50), as well as the interesting sounding chorizo hash and rocket with fried egg and salsa verde (£7.80).  The fry ups look and smell terrific - and Mr P claimed it was some of the best scrambled eggs, bacon and tomato he's had in the UK.

My oozey, soft boiled eggs with long, buttery Vegemite soldiers (£5.20) were the perfect salty remedy for a big night previously. So simple, but they do it perfectly. However, TPG and Mrs P, who thought they were going for a healthy option with the porridge, blueberry compote and creme fraiche (£5.00) were disappointed. So creamy and sweet, this was more like a buttery pudding with all the creme fraiche already mixed in (and there was loads of it), and too much sugary compote on top. They would have preferred the compote and creme fraiche were on the side to add to taste.

While this could have been a downer, the Kopapa staff quickly turned the situation around completely by impressing with their perfect handling of the issue - when they noticed these dishes had barely been touched and enquired if all was ok, TPG and Mrs P explained politely why the dish wasn't what they had been expecting and the Kopapa staff promptly took it off our bill (which we didn't ask for) and said they really appreciated the feedback. Faultless customer service in a week when this has been a hot topic in restaurant circles (thanks to a thoughtful article by restauranteur Russell Norman, of Polpo and Polpetto) - and for that alone I feel all loved up and more likely to return. Oh, and for the terrific Monmouth coffees - my flat white was just as good as at The Providores (high praise) - and you don't have to queue for it! (yet).

The fit out at Kopapa is simple, but certainly held more charm when it was buzzing over our Sunday brunch than it was over dinner in earlier days when it was still drawing in customers and battling grizzly weather. Hopefully, Kopapa benefitted from being one of the few decent places open for a casual bite over the Christmas period and picked up some extra custom. I have a feeling it will be popular, and will probably only improve with time.

I love Providores and the work of Peter Gordon so much, that I lament writing anything that's not completely raving mad about this new venture. I may not be in a huge rush to go back for dinner just yet, but for breakfast or brunch, it's a great addition to the neighbourhood and I welcome another well made Monmouth coffee to fold.

Kopapa, 32 Monmouth Street, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9HA (Tel: 020 724 06076)



You can see my earlier review of Providores here.

Tapped & Packed, Fitzrovia

While we're on the subject of coffee, it doesn't come much better than at Tapped & Packed, where the cool kids hang in Fitzrovia.

The coffee is seriously good - the house blend espresso comes from Climpson & Sons, but there's a range of blends available from trusted roasters such as Square Mile and Union. Different single origin blends are on offer daily. Tapped & Packed are particularly known for their filter brews and have coffee brewed by siphon, aeropress, pour over and cafetiere. It is the kind of place, I suspect, that will be right on top of whatever else emerges as the latest thing in the coffee universe.

There's also an excellent array of hearty sandwiches, cakes and salads available at lunch. I love the salt beef baguette with cream cheese, salad and a hint of gherkin in there somewhere - I now crave it regularly. The crayfish on granary bread is also a favourite. Sandwiches are generally priced at around £3.50-£4.50, while a flat white or latte will set you back £2.20. There are pastries, fruit salads and sandwiches at breakfast - although I've never made it that early, TPG texts me in glee to announce he just paid 50p for 2 slices of toast "with jam, lots of jam" on his way to work.

The mood is casual, with a media/office-y crowd. Big wooden tables are laden with those mysterious types who seem able to conduct their business meetings with laptops in cool cafes all day long (just what do they do, and how can I join?). Or, you can sit up at the bar with a paper and watch the coffee machine work its magic.

Tapped & Packed was a runner up in Time Out London's Best New Coffee 2010 category.

Another fine London coffee haunt to add to the list.

Tapped & Packed, 26 Rathbone Place, Fitzrovia, London, W1T 1JD (Tel: 0207 580 2163)

The Brewed Boy interview - He's back with a new New York Style coffee trolley

Brewed Boy is the second person I see every morning.

Or, more to the point, Brewed Boy is one of only 2 people who have the misfortune to see me before my morning coffee. Yes, the gods smiled upon me one day, and Rob of Brewed Boy set up his excellent coffee trolley just moments from my front door.

I first blogged about Brewed Boy's welcome arrival on the Soho street scene, back in March 2010. Since then, the cute little grey van has gone, and a larger New York style coffee trolley (making room for excellent chilli choc brownies) has taken its place. Rob's great coffee and ever friendly nature have won him legions of happy customers, and mentions in both Time Out (London's Best Coffee Carts) and The Independent (on British Street Food).

And just when he thought the accolades couldn't get any higher, now he's being interviewed on the Greedy Diva.

So, here it is folks - the interview you've all been waiting for. Greedy Diva and Brewed Boy go head to head on Rupert Street....

So, Brewed Boy, what inspired the move to make us your wondrous coffee brew?

I lived in Australia for a number of years and coffee is the only thing they take seriously. It became a big part of my life so when I came home I realised having a coffee cart was the only way I could guarantee getting a good brew.

Why Rupert Street - was it the red light, edgy vibe or the proximity to Prowler?

All of the above. Plus there is a place just round the corner where they attach electrodes to your nipples.

How did the snazzy New York style trolley cart come about?

I found a lock-up just around the corner and while my old van was cute it wasn't a great work space. Plus now I can take advantage of SoHo's many drinking dens after work.

What coffee and machine do you use?

Coffee is by Square Mile. They roast in Bethnal Green and they are at the top of their game. My machine is a Bezzera - one of Italy's oldest espresso machine brands. The logo is a snake eating a child. Not sure what that has to do with coffee.

What's the secret to the perfect brew?

It's never perfect. To be honest half the time I'm thinking "what the hell is it doing now!". All you can do is care, use the best beans and milk you can find, grind fresh for every cup and be reactive to the constant fluctuations that come with working outside. Piece of cake.


In the early days, there were some underhand high jinx from some local traders, desperately trying to curtail Brewed Boy's world domination. Have you found the local Soho community to be more supportive since then?

Those guys were definitely a minority. Trying to remove the competition with threats rather than the quality of their product says a lot about the way they approach their business. Meow! The sense of community has been one of the most surprising things about SoHo. Whether it is an invite to the local primary school play or the peep show girls kicking arse when I got robbed, there is definitely a sense of family.


Who's your most colourful Rupert Street customer?

There are a few but Billy springs to mind. He is a rather large homeless chap with an impressive beard who writes compulsively in binary. I give him a coffee most mornings but when he has cash he pays and often guards the cart when I dash to the loo.


How many coffees do you drink in a day?

Today I have had five. It is usually more. When my eye starts twitching I know I have had too much.


Is tea just for old ladies?

It's also good for people with twitchy eyes.


Will you be in your wellies and hat winter uniform again this year?

I'm already in a camo deer-stalker but the wellies will definitely be back. I love walking through SoHo looking like a farmer. It is very disturbing for the city folk.


What are your favourite places in Soho for food or drinking shenanigans?

I eat from the stalls on Rupert St most days. They are all good. But I love Polpetto. Great sharing food and lively vibe. I quite enjoy sinking a few breton ciders downstairs in the French House too. And I've been known to munch on a bagel or pastel de natas from the bread stall on Berwick St.


Where else can the astute Londoner find you when you're not lighting up Rupert Street?

I have recently joined a great street food collective called Eat St. We go all over with most of the destinations being announced via the eat.st blog or Twitter. The next one is in a rubblely carpark by the canal opposite the Towpath Cafe in Dalston.


Are there any other exciting events/changes/offerings in store from the Brewed Boy coffee cart this year?

I don't even know what is happening next week! But it will be exciting.


Oh! I'm about to put out the first edition of a short story magazine called Pitch 1202. It has free adverts in the back for the street traders and stories, drawings and articles from SoHo residents and workers. Including a nice one from Billy.


Most embarrassing/shocking/horrendous Brewed Boy moment?

I was having a bad day and had been getting some hassle from some of the local crackheads. I could feel someone hovering behind me so when they asked if I had any change I snapped. I spun around and said: "can you please just fuck off!". My eyes settled on a twenty pound note in the poor bloke's raised hand and I realised he was just checking whether I could split it. Service with a smile.


I swear, he's not normally that scary. In any case, the coffee's worth the risk...


Brewed Boy - you can catch him on Rupert Street, Soho, London - Monday-Friday. See Rob's blog at www.brewedboy.wordpress.com

Towpath - canal side cafe in Shoreditch(ish)

I'm so glad there's not a camera positioned on my handle bars, filming my facial expressions as I ride around London.

I'm not a natural born cyclist. I'm a foot on solid ground girl. (Don't even get me started on swimming. Although I like floating - especially on the salty Mediterranean where it's easy, and preferably with a cocktail waiting for me on a nearby banana lounge. But I digress). Although exploring London's hidden depths with the wind blowing through my helmet brings me much joy, I know my brow is furrowed like a maniac every time I hear a car advancing at the rear, my teeth clench over every grate and pot hole, my knuckles white with fear every time I whizz past a row of parked cars, just waiting for the day a door will open and 2 hard years of metal braces and bad school photos will come to nothing. 

I have a lot of sympathy for my friend who can't make right turns on a bike so gets around entire cities by always spiralling left. 

So any chance I get to cruise off the main drag in the name of "exploration" is always a secret relief. 

Today, it brought me to a sunny strip of Regent's Canal off Kingsland Road where The Peanut Gallery and I discovered Towpath - an open cafe right on the edge of the canal path.

It serves coffee and simple breakfast and brunch items (toast, porridge, granola, quiches, toasties, olive oil cake). The coffee's not a world beater - it's a bit watery and lacks depth and kick. But still enjoyable if it's not a Monday morning coffee on which your life depends. The toast was nice and came with some home made (slightly runny) marmalade and rhubarb jam.  

Its foodie creators - Lori De Mori (food writer) and Jason Lowe (food photographer) - suggest there might be more here to delight the palate than we discovered, as does the enticing smell of grilled cheese sandwiches wafting over to our table. But it's such a fun and friendly spot to sit outdoors in the sunshine, read the papers and watch cyclists crash into runners against a backdrop of graffiti clad warehouses and passing boats. There's also a bit of cover with a long communal table for those not so summery London moments.

Worth a look if you're cycling by, and need an excuse to rest your clenched jaw. 

Towpath, 42 De Beauvoir Cresent, (Hoxton, Shoreditch, Hackney or one of those places, London, N1 5SB