The Green Room Cafe (N16 0UD)

113 Stoke Newington Church Street

Stoke Newington N16 0UD
http://www.greenroomcafe.co.uk/

I must have walked past The Green Room quite a few times  before I realised there was a café out the back of the shop.

Walking through the front plant and flower filled room takes you to the spacious café, overlooking the rear garden. It’s light and bright inside with a modest selection of cakes along the tiny bar.

 

The café comes into its own once you step outside. The outdoor space is huge (in comparison to many courtyard garden cafes), with “exposed” seating arranged around a paved courtyard, plus “covered” seating tucked in nooks under a large pergola surrounded by hedges and vines. A pleasant place to sit on a warm summer’s day, if you don’t mind crowds.

The cake selection was small on my visit, and I wasn’t overjoyed by my lemon drizzle cake – it was dry and lacked drizzle. Ben rated the coffee as “fine”. I’ve read other reviews about the service being poor, but I didn’t feel strongly about it either way – neither great nor terrible, although perhaps a little slow (granted, it was a busy day).

Despite its potential and attractive street frontage, this café left me feeling a little underwhelmed and I won’t hurry to return. There was just something missing from the experience, but I’m not sure what.

Some parting words of caution…. The conveniences are downstairs, tucked into an obscure corner in the dining area. Don’t make the mistake Ben and I both made, which was to walk into the broom cupboard instead. 

CakeMyDayLondon Rating

Love Walk Cafe (SE5 8RS)

81 Denmark Hill, Camberwell, SE5 8RS 
http://www.lovewalkcafe.co.uk/

Love Walk? Why yes I do thanks.

This café is more than just a walk of love. It’s a Love Parade. Set on the busy, leafy Denmark Hill in Camberwell, you’ll be lucky to find a seat on weekends. This is a popular café and draws a crowd. 

I can appreciate its appeal, as it has the best of both worlds, with lots of seating indoors (upstairs as well as in the basement) plus seating outside for soaking up some rays.  

The downstairs area isn’t as grim as one would expect, mostly because this café makes good use of colour and quirky interior design. It has a personality that shines through in the very appealing décor. 

But what really makes this place awesome is its grand selection of cakes. I was blown over by the vast array of sweet temptations. So much so that I bullied Ben into having a cake (mostly so I could eat half of it), even though he was on a training diet for cycling (comprising of toast). 

 

I loved the chocolate toffee slice; it was chocolate-y and toffee-y. The lemon cake was wonderful too. I regretted offering to share with Ben, because he tucked into the cakes with relish. In the cake vs toast battle, cake always wins.

The only negative point (and it’s a minor one) was that I didn’t like what our waiter was wearing. He wore a football shirt, which to me seemed a bit… well…. bogan (which is Australian slang for a “person with an unsophisticated bjackground, or whose speech, clothing, attitude and behaviour exemplify a lack of manners and education”). 

His service and manners were fine, so I’m only commenting on the clothing aspect which didn’t really fit with the clientele of the café. Like I said, it’s a minor (and some may say highly picky) point, but I can only say it like I see it.

All in all, I loved Love Walk and I am looking forward to returning. And next time, I might not share. 

CakeMyDayLondon Rating