Fowlds Cafe (SE5 7JZ)

Fowlds Cafe
3 Addington Square, Camberwell SE5 7JZ 
http://www.fowldscafe.com/

This review is dedicated to Charles, who spotted Fowlds Café on a ride-by. Rather than risking untried territory himself, he put me on the case to check it out first.

What I love about the journey of exploring London’s independent cafes is that it enables me to explore London as well. 

There would be no reason for me to have come down this pretty tree-lined street to discover a gorgeous square surrounded by historic houses were it not for the café endeavour.

Fowlds reminds me of another bijou café, Petitou. It has a tiny footprint, and is utterly sweet and delightful. Curiously, it still houses an upholstery workshop out the back, which is a great example of how two businesses can work sympathetically together.

Getting a seat inside could be a challenge (particularly on a rainy day), but we managed to squeeze onto a narrow bench along the front window looking out onto the street. 

The cake selection was very limited with only one suitable option for me: white chocolate and pistachio (the other option was coffee flavoured). As much as I wanted to like it, I didn’t.

Don’t get me wrong – the cake itself was moist and of great quality, but I personally found the white chocolate flavour a tad bland. My favourite part was the icing. However, I am not going to hold this against the café, because as far as cakes go, it was a good cake but just not appealing to my particular taste buds. 

Ben really enjoyed his coffee, so a big thumbs up from him. 

I liked this little place a lot, and loved its sense of history; I felt like I’d stepped back in time to another era. The décor is cleverly constructed and sympathetic to the original business, and its street presence blends in well with the surrounding houses.

Despite the lack of cake, I would come back here for a drink and a bite to eat. They also sell rather tempting loaves artisan bread… another baked good I rather enjoy!

CakeMyDayLondon Rating