Last week we visited Hop Scotch Café in Honor Oak Park. This particular café could not be more easily accessible, being 100 yards down the road from Honor Oak Park station, on an intersection of several bus routes, and having plenty of non-permit parking in the nearby streets.
Honor Oak Park itself is a quiet, tranquil area, and so ambient noise was minimal.
There is a cute little coffee garden at the back, and inside there’s a rustic collection of benches, wooden tables, and at the front a sofa and a couple of armchairs. We noticed a distinct "mumsy" feel during the day, as they play Disney films on the TV inside and serve “Babycinos”. However Hop Scotch has a lot advertised in the evenings, with a wide range of artists and bands performing throughout the week, and you can sense at night it changes from a chilled café to a vibrant bar.
From a work point of view there is free (unsecured) Wi-Fi and easily accessible plug sockets. The music selection is trendy and alternative, although perhaps a little loud for making work phone calls. Having visited here before I can say from experience that the coffee is consistently good, with a wide range of options offered. There is a lovely little food menu offering a twist on popular dishes, and prices for both food and drink are reasonable. When we visited there was no table service, and there was only one waitress serving, but as we were working we appreciated being left alone.
Overall our visit was a pleasant experience. It’s not the livliest place we've visited, but Hop Scotch provided a nice working environment provided you don’t need to make many phone calls, and a mellow place to meet friends for coffee. Just so long as you don’t mind the odd toddler running around your feet!
In our quest to find the perfect working atmosphere, we thought we’d try something a little different today, and we visited The Montpelier, an independent pub nestled in the backstreets of Peckham Rye. We were tempted by the Wi-Fi availability and their enticing website, and we were definitely not disappointed!
Parking in nearby streets is free, but the immediate streets are permit only, so you may have to walk for a few minutes to get there. Peckham Rye station is only a short 6-7 minute walk away too, so it’s quite accessible, with good connections via the London Overground line. Despite being so close to a very diverse and vibrant area, this pub is tucked away in a quiet and leafy backstreet, and so it’s very peaceful, and you could easily forget where you actually are!
The atmosphere at this pub hits you the minute you walk in the door. The first thing that caught my eye was a little sign that advertised the waiting list for the Back Room Cinema, which we later realised later is a function room at the back of the pub that’s been converted into a little cinema with chairs and a projection screen. The second thing that caught my eye was the piano in the corner, along with the signs showcasing the live music that’s available during the evenings and weekends. This pub is a creative haven, showcasing film and music for the local community.
The pub has a real vintage feel, with booth seats with tables along the windows and a central bar area that’s easily accessible from any corner of the pub. There’s also a huge variety of seats and other tables, and the pub itself is very spacious. The background music was jazzy but discreet, and so it didn’t disrupt us at all, which was pleasing given the problems we’ve had at other cafés. Plugs were also available under the booth seats which was an excellent added bonus for us.
We visited at lunchtime on a very hot day, and so we ordered a little food and a mixture of hot and cold drinks. The menu is quite unique, focusing on fresh, local, organic produce (their herbs are grown by their next-door neighbour!), and they had a selection of traditional lunch items and smaller dishes if you weren’t as hungry. However, remember this is a pub, so you won’t see quite the same range of lunch dishes as you may see in a more traditional café.
The Montpelier is a clear favourite for me of all the places we’ve visited, and I really recommend visiting, either during the afternoon for a quiet place to work, or in the evenings to see their more social side. The staff were very friendly and welcoming, and so we spent several pleasing hours in Peckham Rye.
Another sunny day, and another visit to a gem of a café, this time Blue Brick Café in East Dulwich. Located on Fellbrigg Road which is just off the main road (Lordship Lane), this café is tucked away in a quiet back street with seating both outside in the sunshine and inside. Parking in the surrounding streets is free, and the main road has many different bus routes running through it, as well as East Dulwich station a ten minute walk away.
A quirky, self-styled vegetarian bistro with a commitment to using local produce, this café has a laid-back atmosphere and is pleasantly decorated with vintage tables and chairs. It was an ideal spot for us to spend a couple of hours working in the afternoon, with Wi-Fi and table seats available (but no plugs so remember to charge beforehand!).
Although the food is all vegetarian or vegan, there’s a wide selection of high quality dishes, and so it was easy for us to select something from the menu. It also encouraged us to consider something different from what we would normally choose, which creating a refreshing and unique experience. There was also a good range of teas, coffees, and organic drinks. Prices are reasonable considering the area, but payment is by cash only so make sure you’ve been to the bank!
While not the largest café in the world, it was a quiet afternoon so we could work away with ease without feeling disturbed. However, being on the smaller side, there was a little bit of kitchen noise drifting through, and if the café was full it could become harder to work in that environment.
A lovely example of a small independent café nestled in the back streets of East Dulwich, and well worth a visit for something a little different from the normal coffee chains. Their commitment to organic local produce shines through, and their interesting menu left two self-confessed carnivores perfectly satisfied which was a pleasant surprise.
Continuing in the search for work-friendly cafés in South East London, we visited Braziliana Café in Crystal Palace. Located on Westow Hill, this Brazilian café is well located near the top of Crystal Palace Park, with free parking in the surrounding streets as well as several key bus routes nearby.
The café has wide front windows opening onto the street, and a choice of comfy or table seats. We selected window seats at a table, and although this is was a great spot for working, it should be noted that there is a lorry loading bay outside the shop which meant a lot of noise that disrupted a few of our phone calls. However, the café does have Wi-Fi access (code provided after ordering) and easily accessible plug sockets, which helped balance out the slight noise problem by the windows.
Drinks and food were reasonably priced and they had a selection of Brazilian cakes and pastries available at the counter. There was also an interesting shop area at the back of the café selling genuine Brazilian products. It should be noted that for a true coffee fan, the selection of coffees available wasn’t huge, and the food available is all distinctly Brazilian, but that didn’t pose a problem for us, and I happily sampled one of the Brazilian cakes.
The café has a community and family run feel, with pleasant décor and interesting Brazilian themed items located around the café. The background music was also Brazilian themed, and easy to listen to in the background, creating a pleasing atmosphere. There is a small function room downstairs which was being used for what looked like an English or Portuguese lesson, but this didn’t disturb the main café area at all. A toilet is also located downstairs which was immaculately clean and maintained. The staff were very pleasant and left us to work away in peace which was excellent for us, and we were able to pay by card which was an added bonus.
All in all it was an excellent place to work, with the only potential problem being the loading bay outside creating a little too much noise. Perhaps our timing was unfortunate as there were a number of different deliveries going on (our visit started from 10am), so we would recommend sitting further back in the café to avoid this.
So it's been a while since our last post...but we've come up with another little beauty. Herne Hill's Cafe Provencal. We're looking at this cafe with a slightly different slant as we we expand our search and look for a "work friendly" cafe. The current economic climate has spawned a new generation of entrepreneurs - myself included - who work remotely, from home, or in this case...from a cafe. You see them everywhere, tapping away on laptops or tablets, and so we began the search for somewhere that isn't Costa Coffee, Starbucks, or Cafe Nero. A mutually beneficial relationship with the independent coffee shop.
We were quite specific in what we were looking for: wi-fi, reasonable prices, an environment conducive to being able to work, and a bit of a spark...something that would make the cafe stand out from the rest. Somewhere you could recommend, a hidden gem. Cafe Provencal definitely fit the brief!
The location is easily accessible, right by a train station, along several bus routes and, although the immediate area is permit parking only from 12pm-2pm, there's parking just a 4-5 minute walk away. The wi-fi code is immediately provided, however unfortunately there are no plugs so make sure your electronic devices are fully charged!
As you go in there are 3 or 4 semi separate rooms, and so there is sufficient quiet/privacy to make phone calls if needed. That being said, the cafe is on a main road - and in the couple of hours we were there 4 or 5 emergency vehicles went by, sirens blaring. For families there is a dedicated "child-friendly" area in one of the rooms. Overall the atmosphere was great though, quiet enough to work but not loud enough to be disturbed.
Prices are reasonable, and the menu selection has a wide range available. Tea is served in vintage, mismatched tea cups and saucers. The staff were friendly and attentive, but didn't bother us - which was obviously great for working.
