There’s no doubt that we’re spoilt for choice when it comes to great local cafés, but my top spots for a seriously good cup of coffee in Wandsworth are...
1. Ground Coffee Society
79 Lower Richmond Rd, London SW15 1ET
This popular Putney café takes the time to source and roast its very own beans, and the results are delicious. The regular house blend ‘Caveman’ is on offer all year round, accompanied by seasonal speciality single origin coffees.
2. Brickwood
11 Hildreth St, London SW12 9RQ
These friendly Aussie inspired neighbourhood cafés found in Clapham, Tooting, Balham and Streatham are known throughout the capital for the quality of their coffee; the ‘Brickwood Blend’ is made by popular London roasters Caravan in Kings Cross.
3. 2Love Tea & Coffee House
Well-trained baristas and a great selection of top-notch coffee to choose from are the order of the day at this friendly Clapham café, including tasty beans from the ever-popular Monmouth Coffee Company.
Be a barista...
Don’t know your cappuccino from your cortado? Try a speciality course.
1. Popular café chain Artisan runs a friendly coffee school in Ealing, where you can learn everything from latte art and how to homebrew, through to professional roasting and barista skills.
2. As well as roasting its own coffee on site, Credo Coffee in Brentford offers a wide range of accredited and non-accredited courses, from barista skills and brewing to sensory analysis and machine maintenance.
3. Cosy café Flotsam & Jetsam in Wandsworth hosts a regular Barista Basics evening class aimed at all levels. Learn some basic barista skills that you can use at home, or perhaps even in a new career.
4. In the ‘coffee training lab’ at Kiss the Hippo in Richmond, you can learn key techniques in brewing coffee, creating latte art and more. Its Home Brewing workshops are led by Head of Coffee and current UK Barista Champion, Joshua Tarlo.