Rate my Bistro

This is a nice enough cafe next door to the Sadlers Wells Theatre. At first, it looks like they only have a few of the high metal tables and chairs by the counter. But at the back, it opens out into the garden court area. This is indoors and is very light and airy.

The Stage Door Cafe prepares fresh sandwiches and then they are wrapped and displayed in the fridge. The ham and mustard wholegrain sandwich was good, although a little pricey. They also have a range of hot food such as jacket potatoes, pasta dishes, bakes and soup. These are all self service and are in open trays on the hot plate.

I was going to have the cauliflower soup but then when I lifted the lid of the soup container, the soup looked stale as if it had been sitting there all day. They had a range of cakes and brownies too.

The latte was nice and they do flavoured coffees too. The cafe also serves teas and hot chocolate.

A good place to come to relax before a show or even if you just want a quiet place to have a drink and a bite to eat. The cafe does get busy before a show performance.

Stage Door Cafe and Bar, Sadlers Wells Theatre, Rosebery Avenue, London, EC1R 4TN 

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I found myself at Sheen Lane again this week and decided to try the bacon and egg rolls offered by Cafe Leo.

Now being an old fashioned Northerner born and bred, when I order a bacon and egg butty, I expect to get an egg with some bacon slapped between two slices of bread (served up by someone who reminds me of an old school dinner lady!). That was until Cafe Leo on Sheen Lane reeducated me. 

The bacon and egg roll was nothing short of delicious (fresh crunchy roll, perfectly cooked egg with good quality bacon) and the side salad made this lunchtime snack a real treat. (Cue Yorkshire accent) Followed up with a cup of tea, the bill came to under a fiver.

The staff made me feel like an old friend and the atmosphere was very relaxing. Their menu consisted of various sandwiches, salads and pasta dishes. Your typical cafe menu with added class and service.

28a Sheen Lane, London, SW14 8LW

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We’ve been to Le Pain Quotidien many a time and it is good at any time of the day! It’s great to go early in the morning when the pastries are all fresh.

They do good quality croissants and pain au chocolat. The granola with yogurt could have done with more yogurt to balance out the amount of granola. I’ve tried their muffins and thought that they were tasty and not overly sweet. The individual fresh fruit tarts always look tempting too!

The organic mezze platter is great to share. It comprises of hummus, babaganoush (aubergine salad) and aubergine and tomato. The bread that comes with it is usually rye bread but you can ask for any bread from their selection. It is all very moreish!

The coffees, teas and hot chocolates are all good. They do serve soy milk. Their freshly squeezed orange juice is OK. I did like the Luscombe bottled juices that they do.

I really like the wooden decor in Le Pain Quotidien and the rustic feel that this bistro has. It has a big communal table as well as individual seating. The staff are always friendly and accommodating to any special dietary requests.

Le Pain Quotidien, 18 Great Marlborough Street, London, W1F 7HS

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This Parisian tea room is hidden away on the ground floor of the famous department store, Harrods. As soon as I entered, the colourful selection of macarons and the amazing display of cakes caught my eye!

The hot chocolate had the right creaminess and thickness. It was served to us in a pot and we just helped ourselves. There was enough hot chocolate for a couple of top-ups!

To go with our drinks, we had the millefeuille praline which was caramelized puff pastry, praline cream, almond pralines and crispy hazelnuts. Each mouthful was divine and heavenly! It really felt like we were indulging!

The macarons are Laduree’s speciality. We went for a selection of the mini macarons: pistachio, praline and caramel with superfine salt. They were all really crisp and smooth. The waitress accidently gave us an extra macaron but she did not charge us for it, even when we told her that we had not ordered it! Must have been our lucky day!

The service was a little slow, so don’t go here if you are in a hurry. The staff were all really friendly and didn’t rush us at all. It was a very relaxing atmosphere.

Personally, I would come here on an empty stomach as the cakes and drinks are filling. It is nice to get seating upstairs as this overlooks the counter displays!

Laduree Tea Room, Harrods, 87/135 Brompton Road, Knightsbridge, London, SW1X 7XL

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This vegetarian cafe had only been open for two weeks when we visited it. On entering, it was very spacious and had a nice atmosphere. Everything looked very new and clean. The staff seemed to be clearing up constantly so the cafe remained tidy.

There are a few comfy seats, as well as window seating and an additional area downstairs. The focal point to this cafe is the food boat. This is the open buffet that has cuisines to suit every taste. It’s a shame that this is buffet style. We would have preferred it if it was served from behind the counter. The food looked fresh and we saw that it was getting replenished often.

The tofu and tomato sandwich that we had was really good. It was a lot more appetising than it sounds. The tofu slices worked well with the balsamic vinegar and pesto. We asked the staff what type of bread it was and they just said that it was their house speciality bread. It had a nutty taste to it and was also a bit like ciabatta. We think that it may have been made with spelt flour!

We could tell that the cakes were also of a high quality. We had the cinnamon danish which was more of a brioche texture than flaky pastry. Definitely would go back and try out some more of their sweet treats!

Tibits have a good range of hot and cold drinks. They were very accommodating when I asked for a hot soya milk with hazelnut syrup, even though it was not on the menu. The cappuccino was also nice and creamy.

We found that the staff were really friendly and hope that this cafe stays this way even after many months of it being opened. Tibits is actually a Swiss company who pride themselves on quality ingredients and produce.

Tibits, 12-14 Heddon Street (off Regent Street), London, W1B 4DA

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