London's best Coffee Cup

What I want - is a proper cup ‘o coffee,
Made in a proper copper coffee pot.
I may be off my dot,
But I want a cup ‘o coffee from a proper coffee pot.
Iron coffee pots and tin coffee pots - they’re no use to me.
If I can’t have a proper cup 'o coffee from a proper copper coffee pot - I’ll have a cup ‘a tea.
(Old English Music Hall song)

Nothing is worse than the insult of luke-warm muddy liquid in a leaking paper cup that some people call coffee. London has an array of fantastic coffee houses of varying standards and trudging through the deepest, darkest streets I bring you the best cup of 'Joe' to be found.

Most of these coffee havens are in Soho, providing busy Londoners with their daily buzz, and it's due to the competition that the standards have been raised. The best of the best has to be 'flat white.' on Berwick Street. Stuart from Tonbridge says 'Flat white is one of the very best coffee shops in London, great vibe and perfect coffee skilfully served.' Serving refined artisan style coffee prevalent in Australian and New Zealand cafes, its flavoursome brew has won the place several awards. It's hidden down the busy street but a spectacular find.

Another Soho coffee gem is Bar Italia on Frith Street. LBC listener Elena in a huge fan, "They kept me going when I used to work overnights. Open until all hours they serve great coffee in a friendly manner." It's an 'all night institution', opened in 1923 and was actually the spot where television was first demonstrated by John Logie Baird. It's also in a prime people-watching location, so if you have an afternoon to spare, pop in.

Described as a 'Coffee Mecca', Monmouth Coffee House in Covent Garden has a coffee cult following. They sell speciality roasts and they have a changing roast of the day which keeps people coming back for more. When you place an order - even for filter coffee - the beans are ground to spec and a diminutive individual cup is freshly brewed for you by the barista. Mathew from Highbury says "I love their beans, I love their roast of the day, I love their truffles, I love their ethics, I love their tiny seats and I love their staff - because they love coffee too."

Out of Soho good quality coffee is harder to find. One cafe hidden south of the river is Royal Teas in Greenwich. Don't be fooled by its name, it serves high-quality roasts. Rebecca from Greenwich says "The coffee is really much better at Royal Teas than at any of the big coffee chains, and a lot cheaper."

Pancake Daze

Don't 'flip out' this Pancake day, if tossing isn't your forte try one of these creperies.

Every year on Pancake day I can guarantee I will call my mother and ask her step by step instructions how to create the perfect pancake and every year my kitchen (and last year my cat!) is covered in batter. So this year I say rubbish to the frying pan and will head out to one of the many great Pancake Houses of London.

I've been trying them out in preparation for the day and have whittled down the selection to the best.

My Old Dutch in Chelsea was my first port of call on the pancake hunt. It was on a recommendation that I went here and I was glad I made the effort; Chelsea is a little out of my usual stomping ground. The service as fast and friendly, as it should be in a pancake house, and there was a large selection of savoury treats flipped to order. I'll place a warning here - Pancake Day here will be manic, expect staff to be tossing out in the streets and a packed restaurant. It was last year, so to avoid disappointment book early.

There are variations of pancakes and the French do Crepes. They are thinner and cooked on a flat hot plate rather than in a pan. Cafe Creperie in South Kensington is the superior creperie in London with it's understated no nonsense atmosphere and inspiring menu. It is a small listed building, which is what gives it its character and charm, but does result in you often having to wait for a table.

If you are feeling a little bit pancake fanatic then I would highly recommend The Club Bar and Dining in Soho. The lovely chef's here have thought I a starter, main and dessert choice of pancakes for your taste buds pleasure. We will highly recommend their corn fed chicken, on a tarragon pancake with mushrooms and parmesan sauce. Yep, I dribbled at that too.

American short stack pancakes is how our transatlantic friends favourites and my final choice. Start your day with some of the fattening, filling and smaller version of Shrove Tuesday's delicacy. Eagle Bar Diner in Soho has to be my venue of choice for this. You have the choice of Canadian maple syrup, bacon and Canadian maple syrup, ham and eggs or Blueberries as a topping. This is a fantastic hidden gem and a perfect way to start your Tuesday.

Hangover heaven - Josephs Cafe

This little cafe is one of many down the high street but this one I have a real love for. On many Saturday morning I have walked the short journey down towards this greasy haven. The food is surprisingly tasty and the portions large. They will put any items together to create your ideal breakfast, even if the waitress will scowl at you. The ketchup is vinegary and the decor very pine but the classic London cafe charm fills this place and my heart every time I visit. Definitely recommend on a lazy weekend for cheap eats..

Joseph's - 137 Stoke Newington High Street London N16 0NY

Rock-A-Billy Rebels

The phrase 'Rock-A-Billy Rebels' would normally instill fear into my life particularly when placed in Shoreditch, but this has to be one of the best nights out I've had in a while. Considering how much I go out you should not take that statement lightly.

Every now and then Ye Old Axe, 69 Hackney Road, holds an evening that even if you have only ever listened to one Elvis Presley track and enjoyed it, you should consider going to. The night starts at 12pm and goes on til 6am, it does get busy so I would suggest that you get your stamp and pay your £10 sooner rather than later. ‘£10!’ I hear you cry…it may seem a little steep to hear a couple of DJs you have never heard of before but this is such an unusual night it is worth it. The place is packed with packs of leather clad biker boys and hair slicked back with so much gel it’s a teenage boys dream. I reckon that over 50% of the people there were in Rockabilly costume, myself included.

The only down side to this place is the girls that put great effort into their costumes and scowl if you spill some drink on them or stand on their peep-toed shoes. Seriously, this place is for having a great night not looking like a perfect pin-up, although they are quite nice to look at!The dancing is fast and fuelled by fair priced drinks served by extremely friendly bar staff. This place is a gem in what can be a Shoreditch nightmare. The night has been going a while and every week more people turn up. This I expect will just continue. Retro culture is upon us and is growing. The next night is on the 16th February, I’ll be seeing you there.

Bored?

How much of your time do you spend bored? Erm…well I unfortunately am going to answer that with ‘a lot’. I think on average I spend 78% of my life in this state of mind, I bored right now.

So it only seems appropriate that the short-attention-span, Facebook friendly, mySpace infused generation that we are should have an evening of entertainment named after their general mental state. It works for me anyway.
Like all the best ideas it’s the creation of a couple of guys sat down the pub with nothing better to do than sit and get drunk. The difference is that these lads got off their arses and did something about it. The first night was in the nippy months of late last year and due to this I felt I had to consume my body weight in rum rather than wear a coat. This could have added to my enjoyment of the night but it is a fact I feel I should involve in this entry.

Barden’s Boudoir, I always feel is a little over priced for its sticky carpets and doorless toilet but Bored is the exception with entry being a mere £5. The first night’s line up was good enough to tap your foot to with the headline act being the ‘GingerBread Men’. (Apparently they were on some TV programme, but really their rocky/indie thing isn’t half bad.)

The blend of good DJs and mix of live music makes this mid-week event something that is actually worth getting off the sofa for.

Have you been?
Let me know what you thought?