Pleasant, relaxed café with a nice outlook on a canal and the Olympic stadium. I had a Salmon and Cream Cheese Bagel and a Flat White and everything was great. I’m from New Zealand and the atmosphere(and music) really reminded me of cafes back home. Coffee was good, not great, but definitely passable. I’ll be back!
Sanj M.
Classificação do local: 4 London, United Kingdom
An amazing find for brunch, sitting in the no-man’s-land that is fast gentrifying into ‘someone’s-land’ on the Hackney side of the Olympic Park. The surrounding industrial estate doesn’t do much to raise expectations, so it’s a nice(if hipster cliché) treat to find the entrance through an art gallery, with tables both inside as well as outside on a canal-side floating pontoon. Obviously, head for the pontoon! I’ve only ever sat outside as luckily the sun has been shining, and I loved taking in the fresh air, passing kayaks and views over towards the stadium. That feeling that it gives me is the main selling point of this place I think. I really enjoyed my Turkish Eggs which were a blast of hot flavours with a nice amount of garlic yogurt and fat toast. My brunch buddies had the smoked salmon and eggs, and another time the full breakfast, which both had a nice home-made feel though for the portion size it’s clear you’re paying a premium for the canal-side setting. I found it amusingly tricky to tell the servers from the customers too, as it seemed various strangers kept walking past with one of them occasionally putting something down on our table. I really want to give this place 5 stars but its ordering system is a major flaw for me. You have to queue at the eponymous counter by the entrance before being seated, and the very pretty woman at the till enters your order excruciatingly slowly. I wondered if it was deliberate — I’m sure it’s very effective at slowing the flow of people coming in, but it’s a real pain in the ass when you’re halfway through your meal and you want another coffee. And now that the secret of this place seems to be out, you do run the risk of hungrily trekking all the way here to find that queue is half an hour long. That said, I know I’ll be back, and I’ve learned to order both OJ and coffee in one go! I love the walk along the canal to get here too much, and it’s a treat to stroll back home through the Park afterwards :)
Adel J.
Classificação do local: 3 London, United Kingdom
Went there with a good friend of mine, really nice place with a beautiful view of Olympic stadium, breakfast meals and coffee are tasty ! Worth it especially when sitting outside in the terrace
Joseph Y.
Classificação do local: 5 London, United Kingdom
Great food and location. The staff are very friendly and they also accept dogs! Make sure you check in early as it can get a bit busy.
Emma D.
Classificação do local: 1 Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Staff was very rude, and we waited more than one hour to get our food, which was disappointing. I would definitely not come back.
Meghana D.
Classificação do local: 4 New York, NY
Such a lovely place to spend a sunny Sunday. Beautiful location right by the water, in a quiet area that’s great to bring a group to. The food is great — had the French toast, which was excellent. The coffee also tastes great. I will definitely be back.
Geordie B.
Classificação do local: 5 Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
Such a wicked place to work, chill and drink AMAZINGCOFFEE! Highly recommended. They also have a great selection of pies and fresh breakfast and lunch options. Sitting on the pontoon and watching the house boats go by is lush!
Daecy B.
Classificação do local: 4 London, United Kingdom
I’ve been here a few times now. The location is lovely and relaxing and it’s perfect for some brunch on a sunny day. The food is great, but somehow every time I’ve been here my coffee has been forgotten! The staff are always quick to find it though hehe
Jen L.
Classificação do local: 5 London, United Kingdom
Was recommended the Counter Café for breakfast in the area and was not disappointed. Just a walk through the park from Westfields and Stratford, and right by Hackney Wick overground the café has a nice outdoor area over the canal and a good amount of indoor seating(you can sit upstairs too). We all got the eggs Benedict with salmon, and it was a really sizable portion with loads of hollandaise sauce and some fantastically orange yolked eggs.
Rachael D.
Classificação do local: 4 London, United Kingdom
Super awesome little café! Great place for a peaceful hideaway or for a friendly catchup! Pontoon outsode café with river view is really neat! Went there for brunch, my first time having eggs bene and I loved it :-) well worth it :-) :-)
Daphnée A.
Classificação do local: 4 Paris
Ce café/restaurant est situé sur le canal, c’est juste un coin parfait pour se relaxer, et apprécier son brunch avec une vue sympa. YUMMY Une bonne variété d’oeufs et autres plats sont disponibles sur leur menu(je recommande le Toast, Chorizo, Sausages & Marscapone). Cependant le plus intéressant chez Counter Café c’est les plats spéciaux inscrits sur leurs tableaux. Si dispo, testez les oeufs pochés avec des patates, une vraie tuerie ! Demandez aussi leur café maison pour accompagner votre plat. MONEYMONEYMONEY Comptez £7−10 pour votre plat LESPETITS + — Ils utilisent un torréfacteur de San Francisco ce qui explique que leur café est au top. — Ils proposent un catering service pour les soirées privées ou mariages.
Leona T.
Classificação do local: 4 London, United Kingdom
Good brekkie and nice to sit by the canal. Frequented by hipsters. Slightly overpriced
Trieu L.
Classificação do local: 4 London, United Kingdom
This is really one of those hipster coffee shops, I have also been here before for craft and art fairs. Spacious venue with high ceiling on a gorgeous spot hidden in hackney wick. The coffee shop sits at the back, where there is also a pontoon for outdoor seating, it has a view of the canal side and Olympic stadium. Inside its spacious and airy, and has that rustic relax feel. — and because its over looking the canal, it becomes a great place to «work» to talk and a pit stop for cyclist and joggers like me. The food and drinks served is as expected in any of these types of cafes in east London, I wouldn’t say delicatessen, but it tries to be, but I do like it –feels organic, and fresh, and great for instagram as long as the price is not too over inflated I am happy to support the movement. The venue and location is superb, it is great hanging spot and away from the hustle and because of that makes it 4 stars rather than 3.
Nicola H.
Classificação do local: 5 London, United Kingdom
I love this place! Great food at a reasonable price, awesome coffee roasted on site and a great atmosphere. Sitting on the pontoon, in the sun with the palm trees is the best.
Yon B.
Classificação do local: 5 London, United Kingdom
Great coffee. Delicious cake. Brilliant atmosphere and friendly staff. Cannot recommend highly enough.
Alba V.
Classificação do local: 5 London, United Kingdom
What a nice spot next to Stratford! I was missing something like this since I’m not longer living in Hoxton. I found it thanks to Unilocal(Awesome app, like always!). I went there on a Sunday morning and I tried their brunch menu with some coffee on the side. So good! My friend and I got a nice table outside(such a nice sunny winter day). It’s really nice because you can see the Olympic Stadium and the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, as well as the canal. I ordered eggs Benedict and my friend got the French Toast with berries. 2 lattes. All £20. Fair enough. Food was delicious and tasty and coffee perfect and strong. I’m so happy I have discovered this place! I’ll be back for sure. 5 starts.
Deb R.
Classificação do local: 4 London, United Kingdom
The food is delicious and the café is comfortable with huge sofas and great views over the canal and the Olympic stadium. It’s also got a pontoon that extends onto the canal, which is a delightful place to spend a Saturday afternoon. They are dog friendly so you can often find well behaved pooches to fuss over. After extensive field research I can confirm they do the best-poached eggs in Hackney /Tower Hamlets. Their French toast is indulgently delicious and a good way to justify dessert for breakfast. The porridge comes with yoghurt and fresh fruit allowing you to be healthy without feeling hard done by. I’m informed the coffee is excellent and the tea is tea pigs which is ok. A selection of fresh juices are usually available. On negative side: The food is a bit expensive and sometimes you’ll be waiting quite a while for it to arrive. I’m not a fan of their skinny Spanish(i think) sausages. However if the wait for food is likely to be over 40 mins they do let you know when you order. On a weekend morning there will be a queue and a wait of at least an hour if you arrive much after 11am. They’re open until 5pm but the kitchen closes at 3pm.
Anoop K.
Classificação do local: 5 London, United Kingdom
**FANFARE** My 100th review! I was saving it for somewhere I really liked. I originally was going to give The Counter Café 4 stars but something gave it that final star. More on that later. Firstly, a 5 – 7 min walk from Hackney Wick, The CC is right on the canal and some of the tables are on a… I don’t know what the official name is, but a ‘floaty bit’ *facepalm* outside with plenty of barges moored nearby, so whenever someone steps on or off it kinda wobbles a bit. My mum would never sit here ‘Im scared Anoop, we’re going to fall in!”. Whatevs, Mum. Anyway, fk’it. I had scrambled eggs with smoked salmon and it was sooooo good. Really light but very flavourful — hurrah for organic food! My espresso which I think was Rwandan was an interesting experience — I found it salty, was that deliberate? The staff were lovely, and I really liked the vibe that being amongst a gallery gave. So, next door, I don’t know what was going on, but I there seemed to be a party going, either a general bar area or one still happening from the night before. Anyway, cue lots of good looking people drinking wine and beer at 11:30am and playing(not too loudly) house music. Now in my opinion, anywhere that allows me to hear house music before midday and gives me an amazing breakfast, can only get 5 stars. And there, Ladies and Gentlemen is why I gave it 5 stars. PS My second choice was going to be the Turkish eggs which looked REALLY good, so bags that for next time. In conclusion, I shall be going back, yes :)
Therese L.
Classificação do local: 5 London, United Kingdom
I really adore this place, which is located along the Hertford Canal right at the eastern tip of Victoria Park. I first visited for a coffee after viewing a show at Stour Space Gallery, which the café shares its building with. I took note of the brunch menu because I’m a brunch fanatic and this was actually the site of my first brunch in London. You can sit outside alongside the canal with a coffee, a plate of perfectly cooked and presented veggie fry up, soak up the sun and watch the narrow boats and kayakers float by. The best thing about this place is that I have yet to experience it filled to capacity, even on a Saturday morning which is a miracle as Pavilion Café in nearby Victoria Park becomes a zoo on the weekends, The Proud Archivist and Broadway Market practically cave in under the hoards of brunch goers and you can just forget about trying to get a seat at The Blue Legume in Stokey. So thank God this place is still a little East End secret… Get here soon though, Buzzfeed has just named it one of the 20 best places for brunch in London. Awww, Bow, aren’t you up and coming you trendy thing, you.
Joyce V.
Classificação do local: 4 Hampstead Village, London, United Kingdom
This place has really transformed in the last couple of years. I recall the Stour Space’s damp divey party days. Then with the Olympiad Emerald city rising across the water, what was once a pretentious, pretty squalid arts space is now — just wondrous, warm and still a bit pretentious as an arts space,(but you know you love it). Both the Menamen or the Full English are superior. One brunch time I complimented the Dali tached, skinny jeaned waiter on the beautiful rich amber orangeyness of the yolk presented to me, looking like it was about to tantalisingly explode over a shard of my crispy, cuddled before it was made into bacon, bacon. It’s all Organic this and free/fair/faux that, they use Columbus black tail chickens eggs. Fancy I thought, rich and yellow yolks but he then showed me the yellow box,… No isa jus from a ze Sansbereeys, he honestly and blithely, Attractively put it. Sit out side on a chilly dry day and enjoy your brunch with the swans swanning around.
Riza R.
Classificação do local: 5 Orange County, CA
My kind of café! Converted warehouse, quirky, mismatched furniture, big glass windows, natural lights, high ceiling, cool music, pretty darn good food and views overlooking the canal and the London Olympic stadium! It really is as good as it gets. This local café seems to be an art gallery at the same time hence the installations art exhibits scattered around. I really enjoyed the old but artistic and relax vibe that the café exudes. I like it here so much I want to keep it a hush but wonderful café like this one will surely get popular in no time. Wi-fi connection here is strong and stable while and the ordering process is high tech(ipad) at the till. My only gripe is the location which is not so easily reachable but it is not enough to discourage me from coming back here or downgrade it one star less. Overall, a real gem in the East all the way!