Workshop Coffee

Great new spot in London. Loved the clean, modern décor with a style that I can only describe as fine dining-​esque. Great flat whites. And the staff was wonderful.

Nothing better, anywhere. This is the best coffee I have had worldwide, and the staff are also outstanding, warm, polite, helpful, possibly the best service I’ve had as well. Go out of your way to visit this place!

+ for the coffee connoisseur
+ great for short, work meetings
+ tasty pastry
— price tag
A coffee-​loving colleague took me to Workshop on an early Tuesday afternoon. I confess I usually go for a daily Nespresso from the office for my daily boost of energy, so premium coffee isn’t really my thing. Nevertheless I have a few friends who take their coffee seriously so I get the profundity of seriously good coffee.
£3 for a cappuccino is quite a hefty price tag, but the taste was phenomenal. It wasn’t just the usual caffeinated bitterness coursing through my tastebuds, but a sweet and nuttiness that lasted moments. And without any bitterness lingering, my brain wanted another sip of that smooth and refreshing flavour, at the same time achieving complete cognitive dissonance and pondering whether I will become a hipster when I reach the last drop of nectar from the small cup.
And as I sat in one of the only half a dozen barstools available, I thought to myself perhaps next time I come I can complete my transition to hipsterdom by having standing meetings by the few high tables serving exactly that purpose, or bring my MacBook and lounge at one of the handful of comfy looking sofa in the other corner of the shop.
And then my short meeting was over and as I exited the Workshop I woke up from my dream to face the harsh reality of the real world. For a fleeting moment I thought I was living the life of a billion-​dollar startup founder, but at least now I know where I can go for a slice of escapism.

Friendly staff, lovely décor, amazing chocolate brownies and the best coffee in Holborn. Plus, they had Elliott Smith playing in the background.

During a recent foray to Holborn I was delighted to come across Workshop Coffee’s outpost here and had to pop in for a coffee. Specifically, an Aeropressed one, to go. The coffee was decent as ever, but the highlight was being able to geek out at length with the guy who served me (they weren’t very busy when I dropped by in the late afternoon) on brewing techniques — wow.
Unlike their Clerkenwell base the interior here is modern and slightly clinical. There is space to sit, but with more staff, a counter closer to the street, little food and indeed no wifi available, the emphasis here seems to be more on speedy service of coffee rather than escaping from the world with one’s choice of brew.

Workshop comes to Holborn! Perched up on the viaduct, Workshop’s first opening in a while is a sleek ultra modern affair which is apt given it neighbours tech giant Amazon.
I dropped in this morning and found the café to be nearly deserted. Drinking my perfectly brewed aeropress while listening to Jazz playing over the stereo system was a somewhat lonely affair. This said, I am sure that it will fill up substantially once more people realise it is here!
Food wise, Workshop focuses on sandwiches, cakes and pastries all of which looked lovely. I opted for a Bircher museli which was a little stodgy but had a really good quantity of tasty dried and fresh fruit inside. It felt like a healthy way to start the day, although I am probably misguided.
Another great addition to the City’s coffee options. I am now running out of days of the week for my coffee rota!