The Best Cafés and Coffee Shops in Camden

Smack bang in the heart of Camden Lock Market is Lantana. With branches also in Shoreditch and Fitzrovia, Lantana Camden is an Aussie-inspired café that serves up sandwiches, baked goods, including those Crack Cakes, and their own blend roasted by Alchemy. They train their baristas extremely well here so you’ll get your coffee just the way you like it.

Run by banker-turned-café owner Maria, The Coffee Shop is a real favourite with Camden locals. It’s a small and simple space, decked out mainly with reclaimed wood, but the countertop is always full of homemade cakes and the house roast from Monmouth always comes expertly poured.

After you’ve grabbed a cup of coffee and a cake, head straight to the back of Falla and Mocaer. Their plant-filled conservatory, with a large communal table in the middle, is flooded with natural light making it a great place to take five.

Camden Coffee House was born after owner Sunni spent three months touring the coffee shops of New Zealand. Now the Camden Coffee House empire has expanded from the original Camden Town branch into West and South London. Their coffee comes from Hasbean and the house espresso blend changes every ten weeks so they can match the coffee with the season. They keep it local with the tea too, which comes from the Camden Tea Co.

Find a little slice of New York City in the heart of Camden at The Bowery. The stars of the show at this café-bakery are the authentic NY bagels but their range of coffee, from a diner-style cup of joe to a flat white, is worth a look too.

The Fields Beneath is tucked under the arches next to Kentish Town West overground, making it a very handy spot for commuters. Even if you’re not catching a train it’s worth stopping by, especially if you’re vegan as they’ve recently switched to a completely plant-based menu. They also roast their own beans with Coffee by Tate with some more guest beans rotating on the menu.

If you want to pick up a new coffee machine, some beans and a cup of the strong stuff all at the same time, Doppio Coffee Warehouse Kentish Town is the place to do so. The warehouses are made up of a showroom, a workshop and a coffee bar so you can learn how to make great coffee at home, and they have over 15 blends to choose from.

It may appear to be a simple café from the outside but Leyas has a lot going on inside. They have their fingers on the pulse when it comes to the coffee, having used beans from Mission Coffee, Square Mile, Alchemy, Nude Espresso, Union and more. The café also plays host to a series of ‘extra curricular’ activities including art exhibitions and coffee tastings, so it’s worth keeping an eye out for their next event.

They weren’t lying when they named this place; The Little One really is little, although it still feels like a locals secret as it is set back from the main road. Their espresso blend changes every three months but always has layers of stone fruits and chocolate notes. Given the size it’s best to get your coffee to go.

Coffee has been roasted by George Constantinou since 1978 and nothing much has changed in the decades since. The shop is packed with sacks of beans and old-school machines – this is a technology-free zone, the like of which you don’t see much in this city any more. George only deals with six or seven coffees at a time but you can’t buy any drink, it’s bags of beans only (although everywhere in the local area serves his stuff). Once you get onto Delancey Street there’s no need to look out for the shop, just follow your nose.