Notes - Wellington St WC2

So the Twitter buzz was true and the wonderful Notes Music & Coffee has cloned itself - hooray!  Diving deeper into theatre-land from their original St Martins Lane location they have opened a lovely dual level shop on Wellington St, just near the Strand.  As well as the mighty fine coffee they are known for, this is a great place to have an evening glass of wine and plate of charcuterie (you can see some delicious meat being sliced in the snap).   The DVDs and CDs are downstairs and the whole place has a really chilled out vibe (does that make me sound like a hippy?).  Anyway - love these guys, love the fact they have opened a new gaff - all power to the mighty Notes.

Honest Burgers - Brixton Village Mkt SW9

I have written before about the wonderful Brixton Village Market but had not yet sampled the fare from Honest Burgers - which, given what burger junkies the other half and I are, is kinda surprising.  I had actually wanted to go there on my birthday London fiesta but after Broadway Market, Shoreditch, Knightsbridge and Soho we ran out of steam - so we rectified that on the weekend and popped in before going to the Ritzy.  Oh man, this was a goooooood burger - the reviews have been positive and the provenance of their meat is top notch (Ginger Pig) but it was even better than expected.  We went for the plain beef version and the coarse, perfectly seasoned patty sandwiched between exactly the right type of burger bun (so often this lets a burger down - but not here) was delicious (to give you an idea of how good this was, as I write this I am drooling like Homer Simpson - why oh why aren't Honest Burger open on Monday nights).  Triple cooked rustic fries are the perfect accompaniment - just get down there and try for yourself.  Oh yeah - I should add, great location, cool shopfront, great service, great vibe in the market itself - it's all good folks, what are you waiting for?!

StArt Coffee - Columbia Rd E2

An appendage to StArt Space, a gallery in Columbia Road, StArt Coffee is probably the smallest coffee bar I have encountered.  We visited at the end of a heavily caffeinated day - Hurwundeki, CapheVn, Prufrock - but still managed to sample the wares and they were pretty good.  As you can see our friend Rob was pretty happy with the whole experience.  Columbia Road is lovely on a Saturday - no crowds, quite peaceful - obviously no flowers but still lots of the shops are open and you can browse without the rubber-neck crowds.  I love the walk from Broadway Market through Columbia Road, over Shoreditch High St, through Arnold Circus to Redchurch Street and it's a caffeine wonderland.  I would happily do it every weekend.

Hurwundeki - Cambridge Heath Rd E2

I wish it wasn't so far to go for me to hang out in Broadway Market but it is, so I seem to only get here every couple of months.  Anyway, this post wasn't meant to be a whinge, it is to tell you about a really quirky and cool cafe that makes a fun pit-stop if you get weary in between Bethnal Green tube and Broadway market (or just can't wait another second for caffeine and food - which was the case with me and the other half on the weekend).  As you wander up Cambridge Heath Road/Mare Street (which is it at that point I wonder?)  you come across Hurwundeki.  At first glance this place looks like a tyre shop but on closer inspection, the mismatched tables and chairs and garden ornaments out the front indicate that there is something else going on.  We had a lovely flat white and a delicious egg muffin - perfect fare to fortify us for the remainder of the hipster trail.