please 'fess up your secret central london cafes - decent coffee, tolerant to kids AND

[AuraofDora]

somewhere my fussy snobby sister wont turn up her very turned up nose to!

not a chain
somewhere with a bit of finesse that doesn't cost the earth
somewhere we can pleasantly pass short amount of time

Am open about areas, will be around oxford st area but anywhere fairly central is fine..

c'mon help me before the hives arrive! it's our bi-decadely meeting, give me one less thing to be sniped at about

i is begging..

tia

.

Do you mean for a proper lunch? Or coffee and cake? If the latter, you could one of the cafes in Oxford St department stores. John Lewis or Selfridges. Nothing special and a bit out of town lady like. But nothing to quarrel with.

nkf
yes just coffee, swap presents, a 30 minute affair or we might hiss at each other in public...

I did think of selfridges, wondered if it would be chocca blok right now and john lewis cafe gets bit crowded..

was thinking there might be something near st christopher's place or maybe liberty's but would love a recommendation

she is very hard to please and frankly dont know why i bother

I like Konditor and Cook, it's a small chain (3 branches?). Very very nice food.

Leon is nice, too, if you want food, they have a branch right at Oxford Street (again, a chain, again, not big).

I would consider the dining rooms at the National Gallery. Really nice food and atmosphere, not manic and lots of room for little ones.

Plus she'll be really impressed if she's a bit snobby

Well, I am in town tomorrow and am fully expecting it to be chocka wherever I go. Leon is nice but it is small. The hotels around Oxford St will be quieter. There's a nice one on Portland Place. Langham's? I think that's its name. I've had tea there. That will be teh least shovey

NQC
she doesnt do food really, would either of them serve coffee?
i dont want any alcohol to be available either or my stopwatch will be on for 15 minutes..

I'll google them for exact location, thanks a lot

Maybe not helpful, but....why is it your responsibility to find the cafe when she's the one who is hard to please? Maybe let her make a suggestion.

I have a vague recollection of a nice bakery/cafe on Marylebone High Street, but can't recall the name. Maybe someone with a better memory can help.

ah, hotel is good idea but so dont want her to start drinking with ds around, unless i can see the exit
i see her so rarely and it is been a problem in the past i dont know what it is like now..

Cissy..national gallery dining rooms sounds lovely for normal folks but that would be food though and poss alcohol on sale..

i guess i could split after one cocktail but need my wits about me and she wont drink on her own and we will revert to childhood again and it will all go majorly kwrong
shit
the hives are here now!

Ah, Leon serves alcohol. Konditor and Cook deffo do coffee, I'm 99% sure they don't do alcohol. Really nice mince tarts.

if you are prepared to travel a tiny bit, there are some great cafes around Smithfield

gorgeous Austrian place

or French with fab patisserie

I would walk there from the west end but wouldn't blame you if you didn't fancy it. 10 mins walk from Chancery Lane, so you can whizz there from Oxford Circus.

I have the very place: the Poetry Cafe. Just round the corner from Covent Garden, child-friendly (though no changing facilities as such - just a big bathroom floor) (but they are friendly to children, if you see what I mean), does proper food and/or cakes, is never crowded, and is cool in a poetryish sort of way . I love it there!

Oh, there's 'Scandinavian Kitchen', I went there a few weeks back, it's very central, not a chain, I'm pretty sure they don't do alcohol. Nice decor. (I just bought a cinnamon roll and went out again, but I'd bet the coffee is good.)

(you would be able to get hold of booze at the Comptoir though)

earlybird
i kinda want to control things and suggest somewhere with no alcohol.. also she is only in town for a few days although used to live here

she likes swanky locations but i need to know its coffee only
infact it will be an expressssso n go for me, i hope!

There's a Paul on Portland Place. Nice enough coffee and seriously delicious patisserie.

monmouth coffee co less swanky, but definitely dry

They serve meals but it's more of an afternoon tea place imo. I can't recommend it highly enough and it will be away from the crowds.

It is licenced though.

Poetry cafe has booze. So does the Austrian place, at least according to its website. (Very glad to hear about that place, though, I'm going out with a friend and her newish Austrian boyfriend on Tuesday, just around the corner from there ... I have hopes that they may settle in London some day, and the existance of an Austrian deli is good news!)

The Austrian cafe has a branch at Coram's Fields at the weekends! Woohoo! Actual food at Coram's Fields!

NQC Kipferl is fab - does wonderful Lebkuchen and gingerbread at Christmas. I moved out of London a few weeks ago and really miss it.

Paul doesn't have booze, I don't think ... nice place, too.

Why on earth would anyone move out of London? Did you lose a bet or something?

OP, your sister sounds lovely, I don't understand why you see her so rarely!

these suggestions are great..so my kinda place the poetry cafe looks really nice,
i used to work around smithfield, boy, has it changed!

thanks guys..am checking them out

i am hoping (in my mind's eye) for a central busy location, where, when i leave, can meld into the crowd quickly for another 10 years or so..