London’s best cafés: My Place, Soho

If my world revolves around anything, it’s probably coffee. So not only do I take assessing the cafés of London very seriously, but it’s also something that’s very safe in my hands.

Of all those I’ve been to so far (new ones pop up faster than I can say macchiato), My Place, on Berwick St in Soho, comes out very near the top.

When a colleague recommended it to me a few months ago on the basis that it’s where she goes to write her novel, I knew it must be good. It did not disappoint, and, since my first visit I’ve been back so many times that the staff are starting to greet me by name – something I haven’t experienced since living in a village in Wales.

Note that although the vibe is 100% cute coffee shop, they also serve lunch and dinner. However, while the food is tasty (salads, pastas, ciabatta sandwiches), it errs on the side of overpriced for what you get, so my seasoned advice is to go first thing and make a beeline for the coffee and pastries.

Crucially, the coffee is an 11/10. I wouldn’t be featuring it on the site if it wasn’t (as a coffee snob, you won’t be reading about Costa or Starbuck’s here (which is okay because coffee snobbery is the one form of snobbery I allow myself)). But My Place is my happy place for more than just the good flat white.

With its exposed brickwork, low lighting and equally understated baristas, the café feels as though it embodies the borough of Soho. Looking around, you’ve got the creatives tapping away at laptops (definitely writing novels) or reading Arundhati Roy or peering at The New Yorker. Plus, the music being played in the background says it all – on comes Etta James, then Joni Mitchell’s voice graces the room.

It couldn’t be described as anything other than the idyllic café scene, so My Place has my heart.