The first thing you notice about England at night is that everything is closed. Rarely do shops that are not restaurants open after 9 pm, while most independent shops close at 6 or 7 pm. Really, there are times when you feel that you have no choice but to walk into a pub or club to have a good time in the evening, simply because there is nothing open except for McDonald's, and even they close off a significant part of the seating area so that only the places available are directly in front of the ordering area.
This was a huge problem for me, because I am the kind of person who wastes away the am hours to work frantically hard in the pm. Also, I prefer to read and study in cafes over coffee, even when I am by myself, than to be scooted up in a library. In a library, every little distraction annoys me, probably because it's a place where people are supposed to be quiet, whereas I do not even notice the white noise in the background in a buzzing, crowded Starbucks. (I think this has something to do with my 'defender of justice' psychology that makes me stressed under situations where people do not do what they should be doing.)
Anyway, this forced me to look far and wide for late-night cafes. And thanks to the amazing location of Dinwiddy House, the student accommodation that I was residing in, I was able to find good coffee at reasonably late hours within 15 minutes' walking distance. They were:
AMT Coffee, St. Pancras International (1st floor)
Go up the escalator and you will see a clutter of small shops with seating. They are usually open until 10:30 pm, altho when I once asked when they were closing, the manager said 'when people become scarce.' So I advise you to get a seat upstairs and 눈치껏 leave when customers stop coming in regularly. Their coffees and other drinks are around 2 pounds with a fixed cup size (Starbucks 'short'). Tends to taste very sweet, I LOVE their hot vanillas and hot chocolates, and you can get muffins and sandwiches at reasonable prices too although I recommend you have a Cornish pasty next door or crepes downstairs (near the toilets) if you are looking for a bite to eat.
Tinderbox, Upper St., Islington (near Angel tube station)
Open until 10 pm and provides very good coffee. A vast range of drinks at diverse price ranges. Near the start of Upper Street, but there aren't that many cafes (as I found out many times) down the street open at night. There are many pubs and bars open though, and also really cool and hip restaurants that look fun even just from the outside. I think Islington is very cool.
Also, the Starbucks on Oxford Street (there are several, but I mean the one near Tottenham Court Road), Cafe Nero across the road from the above Starbucks close quite late. Around 10, I think.
Here are some recommendations from an online source:
- In Soho around Old Compton Street there is a collection of late night coffee shops including Bar Italia, which is down Firth Street. Crowds of people usually fill the street on busy nights and especially between 12 and 3am. Fantastic place.
- Try the little Italian gellati (ice-cream) place just south of Leicester sq on the Charing X road – REAL italian ice-cream and proper coffee. Its not loud, though the music does suck occasionally. Not sure if it or its coffee is mellow enough for you, but worth a try.
- I’d recommend the lovely Cafe Ciao, which is at 17 Charing Cross Road. Not only is it a nice, quietish place for a coffee, but they do utterly fabulous ice cream, including a few dishes that are designed to look like pasta dishes (e.g. ‘spaghetti’ made from vanilla ice cream with ‘bolognese’ sauce made from strawberries). Well worth a trip, and open until late!
- Best place for late night coffee that I know is Bar Italia on Frith Street – it is the closest thing to Italy that I know, serves great coffee and delicious cakes and pastries. Just don’t go telling EVERYONE! To my mind it beats all the overpriced bars hands down, plus you can actually speak to your mate, rather than mouthing to each other…
Try these places, write me a postcard from there! ;^)