This family-run café is the kind of place that gives a neighbourhood its heartbeat. You'll find seriously good coffee, towering slabs of artisan cake, and a welcome so warm you'll feel like a regular on your first visit. It's no fluke they've won Time Out's Best Coffee Shop in SW19 multiple times — this is the gold standard for local cafés in Colliers Wood.
A family-run Colliers Wood café with artisan cakes so good it's won Time Out's Best Coffee Shop in SW19 four times.
Go early on weekends — tables fill up fast, especially if you want to sit inside.
The neighbourhood café that puts chains to shame
Coffee in the Wood is the sort of place that makes you want to move to the neighbourhood. Tucked just a short walk from Colliers Wood station, this family-run café has built a fiercely loyal following — and once you've had their coffee and a slice of their chunky artisan cake, you'll understand why. The cakes here are genuinely impressive: generous, homemade, and constantly rotating, so there's always something new to tempt you. Reviewers rave about the vast selection and the quality of the baked goods, and they're not wrong.
What really sets this place apart, though, is the atmosphere. It's the kind of café where the staff remember your order, where you can sit inside or under cover outside, and where everything feels genuinely welcoming rather than transactional. They've won Time Out's Best Coffee Shop in SW19 four times — 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2018 — which tells you this isn't a flash in the pan. The coffee is consistently excellent, and the whole operation has the confident, unhurried feel of a business that knows exactly what it is.
If you're in the area, skip the chains and come here. Go early on weekends if you want a table — it gets busy for good reason.