Please note, The Idler Academy is now closed. Time Out Food & Drink Editors, Dec 2016
Tom Hodgkinson has made a career out of being idle. He edits 'The Idler' magazine, has written books on the subject (‘How to Be Idle’, ‘How to Be Free’ and ‘The Idle Parent’), and now he’s opened a café/bookshop/centre of learning, to spread the word further to like-minded loafers.
It's a lovely place to pass the time, with a tiny patio garden and ample space for lounging inside but the emphasis is not really on food here. Stop in for a Monmouth filter coffee, or tea and a slice of cake, and take some intellectual nourishment from the bookshelves packed with Plato, Virgil and ukuleles. If you want more, the shop hosts classes on an eclectic mix of classical subjects, three evenings a week.