Orange Pekoe

In good weather, you can be sure the outdoor tables at this perennially popular café on the Barnes/Mortlake border will be taken. Probably the indoor tables too: Orange Pekoe isn’t big, but it is bright thanks to a skylight and white-painted brick walls, prettified with a few decorative teacups and some statement wallpaper. There are no seats in the front room, which is dominated by the coffee machine and a counter displaying cakes and sandwiches, alongside a wall lined with black and gold tea canisters. More than 50 loose-leaf teas (black, oolong, green, white, yellow) and herbal infusions are available to buy: from a house breakfast blend for around a fiver per 100g, to a premium Japanese green tea at over £30. However, a pot of any tea costs £3.90 – a brilliant way of trying out new or unusual varieties. Food is excellent, from breakfast goodies (pastries, granola with prune compote, assorted egg dishes) via lunchtime savouries (ploughman’s and vegetarian platters, a daily soup, tart and salad) to afternoon tea of plump scones and finger sandwiches with or without champagne. Pekoe Royal – two poached eggs on a toasted muffin with spinach leaves and a big heap of high-quality smoked salmon – was indeed a regal treat.