The 1890s Victorian public toilet beneath Foley Street in Fitzrovia London, converted in 2013 into a basement coffee bar serving single-origin espresso and weekday brunch.
Tip: The urinals are the bar counter; the cubicles are dining banquettes. The Clerkenwell branch on Great Eastern Street has more workspace.
Address: 27a Foley Street, London W1W 6DY
Store Street Espresso's Bloomsbury cafe on Store Street in central London, opened 2012, runs Workshop and Origin beans in a long-corridor cafe popular with UCL students.
Signature drink: Single-origin filter
Tip: Communal long tables are laptop-friendly. Doors open 07:30 weekdays; closed Sundays.
Stephen Rapoport's first Department site on Leather Lane in Clerkenwell London, opened 2010, runs Roundhill Roastery beans and a tiled industrial-Victorian cafe space.
Signature drink: House espresso blend
Tip: The Leather Lane original takes laptops; their other 40-plus sites range from work-friendly to grab-and-go.
Robert Robinson's Notes Coffee on St Martin's Lane in Covent Garden London, opened 2010, runs an in-house roastery, a focused wine list at night and a daytime work cafe.
Signature drink: House espresso
Tip: The downstairs basement is the laptop-friendly room. After 18:00 it pivots to a small-plates wine bar.
Store Street Espresso's Bloomsbury cafe on Store Street in central London, opened 2012, runs Workshop and Origin beans in a long-corridor cafe popular with UCL students.
Signature drink: Single-origin filter
Tip: Communal long tables are laptop-friendly. Doors open 07:30 weekdays; closed Sundays.
Lori De Mori and Laura Jackson's Regent's Canal cafe between De Beauvoir and Haggerston Park in east London, opened 2010, an outdoor-only seasonal cafe (closed Nov-Mar).
Signature drink: Filter coffee
Tip: Open March to October only, daytime only, outdoor seats by the towpath. No bookings, cash and card.
Monmouth's Borough Market cafe in London, opened in this site in 2002 and trading as a coffee roaster since 1978, runs single-origin espresso at a standing counter near the market.
Signature drink: Single-origin espresso
Tip: Counter-and-bench seating only. Closed Sundays. The Covent Garden original on Monmouth Street is more laptop-tolerant.
Jeremy Challender and Gwilym Davies's Leather Lane training cafe in Clerkenwell London, opened 2009, runs a focused filter program and weekday-only opening.
Signature drink: Filter coffee
Tip: Open Mon-Fri only; closed weekends. Davies took the World Barista Champion title in 2009 with a Prufrock cup.
