Antipode — Restaurant in London

Antipode is a strange place. On paper its great: its a third-wave cafe with a good selection of retail coffee, serves natural wine, and opens late serving cocktails. However, I've lived around the corner from this place and I hardly ever go in. Why? The service and the vibe service really lets this place down. The guy with the long beard (who I think owns the place) literally looks at you like you've insulted him just by walking through the door. He'll serve you and make your coffee without even making eye contact - much less actually saying anything. I don't need 5 star service when I'm getting my morning coffee, but is a simple "hello" too much to ask for? Some of the other baristas are better on the service front, but bizarrely outside of the owner I've never seen the same barista twice here. Onto the coffee, its one of the most expensive in the area, and isn't nearly as good as it should be given what beans they're using. The only real positive of Antipode is that they often have some good coffee from the likes of Nomad and Square Mile. But overall, its a shame because I really want to like this place, and I think they have all the bones to be a great coffee shop, but the service (and as a result the vibe in the shop) and the coffee really just lets...

My 2 rating is a mix of a 1 as a lunch place and 3 as a coffee place. Indifference welcomed us both times we went. The first time my wife and I went, it was just for a quick espresso, which I'd say was ok. Attracted by the menu and ambience, we came back for lunch. That was regrettable. The service was very slow, despite it was only us and another two tables when we arrived vs 5 or 6 of staff. After 40 minutes of wait, we received one of three food items we ordered, a lukewarm acai bowl which was just fine, not very generous on the toppings. Another 20 minutes later came the BLT toastie and the French toast. The toastie was cold and not toasted, the focaccia bread was actually soggy and the bacon not at all crispy. The French toast was mushy, didn't taste good, not fluffy not crispy, nothing like a French toast should be. My wife only took a few bites and left it there. I asked for the bill and asked if I should come to the till to pay but they told me to wait for them to come wih the card reader. Another 10 minutes later we couldn't take it anymore and we went to pay at the counter and left. Not going back.

P.s. as they cook where they serve you, only go if you want your clothes and hair to smell of smoke and food. P.p.s...

I visited this cafe around 10.30am yesterday. Having sat at an empty table-for- two a waitress approached and started wiping down the table with a greasy cloth but didn’t acknowledge my presence even when I said hello. When the bearded waiter came to take my order I asked if there were any croissants or pastries available as the menu didn’t mention them. “Take a look on the counter by the door “ came his barked command (I’m flummoxed as to why he couldn’t just say “yes we have croissants/pastries “ ). Having duly complied with his command and made my way to the counter. When the waiter returned I ordered croissants and tea. He said I had to move from my table to the bar counter as he needed the table for other customers. The bar counter was already full with customers waiting to pick up take-away orders so I replied that I was unhappy about having to move. “You’ve no choice” was his retort to which I countered that he was mistaken because my choice was to walk out. This I did. The service staff need to drastically improve their customer care skills. It appears the cafe is over-trading on past reputation. The interior is shabby, dirty, unkempt and the...