Hej Roastery in Southwark

This is my favourite place to grab a coffee and a bite to eat in Elephant & Castle by a mile. The staff are really friendly, everyone who works there is an absolute coffee nerd, all the coffee is roasted on site, half of their blends raise money for charity, and they take sustainability more seriously than any venue I've ever seen. Would recommend the Eggs Benedict and also the fresh salad bar for brunch/lunching options. There's also a huge outside area which really comes into its own in the warmer months. They have really fast WiFi as well – in Spring and Summer it's one of my favourite places to get highly caffeinated work done sitting outside with an iced coffee and a piece of cake. Bliss! P.S. They have a whisky flavoured coffee bean bag that they sell for £10. I've gifted it to half my family and it is INCREDIBLE.

I came here to work. *Great* ethical coffee, smoothie, vegan roll, spinach and feta pastry, salad...I made sure to buy enough comestibles to justify sitting here all day 😅

The coffee is great, but the service is not. Girl with dark hair, dark eyes and tattoo on the side of her neck - never a smile, never a thank you. I try my best to be polite every morning, but it’s as if the customers are unwanted by her!

Third time coming here for breakfast and the staff seems to be always having a bad day.

Honestly, very happy to pay the price of breakfast because they only hear you speak Spanish and they ask you in Spanish everything very good thanks thank you for the service I recommend it to all Spanish-speaking speakers

A peaceful and quiet place and a very pleasant atmosphere.. It has very good service. You can enjoy the atmosphere of this place I recommend the drinks to everyone, I was satisfied You can experience it for once. And share more about your experience so that more people can see your feedback. Thank you for your good coffee shop. Thank You

It's a great place to chill out and even do some work. Only problem this time was the Wifi was not working.

Great coffee, great food. Used to walk by this place on the way to Bermondsey at their old location. Great place to stop for a coffee and a bite, or whip open your laptop / read a book. Best almond croissant I’ve ever had!

Been wanting to come for quite some time and was terribl disappointed. Latte was mediocre. Default is large for some reason. Terribly cinnamon bun near opening time. Wasted calories. I asked if it was fresh before ordering and there was not an ounce of freshness to it. Worse thing is, person behind the till recommended it. Will not be returning. Nice place to sit in though

Just the most fabulous place: staff, coffee, food. Really innovative. Matcha latte highly recommended. Superb coffees for the connoisseur. Best find of the year!!

Went for the roastery experience a little while ago now, but it was a really awesome few hours. Your head roaster had great knowledge and was really open and engaging in conversation in all things coffee and equipment. We roasted a batch, tested a sample from the importer and did a mini-roast, tasted some cuppings, made a cocktail, got some.bags of beans and so much more. Would strongly recommend this experience! 👌

Food is sliding, service disorganised. Used to be a lot better. Refuse to do a lot of their brunch menu after 1100. Their Hollandaise makes me sad.

Four years ago I originally gave this place 5 stars and still love their coffee. But it’s gone down hill in terms of staff attitude and ability to actually get a coffee. I’m now only in the area a few weeks every year, but every time I’m here they have no coffee about 1 in 5 visits. Today it was closed for a competition (without any notice all week), last time I was here the coffee machine was broken.

An absolute favourite of ours. The staff is lovely and the place is welcoming. The coffee is fantastic and I'm a happy vegan with what they have on offer (although I'm definitely up for MORE cake!)

Great customer service - fast and tasty coffee

Fantastic coffee tasting and roasting experience with Benjamin, who was welcoming, calm, and incredibly knowledgeable

This is a beautiful space, BUT the service is poor and food is pricey. AND, It's not the first time it happens to me. I won't insist, I am not visiting again.

Great vibes, fairly quiet so it's a great place to do work even at weekends. Staff are lovely, and coffee is nice too. They also have a few board games - I've never played any but seems like a good selection.

Really great coffee and food selection, and all of the staff is very friendly and helpful. Lots of space for working on your laptop, though the wifi can be quite slow and inconsistent (doesn’t work on the patio either) - that would be my main critique!

Amazing coffee - roasted on site! The place smells amazing - the smell of fresh coffee and of fresh food is incredibly comforting. Friendly staff and good wifi- definitely recommend

Nice, pleasant café situated in a more quieter environment but close to Elephant and Castle transport Very good Coffee and selection of deli, Excellent free internet for those 1-2-1 business opportunities or social needs.Highly recommended.

Lovely space. Chilled atmosphere. Quiet area. Dog friendly and I love the dog photo wall.

Really good coffee! I was a little disappointed with the food though, I ordered the Brie baguette, and the food was all uncovered so the one they picked up to serve to me literally had a fly sitting on it for like two minutes before - I was watching the flies, and I completely understand that it’s summer, the shop needs to ventilated but the food being out and open is much less appetising when you see flies around and sat on the sandwiches, may I suggest a transparent covering maybe? Also, upon picking up my sandwich I did notice a little hair on the plate but I’m generally not one to make a fuss about this, I’ll brush it off the plate and move on, but just a note, others may not be so forgiving. In addition to this no one really greeted me when I came in so I didn’t know where to order or where to wait, I kinda awkwardly tried to make eye contact with someone until they acknowledged me (and I’m more than happy to wait to be served because I understand that there are orders that have come before me) but a little better hospitality would go a long way! Lastly I hadn’t even finished my drink before the barista took it away to clear it, there was a little left and it was taken from me before I could even have my last sip, felt like I was getting rushed out even though there was two hours until close. Last point! It’s such a lovely space to work and with the roasters in the back it smells DELICIOUS! just being let down in some areas, this place could genuinely be so great, key things are letting you down here.

Thank you for helping me to choose two bags of beans today. They are amazing and so tasty.

Nice place, but staff was more interested in talking between themselves, the girl that took our order wasn't interested at all in trying to explain what were the food options, she charged me for 3 sandwiches, and didn't bother to come and explainas her mistake, just pretended that it was all good. Paid £26.50 for 2 sandwiches and 2 orange juice.

Nice place although not very allergy friendly - asked for allergy friendly options and the server didn't even bother to check the allergy chart. All I got was 'don't think so'. I appreciate it's very possible not to have anything suitable but not even bothering to check and confirm isn't great. Would have been better if the server was either confident with their response or had checked the menu and said no.

Very tasty coffee... strongly recommend to try it .

We have been living in the area for over ten years. I still remember our exciting cheer when we saw Hej open especially we were loyal customer at Bermondsey Square already. Love the coffee taste! However recent service let it down badly and I really want to address to senior management about it. We ordered two coffees and a tea dining in today, the girl at the bar is very rude, said no refill when my husband asked her twice. First time she said wait a moment😅It’s very strange for a cafe not to offer tea refill just some hot water?! Even so, could she be more polite to say this is Hej’s special rule, not a simple NO?!

Service ⭐️⭐️ Coffee ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Pastry ⭐️⭐️ Not a good experience to me. They treated customer differently, allowed another customer interrupt while we placing order, try to push me to side while I’m going to finish collecting the stamp. The cinnamon rolls looks good but tasted like baked two days ago… big disappointment 😔 The toilet has no light and toilet paper. Am I coming for another coffee? Maybe nope. 👋

Coffee is nice but the croissants are garbage. £3 for something 10% as good as the ones in the lidl bakery section.

Wow, talk about spoilt for choice, Such a lovely display of gorgeous sandwiches I eventually settled on this delicious morsel. Rosemary focaccia with prosciutto, mozzarella, tomato rocket olive tapenade. And this little beauty did not disappoint

I give a 5star, because I am local, I come quite often, and I wish to do so, however.... someone's poor music choice now for weeks keeps chasing me away. Too loud, too cheesy, 2000's disco playlist interrupted with ads... c'mon!!! To slip on such an easily fixable issue... please! Especially when you want to sit down with a coffee, and trying to get something done on your computer... no chance.

A great place to take a breakfast or just to eat something while you have a small talk

Helooo sir u have whatsapp number

I go here a couple of times a week to work and study, staff are always really lovely and coffee is perfect. I love the size of this place, it means I can sit back and relax with my laptop without worrying I’m overstaying (which means inevitably I buy lunch.. and then another coffee..). Plug sockets are there if you need them, too. The cafe is dog friendly which is also a major perk. They usually have vegan options (though I’d love to see the vegan brownie return!). And finally - long live the £3.50 homemade salads ❤️

I bought a latte art voucher for two a few months ago and I have been emailing and calling in the hope of booking a class but have been consistently ignored. If this is no longer possible then I would like a refund. I don’t understand why it’s so hard to get in touch.

My favourite local coffee shop. The filter coffee is amazing (although it is so popular it often runs out), I love the oat lattes they do. Even decaf coffee is really good here. It's a great place to sit for a while if you're chatting, chilling or working. Dog friendly too as a bonus!

This is one of my regular cafes. The coffee is very good. The food is ok - it depends who is working. As a place for working and hanging - it is about the best around.

Unfriendly staff, very slow service, coffee was fine

What's the fuss about? Dunno what "high standards of service" customers are used to to be complaining this much. Everything was great -- good coffee, super friendly staff and a delicious brownie

For a place that outwardly cares about coffee, they need to better train their staff to make it. My flat white was bad enough for me to ask for it to be remade which they kindly did. Sadly the next one was equally poor. It was obvious to look at that neither were good. The coffee itself had a real sour note, and the oat milk had no texture.

Pastry bought on Sunday morning wasn't fresh. When you pay £3 for a bun you expect that at least it was made on the day. Coffe was alright.

So much promise but always a let down. Staff are totally disinterested and the food selection has gone badly downhill. The coffee is good however.

Always friendly and great service. Coffee is good and great music. Shame the Bermondsey square one has gone but elephant and castle one is much bigger so that’s great!

Smashing place! Coffees, drinks are all great! Staff and manager are all friendly and pleasant! Would definitely recommend.

Great coffee shop in my neighborhood~ The coffee is good and roasted in house! Delicious almond croissants as well 🤤 Their barista Ivan makes amazing drinks 💫

Tables, floors, cutlery, cups, toilets... all filthy. It smeels like burning, not roasting coffee. It took 20 minutes for an overpriced, flat cappuccino, which we had to collect ourselves. Avoid.

Service is average at best. The service person is not happy with her job. Food is alright, but coffee is not the best. It's too diluted. I would recommend double shot espresso. The atmosphere is pleasant and quiet.

Chill atmosphere, spacious and clean floor, delicious treats, big bright windows, and great coffee - what's not to love? Shout out to Ivan and Jordan, the two staff who were friendly, generous, kind and professional on the day before Christmas eve. Thank you!

The best place to drink coffee and relax to study, work, etc. listening to quiet music in the background

Great café to work from, it smells like popcorn because of the roasting, and they had a Christmas playlist on ^^ one of the best oat capuccinos I ever had. Only down is that WiFi was patchy, and I wish they had more lunch options (more salads, and soup!)

I was gifted the coffee roasting experience for my birthday and After reading some recent reviews I went in a-bit hesitant as to how the day would go but I could not have been more wrong. I absolutely loved the experience! The host was just perfect. He knew his stuff and I learnt so much and walked away completely satisfied. from start to finish it was great I would highly recommend the experience for me personally it’s been my best day in london so far :)

Avoid the coffee experience! My partner and I attended the coffee experience several months back and it was honestly the most disappointing experience I have ever been on. Andrea, the host, directed the whole experience to an older gentleman outside our group and only managed to make eye contact with me a total of 3 times. I'm not sure what his reasoning was for this, but quite frankly this came across extremely rude and disrespectful. The three-hour talk could have easily been cut down to one hour or two as this fell very boring very quickly; however, this could have also been down to the fact that there was no engagement or inclusivity. I didn't expect to leave the experience feeling frustrated and insulted but unfortunately, that was the case. The whole experience is ridiculously overpriced and I feel horrified having paid £120 to watch a man read from a book, occasionally showing a picture to one of the other guests. I have since emailed Hej asking to speak to customer support and have not received any reply. An all-round disappointing service.

I really want to like this place since we live nearby and it’s got a great vibe (lots of seating, good music, well decorated) - but the service is just awful! We waited 20 minutes for coffees only to find out they lost our order. There are so many people working here but they just seem so disorganised and like they don’t coordinate with each other. Head up to Bermondsey street for better options!

I kept postponing giving it a review because of the business was probably struggling through lockdown, but it just feels like the this place has gone from bad to worse. Subpar, overpriced coffee, 50% of the time they will burn the coffee. If it’s more than 5 people in the shop, get ready to wait a long time. Bakery products not great either. Worst of all, they try to portray themselves as a Swedish brand with Scandi elements, but there’s nothing Swedish about it - not the owners, not the staff, not the food or coffee. Invest in training your staff, is it that hard? Update: waited 20 mins for the coffee, only to be told that they lost our order and we just wasted our time.

Superb coffee, roasted by the Hej team too, perfect flavour notes and made lovingly by baristas who know what their doing! Great foodie items too, along with snacks & pastries. Perhaps a hidden gem off the bustling Elephant & Castle main roads but this one is very much worth every step in the walk there -- top marks! 5 outta 5!

Friendly staff and great coffee

Good coffee and food. Lovely service. Nice working environment too.

Lovely coffee, attentive staff and lots of seating, dog friendly with a water bowl and treats. Great selection of pastries and sandwiches, highly recommend

Tables, floor and bathroom filthy. Staff uninterested and unfriendly. Out of hot food. Wifi down. Such a shame as with a bit of TLC could be a really great place for locals.....

Atmosphere is very nice and cool. I love their design. Coffee is also good only the cakes need improvement I believe but in total I like it.

Gets 2stars purely because the staff were friendly. Coffee was fair, but the biggest problem for me was the fact they don't take cash, so obviously they are not open to everyone. A cashless society is not for me. I won't be coming back.

The coffee at this place is yum (but make sure you ask for extra hot or else it tends to be warm rather than hot) and it's comfortable and pleasant inside. But their food is so outrageously expensive - I'm always taken aback by the price of the sausage rolls!

Quick friendly service, decent food. Free Wifi with ok speed. Decent bathrooms. Good for a quick classic unpretentious coffee shop.

Good coffee and nice pastries! Staff are really nice. Perfect place for studying and even has some sockets available for charging.

If I could put 0 stars I would ordered and paid coffees they charged me immediately but they never sent me the coffees and after 3 emails to them I still wait for an answer as they completely ignore me 1 month after they got my money to send me nothing

Poor food and service is hit and miss. Toast and muffins stale and burned. Hot chocolate tasted sour. Coffee is average. 2 stars for location and facilities.

My partner and I did the coffee experience at Hej at Elephant and Castle a few weeks ago. We learnt so much about the entire process of coffee, from growing to fermenting to roasting and finally to cupping, it was truly eye-opening - and delicious coffee! We especially enjoyed Andrea's enthusiasm and willingness to answer every question of ours. Thank you for an excellent day!

Post swimming with toddler brunch. Delicious bacon brioche and sausage rolls. Plus games to distract young ones. Nice staff too.

Lovely coffee, dog friendly, friendly staff but sadly doesn't take cash anymore hence the 3 stars.

Coffee was okay but the pastries was dry. Would not recommend.

the best coffee in Elephant or even central London. Scrumptious cakes and sandwiches. Freshly roasted coffee smell unbeatable. Additional bonus you can borrow bicycle pump

A welcome coffee place in the area. Airy and sizeable inside, good range of pastries and bacon brioche is great

Lovely place. Very friendly too. I recommend the special coffees too. In fact I think they are expanding to a coffee based cocktail and draft beer so can now cater beyond coffee and tea. Enjoy!

Lattes are too weak, whilst the coffee has a slightly earthy taste that isn’t great.

Food is good value and quality. The staff, however, provide poor customer service. Uninterested, slow and indifferent

Lucky the bacon rolls are top tier. After half-a-dozen trips, can say I have never met such a persistently unhappy/rude bunch of staff. Comedic when juxtaposed with the "always served with a smile" banner plastered outside the front.

Always enjoy this place. Lovely atmosphere, great service and good food and hot drinks.

Staff were aggressive and food was average. Pretty sure they spat in my food

Ran out of eggs (sunday morning), no refund

It's okay, the downside is that if you wanna work there or study, the music is too loud for that

Staff are really rude and make you feel like they are doing you a favour by allowing you to come in and get a coffee. I slid my face mask down for a split second to use my Apple Pay so I could pay for my coffee and pastry (so I can support your business) and was rudely told to not remove my mask. I understand there are COVID rules in place to protect everyones safety but there Is a way of speaking to people without talking down to them, it also wouldn't hurt to use your common sense and understand that by removing the mask for such a short period of time isn't going to put any threat on to you especially when I'm so far away from you and no one else in the shop at the time. I was also told you don't take American Express or cash so had to try a third method of payment to try and pay. Will not be back!

Lovely staff, juice was delicious, wine was also nice.

Nice place and great customer service Strongly recommended

I got advice on buying a coffee machine and beans and found the staff brilliant. Love the coffee and the pastries. Apple cake is our fave

I live in Elephant and Castle and when I need a good coffee I do 10min walk to Hej. The place smells nice (the coffee is roasted there), they grind the coffee to your request and offer a very good variety of coffee to choose from. The music selection made the atmosphere cool and staff was friendly. I tried the vegan banana cake and was delicious! Worth the walk to Hej.

Be careful, this is the kind of place where they they automatically charge you for a large coffee instead of a regular. Staff got quite snooty with me when I questioned this.

Nice food and staff. Have only experience here during pandemic lockdown so have not seen it in full service. Will review again and increase rating if selection increases.

Why don’t you take Amex??? At the prices you charge you are hardly working on tight margins!

Easy going staff... Great carrot cake... initially though portion was on small side but to be fair it was just about right

Really great place! Had the sweet potato, coconut milk and curry soup and it was delicious! Highly recommended!

What a lovely coffee house! Staff are super friendly and lovely and the food is fresh and delicious!

Staff is not nice, rude and unsympathetic staff,just try to be more professional in term of service, and they treat customers in a really unfriendly manner. Not sure i will support this local business, not worth it.

Coffee was delightful. One of the best that I've had in London.

Friendly, warm and welcoming. A fantastic place to come to visit whether it be for a quick stop to grab a coffee or to stay and have a meal. Their food is always of the highest standard and the evolving menu is brilliant. During lockdown it has the one place that has kept me sane! Hygiene levels are always on point.

Best coffee in London!! Great team of people who are welcoming and make each visit to Hej a pleasure. For people who love their coffee this is the place to go.

Always 👌when not in lockdown a decent place to do some work, outdoor seating available too.

Amazing coffee and lovely people!

Super high quality coffee served by very knowledgable and consistent barista. Excellent also to have roastery on site, with a great choice of single origin coffees that can be bought either ground or in beans.

Great to drop by for an excellent coffee and their Reuben sandwiches are superb.