Temptations in Islington

Nowhere in this area really contends with these folk on quality for the price. In a time of harrowing inflation, you can get a really filling, healthy, and delicious lunch for the right price. I find it really hard to consider going anywhere else when I'm looking for food mid-day. They will give you less food for double the price everywhere neighbouring this cafe.

Really convenient place - staff super helpful and friendly, coffee is lovely, and there is wifi/plug sockets so ideal for getting a bit of work done near Highbury and Islington Station. A great find I’m happy I stumbled across.

Atmosphere and staff 10/10 the pasta Is nothing special so don't recommend but the wraps and coffee is AMAZING! if your near definitely check this hidden gem out.

1 of the best hot chocolates I've ever had!! 😋 plus was given a 4 hole cup holder which hasn't happened in a cafe before. Accomadating and professional. They need an Instagram or something?? I wish it was nearer to me ha!

First time in the area next door to Highbury and Islington Station. Grabbed a freshly packaged croissant and a tasty baguette in the morning. Welcoming and friendly staff and reasonable prices for the area. Keep up the great work and thanks.

Great little lunch spot. Nice baguette selection for lunch.

Surprisingly good coffee, fresh and tasty sandwiches, and lovely buddha bar type music that complete the atmosphere. Loved it!

Decent place, friendly staff, reasonable prices - went in early December and had a nice grilled sandwich only £4.50 or so, coffee had a nice option for a single or double shot for a only a bit extra. Staff were friendly and welcoming.

It probably does not have the attraction some places do but trust me the coffee is good. Nice place to stop for your morning pick me up.

Started grabbing my lunch from here; meal deal better value than tesco and 1000x better quality and flavour. Lovely freshly made food and service always friendly, brightens up my day!!

Hi Nilesh, & the Temptations team, thanks for the great lunch (and breakfast) you provided 15 of us at our Team day at our charity this week. the sandwich platters were great and loved by all. really tasty and great value for money. thanks,ajit

Always very pleasant. The coffee is excellent and I absolutely love the paninis and sandwiches which is difficult to find in London. Nice atmosphere and peaceful, never over crowded.

My local, really great people that run it! Coffee is always top notch

I would like to convey my genuine gratitude for the eating experience I had at The Temptations Cafe, and applaud the establishment for its great attributes. Based on my repeated visits to your institution, I can certainly affirm that the culinary offerings have continuously exhibited great quality. The Temptations Cafe is generally recognised as a highly esteemed place for customers in search of delicious and cosy home-style cooking. The service and food provided were of great quality, and the ambience of the location was quite pleasurable. The cost was considered fair, especially when considering the great quality of the meal. The whole excellence of the ambience, coffee, and furnishings is of remarkable quality. The location exhibits a serene and comfortable atmosphere, rendering it very suitable for engaging in scholarly endeavours as well as fostering social interactions with peers. Those in search of a unique vacation spot distinguished by its exceptional interior design should not disregard this prospect. Thank you for establishing such an exceptional sanctuary in the heart of Highbury and Islington. I extend my best wishes for your further success in your endeavours. May you be blessed abundantly.

Can’t believe I’ve not been in here before! The coffee was genuinely the best I’ve had in London and all the staff were really kind! Definitely going to grab some food next time (and they do 50% off food that would otherwise go to waste!)

Avoid at all cost. Coffee is horrible, service is horrendous and the food is not safe

The perfect place to eat any meal! We went for breakfast and was met with a variety of choices. The place was clean and the food display was organized and appealing. The staff was welcoming and friendly!

Fantastic sandwiches prepared with the freshest quality ingredients. Locally owned establishment with friendly service to boot

I visited this cafe for the first time today and I was blown away by the quality of the coffee and food. The latte was delicious and the baguettes was one of the best I've ever had. The staff was welcoming and helpful in navigating the menu. I'm so glad I found this hidden gem and I'll definitely be back.

I had the most amazing experience at this cafe! The atmosphere was cozy and welcoming, the staff was friendly and attentive, and the coffee and pastries were absolutely delicious. I can't wait to come back again soon.i’m

I decided to try out this cafe for the first time today and I was blown away. The cappuccino I ordered was perfectly crafted and the chocolate croissant was to die for. The decor is charming and cozy, and the staff was so friendly and welcoming. I'll definitely be back

This cafe has the best pastries in town, hands down. Every time I come here, I can't resist indulging in a croissant or two. The coffee is also great, but it's the baked goods that keep me coming back

Lovely food and lovely staff. Definitely worth visiting. :)

Very passionate owner and team. Very good range of products both expected and unexpected- clear to see some thought has gone into the menu. Very good prices. Regularly visit in the mornings.

Excellent smoothie and Earl Grey . Chocolate muffin to die for. Friendly and efficient service. Even the music added to the ambience. I little retreat amidst chaotic life.

I came to this fabulous cafe on Saturday and the staff were absolutely amazing people, they are so kind and have such great conversation. Additionally, their service was flawless and blew me away, they made an amazing coffee design along with the amazing taste of the coffee and they were so helpful despite my specific orders. Will definitely come again!

I came last weekend, and the customer service was incredible, the two young baristas were so sweet and the coffee was amazing, i really recommend

Great service, nice food and amazing coffee.

Amazing coffee and amazing staff! Brightens our day everyday!

Very yummy vegan & vegetarian options! Hot soups & vegan curry are delicious, also fresh salads, pasta & sandwiches. Waaaay better than pret! Super fresh & healthy food & friendly.

Great local cafe, with delicious food. Always greeted with a warm smile. Staff remember you and your favourite orders! Love to support local

This is a really great friendly coffee shop. Coffee service and food really good. Makes my commute to office just more enjoyable.

Warm and friendly service. Great coffee and good food. Sets you up for the day ahead!

Service is always welcoming and positive! A great range of food available! I always come here!! A family vibe

Temptations is my favourite for coffee - always excellent friendly service and great coffee.

Lovely service! Beautiful cafe and great prices :)

Lovely cafe, great menu fast service :) super friendly sly staff, I highly recommend this place

Awful Coffee. Ordered Cappuccino Take Away on Friday - Double Shot. It was like drinking hot milk. Dreadful. No coffee hit watsoever. I would of complained but was in a rush and had to board bus. Didn't help that the young lady making it was was too focused on laughing with her male counterpart hence she probably forgot to put any coffee into cup. Never again.

Tuna and avocado baguette 🥹 One of the best sandwiches I’ve ever had, so good I went back for another!

This place is underrated! Randomly went in for a quick lunch and ended up coming back most days while I was in Islington. All of their food is amazingly fresh and tastes great. They have a wide range of products, most days I couldn’t decide what looked best, staff is super friendly and service very quick!

Great customer service and really lovely staff

Very nice place lovely food at good prices I love this place if near by I nip in. Very friendly staff too.

I can not complain about the food here it’s decent, a little expensive but good quality however the customer service here was awful. I have been a few times and I have kids which for some reason they can not seem to have any patience for. I am always given dirty looks by the staff for the kids moving around, touching things or standing by the door or told very abruptly and Rudely by the staff to immediately stop them which obviously as the parent I would always try to do as understandably things may irritate people or cause inconvenience for them but sometimes kids will be kids and it’s hard to control their every move. There are better ways to approach people and a smile would not kill.

The boss is a nice professional ,Food is out class

I used to come here regularly when I went to college across the road but not been in years. It was just as good if not better than I remembered. Cracking value at a fiver for a big baguette, crisps and a drink. The crunchiness of the baguette is unmatched. The star of the show

I think this is one of the best cafe/sandwiches place in the area. The afternoon staff member is super kind, always smiling and helping. Food is great and very good quality/price.. It is a pleasure come here

This is my fav Indi cafe, my go to every Thursday. Great hot chocolate and love the lunchtime curry. The do a great rwnge of foods and nothing is to much trouble. Great staff, friendly and welcoming. Give this place w try, you will keep coming back. Allan

Big packaging but the quantity of food inside is laughable. What a joke. Ripping off people. Not coming back

The above average rating for this cafe lured me in but there were several red flags that I noticed. The beans used were "own brand", no latte art, and the guy absentmindedly steamed the milk while looking around. The first sip of the coffee burned my tongue, I shouldn't have been surprised, and the beans tasted horrible even after it cooled down. Can't speak for the food but it didn't look appealing anyway. Just avoid.

Excellent service. Excellent quality. 10/10 A+

I was waiting for my coffee and a plain croissant and when the young barista turned to the coffee machine to prepare it she asked another lady who was there to "please pass me the plain croissant"; the lady was wrongly giving me the chocolate croissant and blamed the other girl for her mistake. She literally said to her "you always do this and then blame me". I was shooked. I heard the entire conversation and couldn't believe my ears. I guess it takes a lot of confidence to be able to admit their mistakes and that lady was very irrespective towards the young girl who gave me a perfect service. I hope the manager sees this. That young barista has an amazing costumer service and a bright smile that made my day. I forgot to ask her name, but there were only two ladies working on the shop floor and the oldest didn't seem nice at all while the other, a young polite foreign girl was very competent.

This happened yesterday. I was waiting for my coffee and a plain croissant and when the young barista turned to the coffee machine to prepare it she asked another lady who was there to "please pass me the plain croissant"; the lady was wrongly giving me the chocolate croissant and blamed the other girl for her mistake. She literally said to her "you always do this and then blame me". I was shooked. I heard the entire conversation and couldn't believe my ears. I guess it takes a lot of confidence to be able to admit their mistakes and that lady was very irrespective towards the young girl who gave me a perfect service. I hope the manager sees this. That young barista has an amazing costumer service and a bright smile that made my day. I forgot to ask her name, but there were only two ladies working on the shop floor and the oldest didn't seem nice at all while the other, a young polite foreign girl was very competent.

Different options of food cold or warm. It was a very nice an the staff very friendly. Will be back

Unbelievably cheeky service.Whilst using the Too Good to Go app I was fobbed off by one of the staff with a salad and a bakery item that was clearly not up to scratch or up to the value of what had been. promised on the app. Was asked why I was complaining when I was getting it cheap anyway! ! Extremely rude service by someone clueless who has now business working with the public.

The coffee is good, the food acceptable and almost all fresh, but still what is unacceptable for me is the attitude of the two managers, probably brother and sister, towards the young ladies working on the shop floor. They have been called "fat" in front of me and another couple at the tills, lazy and slow. The lady owner called one of them chicken more than once. This is unacceptable, but I get that everybody needs a job.

Very nice coffee and pleasant staff

Very nice food, coffee with a biscuit and friendly staff members with warm smiles! :)

Delicious food and really reasonable price.

Great value, lovely coffee and food. Staff are friendly, good service.

Lovely place to eat 😋 great food & coffee ☕ Staff really lovely & friendly, will defo go again

It's simple amazing , I recommend for everyone to visit . Wonderful, inviting atmosphere , pleasant staff And the sweets are outstanding ☺️ Overall I am glad I passed by it . Great place !

Amazing coffee, brilliant service and delicious food. Wish I had one close to my place. Would go everyday!

Top notch food at very reasonable prices. Great place to grab coffee and breakfast. Staff are very friendly and welcoming.

Popped in here with my brother for a coffee with no expectations, the coffee was very good, but was blown away by the service from who I presume is the proprietor of the place. He was extremely friendly and couldn’t do enough for us, even offering a complementary plate of delicious pastries (after first checking if we had any allergies). It’s service like this that is woefully lacking from the soulless coffee corporations that are taking over our high streets, and so I urge everyone to visit this unique and wonderful cafe and keep local independent businesses alive!

This place is a gem. I'm vegan so usually end up with a dry sandwich. Had a lovely falafel salad with pepper humous only a fiver. Staff really nice too.

Was in London on a course and this wonderful place was just around the corner. I ate breakfast and lunch here everyday. So much choice food and drink wise, reasonably priced and staff treat you great. The atmosphere is so relaxing very zen, could just sit in here for hours with a cuppa and watch the world go by. Last day of my course the owner heard and bought me and several colleagues a free cupcake. Lovely touch

Staff are welcoming and friendly. Great selection of fresh and tasty food served in a clean and tidy store. Very reasonable prices

Great salad and a beer at 11am say no more!!

Pleasant place to have a snack on your way to work, study or just on a break.

Lovely place Clean Cheap Freindly people

One of my favourite cafes in Highbury! The staff are really friendly here and their coffee and food is great, I highly recommend it!

Great coffee, delicious food and friendly staff.

Great coffee and friendly staff 👌

Very good. Nice and friendly. I loved the Tom Tom Soup and my friend liked his Ham and cheese toastie

They do great coffees and hot drinks in general, the chai latte in particular is good! They also do really lovely sweet treats and the staff are always so friendly. Highlight recommend coming here if you're in the area.

Lovely staff, excellent coffee, tasty food; absolutely love it! 👌🏻.

Delicious hot paninis at excellent prices. Friendly staff A++

I go in there most days for my double espresso and a roll. The staff are great and very friendly with you, the food is good and priced fairly. I've never had a bad meal either. I use these guys over chains when I'm in thethe area now.

Was down in London for a couple weeks with work, found this little hidden gem, amazing fresh food, the mini quiche salad boxes are tasty as hell, If you in the area shop here up port local trade

Iam not sure some of these negative reviews- are these people talking about the same place. I like to support local so when i was in london for 3 weeks i tried to eat from where for lunch. The quiche salad boxes had a good section and full of flavour. Great selection of sandwiches hot and cold. spent 7 years in the service sector and i did not notice any issues with and hygiene issues, and maybe these negative review are more out of spite as i was very happy to eat from there.

I am so angry with how I was spoken to the manager of this cafe. He was quite rude towards me and clearly does not value my custom. This This morning I brought a slice of red velvet cake the lady that was serving me had served other customers before and proceeded to use her hands to manoeuvre the cake into a plastic food bag. I asked her politely if she could put on gloves before giving me the cake and asked for another slice instead. She still tried to serve me the same piece of cake. I told her politely that I did not want the cake that she touched with her bare hands and could she put on gloves. The manager came in from outside the street and proceeded to serve customers. Did not wash his hands!! He became very rude towards me and said that staff wash their hands but cannot wash them after every customer as that could cost him money as it would take up time and he would lose business. Told me that he was the CEO of the company. I really dont know why he thought it was relevant for me to know this. At this point there were customers queuing up waiting to be served and taking note of his outburst. I remained calm but felt embarrassed. As I had already paid for my items all I wanted to do was get my cake and get out of there. What they both did next was to ignore me and serve other customers. I told the manager that I am still waiting for my cake. After he had finished serving a customer then he served me. I reiterated calmly to him before I left that she had touched my cake and the inside of the cake bag with her bare hands then he said I will talk to her. I am shocked that basic food handling procedures were ignored and that both staff were very ignorant about me challenging how my food should be served. Even more so with the coronovius outbreak I would expect stringent hygiene procedures would be paramount. However, if business is more important than customers then I will take my business elsewhere. My black pound will be spent elsewhere.

Excellent coffee and a great selection of breakfast and lunch items

Decent place for a workday breakfast, lunch or brunch. Decent food, served quickly.

Super friendly staff all the time. Very speedy service as well. I look forward to my morning coffee from here when I’m at College!

Very good coffee and customer service

Wow nice clean friendly affordable and the food is delicious

Lovely and pretty coffee shop. Coffee was good. I asked to eat in and they gave my drink in a takeaway cup...shame.

Good quality, fresh food, we ordered platters from here several times, never disappoints.

Lovely little owner run business. Also wrap is yum. Looking forward to some more fusion. Happy to support the man and not the corporation.

Great coffee, friendly staff, relaxing background music, lovely little coffee shop :)

Good coffee but muffin was very dense, shame!

Bad food and disGUsTING service!!!

The Falafel Hot Wrap is delicious. Great choice of food and fully stocked even after the lunch rush hour. Best in the area in my opinion!

Vegan options available, friendly staff, good deals on the food every afternoon, large variety of salad and lunches, delicious toasties, perfect place to grab an amazing coffee before joining the crowded tub at Highbury Islington Station

Good for coffee, lunch and something sweet. Friendly staff. Nice to go to an independent cafe, as Islington is full of chains

Was disappointed that there were no ingredients on any of the packaging, the staff didn’t know whetherr tuna may and cucumber baguette had dairy in it, eventually found out that it didn’t! Bought it then found it was full of red onion which I don’t care for! For us with genuine allergies, a simple sticker on the food would be a great help! And if that’s not possible then your staff should be well versed on all the ingredients in all the products!! Won’t return!

The staff were inattentive, slow and indifferent. My coffee was handled by three members of staff before reaching me, with the lid handled to the extent that it could have bordered in unhygenic. The coffee was acceptable, but my muffin was dry.

New owners. Extremely weak coffee.

Temptations offers the best coffee and croissants in Islington, at a reasonable price. Sandwiches are also good. I could never try their 'chilli con carne', but it looked delicious. But the best thing about this coffee shop is the staff, very kind and attentive - I was a regular client, and when the staff saw me coming in, they started preparing my breakfast without having to order it, knowing that I always order the same. They also have a fidelity card - when you order 10 coffees, the next one is for free.

All the five star reviews here are totally deserved. Great staff. Perfect prices. Excellent food and coffee. Spot on.