The Larder in Redbridge

Terrible food, horrible dark atmosphere - there was 2 members of staff - the younger one was ok the older one had an attitude kept on staring and whispering, not friendly, or welcoming and created a bad atmosphere. ordered eggs on toast , ( not much on the menu to choose from) Couldn’t eat the snotty eggs or the thick stale tough dry bread. Others couldn’t eat what they ordered, food definitely not up to standard. Did initially order scrambled eggs. Staff came back saying they only do scrambled eggs on weekends? Really? Lol- ( chef couldn’t be bothered) How long does it take to scramble eggs? Didn’t bother to complain to staff, would have been a waste of time, ( hence the honest review )and didn’t want to sample any other stale badly cooked food, so just left the uneaten nasty food, that should have spoken volumes. Party of 4 said they definitely wouldn’t return. Very disappointing. I should have listened to my instinct's, and left immediately, but at least we can warn others now.

Ordered Brie and chilli jam baguette. Baguette was old and completely stale. I returned it to no apology, just a suggestion that it was hard because it had been toasted. I know the difference between stale and toasted, thank you. I also know that if you toast a stale baguette, you get a stale, toasted baguette. Hmm. They did make me a new one, but this came in a different type of roll (not a baguette, so clearly the baguettes WERE all stale & they’d hoped I wouldn’t complain). This follows an afternoon tea I had a few weeks ago, in which the scones were stale. I used to enjoy eating here but am done now and won’t go back; too many other great coffee shops in the High Street to risk being palmed off with stale produce.

Only popped in for a coffee with friend. Good choice and quick service.

Lovely place for a brunch. Good variety in the menu and good coffee.

Lovely relaxing cafe in the heart of wanstead. Good selection of food and plenty of space to sit and chat. Coffee could be better but not an artisan place so that is ok. They serve a nice bacon or sausage butty. There is food to buy as well though it gets lost in the scheme of things....as is often the case where cafes try to offer too much. Open to community and group meetings so a big plus for that. Staff are lovely

Full english brunch very good. Nice surroundings and service. Good value.

Wonderful service by everyone here. The homemade scones are the best I have had in years.

I’ve been trying out various places in Wanstead for breakfast, and this is the best I’ve come across so far. I had the English breakfast with sausage ( alternative is bacon), and as cafe breakfasts go it was pretty good! The main “unique selling point”, which will make me return here, is that the sausage was exceptionally tasty and proper meaty, not the anaemic gristly versions that most cafes offer! The mixed beans in a slightly spicy sauce made a nice change from the usual tinned baked beans. The large flat ( half) mushroom was tasty, and the tomatoes on the vine were lovely. The only slight disappointment was the egg, very small and not tasty - on enquiry it seems their eggs are “baked” not fried, so no chance of a nice runny yolk. Their coffee was also well above the average cafe coffee, strong and tasted of coffee, not watery and anaemic! The staff were efficient and friendly. The ambience is great, a spacious place with room for families with small children and solo visitors like me. I would very much recommend this place, which is better than all the other Wanstead cafes I have visited!

I was waiting 30 mins to be served and I left without any drink. Few people of the staff promised to bring me my drink and no one did it. So disappointed!!!

Been to this Larder many times over the year's lovely interior and decour! Great coffee and reasonably priced the only downsized is the service is often slow.

Just a really nice coffee shop - very helpful and friendly staff

Ok this is another level. I feel like I'm in the Ivy, albeit rather far away from King's Road I must say. There's somthing about this place which delivers an atmosphere akin to sitting in nature. Hard to describe but it's less modern, more old school cozy/ rustic and that's what makes the place so relaxing. What works in its favour is the sheer size of the place across 2 shop ground sloor spaces. It's beautiful. I'll be back for more. Oh any the coffee. Its artisan indeed. Smoother, creamier texture, fruity and a long finish. Certainly not just any old coffee. This is a safe bet. Enjoy.

I experienced biggest racism in my life! Me and friends of mine went to the object to eat something because we were starving. 20min after we ordered I went to ask what's happened with our order and the lady there said she will check and take care of it. After 10 more minutes (half an hour all together) I went back and she told me she can gave me refund. They refused to gave us food because we're East European and spoke in our language. The rest of the people were British or at least 95% of them at that moment. It was like we are not worthy enough to be there!

I experienced biggest racism in my life! Me and friends of mine went to the object to eat something because we were starving. 20min after we ordered I went to ask what's happened with our order and the lady there said she will check and take care of it. After 10 more minutes (half an hour all together) I went back and she told me she can gave me refund. They refused to gave us food because we're East European and spoke in our language. The rest of the people were British or at least 95% of them at that moment. It was like we are not worthy enough to be there!

Waiting 30 min for a slice of cheese and beans.. 2 times reminding them and they don't care! AVOID

Had the brie and chilli jam baguette, very disappointed! Bread was stale and jam was dropped in the middle instead of evenly distributed so 3/4 of the baguette was dry. Definitely not value for money

We would like to thank the team at the Larder for providing the catering for a funeral tea. They were super professional, the food was delivered exactly as asked, was well presented and delicious. We would definitely recommend

We booked afternoon tea for 4 of us this week. All in all, we enjoyed the food and decided that we would come back again. We enjoyed a glass of prosecco each, but would have been happy to have more! The sandwiches were lovely - crusty bread with tasty fillings. There was a good choice of cake too, although we couldn't eat everything that was provided so we brought some home. The service was friendly but erratic - there was a long wait for our teas and coffees, and we had to ask for jam to go with the scones and another wait for that. Despite the little niggles over waiting, we enjoyed the experience and as we weren't in a hurry it didn't matter too much. Maybe they aren't used to afternoon tea bookings, which is a shame as the food was enjoyable and different to a standard offering - well priced, too. As I said previously, we would book again.

I left my bag in The Larder. Came back the next day and asked if someone had found/handed my bag in yesterday, and thankfully they did. One of the members of staff found the bag and kept it safe behind the counter and I collected my bag just now. Thank you so much to your and your wonderful team, the fact that it was kept safe by your staff and nothing was taken from my bag, shows there is kindness and humanity in the world. Thank you! 🙏

Had a lovely birthday lunch today. The food was delicious and the service kind and attentive. There was a problem with my food but the staff couldn't have done more to address it. An offer of a full refund (which I didn't accept because it was not negligence) and a complementary tea and cakes (very acceptable!)made this a 5 star review 😀

Lovely young man brought our food (he was worried about the table wobbling a little so fixed it 😁

Lovely place, spacious yet cosy and amazing food! Spectacular breakfast with great attention to detail - properly cooked beans that don't just come straight from the tin and great flavours all round. Highly recommended!

Reasonably priced food thats fresh and well portioned. Would recommend the smoky beans- were lovely in the wanstead breakfast- and the afternoon tea looked great. Let down by the loos- not clean and lots of drain flies. Nice spot for a quick lunch.

we went here for brekkie on Saturday and the food was fab! had the cooked breakfast with sausage and loved the smoked beans they served with it.

We visited The Larder with our daughter and grandson and we're impressed with the food choices We had Superfood salads which were delicious and the Ham and Montgomery cheddar melt. The salads were very fresh and plentiful and the sandwich served on fresh wholemeal sourdough bread. The only issue we had was that the natural cold pressed juices had already been made and we're in very small bottles which at £4.25 each were not cheap. This was disappointing but apart from that would go back but would not order the juice due to the quantity and price.

Nice chilled out café but for some inexplicable reason they don't accept cash. While other cafés on the High Street are packed out and you can pay however you like, there are lots of empty chairs at the Larder.

Best flat white on Wanstead High Street. Ideal place for a relaxed lazy brunch. Friendly staff and lovely food.

Lovely place to grab a chai latte. The staff are very friendly.

Great place for breakfast. Relaxed but nice atmosphere. Good seating for a relaxed coffee.

Very pleasant brunch. Good quality food and great service.

Good place for lunch, friendly staff

This is my favourite place to visit on a Sunday morning. Tea drinkers, the Cutting Chai and London Fog are to die for! The staff are friendly and helpful. The atmosphere is very warm, relaxed and cosy. A home from home. My only development points are, a loyalty card for customers like me who are here most Sundays and more active clearing of tables and crumbs left behind by some of the smaller patrons would be appreciated!

Table and chairs are too low..sitting is not comfortable..customer service people are grumpy and try not to smile.

Good light lunch food, great service, very friendly and happy staff

Lovely relaxing cafe, with excellent staff and great food and coffee.

Loved spending time here. Spacious and staff that were going out of their way to give service and help. Large piece of vegan cake, which was super delicious as was the coffee. What more can I ask for. Really pleased with this find. Will definitely go back even though it is a long way off where I usually hang out. Impeccable staff! Tables a little sticky, but that is the case on most cafes I visit in London.

I regularly come here with friends /family or solo to get some work done. A very relaxed atmosphere with super friendly service. The coffee is delicious, I love a mocha with coconut milk and a special treat is the bailey's hot chocolate. The chai spiced coconut cake is divine. Everything on the menu is fresh tasting and made beautifully, my go to is the Wanstead veggie breakfast.

Very cosy and lovely sandwiches

Overpriced average coffee...not very friendly staff...no dogs allowed! No thanks.

Was with friends there today who both had a lovely coffee. However I ordered an expresso coffee frappe to take away as they were closing for the day. In hindsight they should have just refused my order instead of taking my £4.10 and serving me the most disgusting lukewarm milky coffee ish drink. No ice no cream on top as advertised on the menu.

Had a good lunch here at very reasonable prices. The ham and Montgomery cheese melt was good, but not as good as the very tasty Superfood with chicken. Don't know why the menu doesn't have a more helpful description of this dish which includes (I think) bulgur wheat, sweet potato, possibly spinach leaves but, whatever, it tastes damn good! Only downside was the non-working coffee machine, hence only 4 stars.

The Larder has sadly changed since the pandemic. They no longer serve the Mandarin and Choc Loaf Cake (GF and dairy free). They recently stopped the smashed avo on sourdough (I used to go every weekend just for this), and they stopped the feta and spinach flatbread with harissa sauce. This place used to be heaving. Why fix it if it isn’t broken? (Why change the menu?). Sadly, Gail’s, City Place or La Bakerie are spots I’d rather go to now. (It says a lot as I have been going to The Larder religiously for the past 15 years!).

Lovely salad, well priced and lovely staff.

Great food. Nice service. Rustic style bijoux decor, very pleasing to the eye. Popular.

Very average place, looks nice from the outside. But the quality of the food is pretty bland! I’ve been here before and thought I’d give it another go, but once again quite disappointed but the quality. Ordered an apple ice tea and could only taste apple juice, no tea. Much better places on the high road.

Enjoy every meal here. The Cutting Chai is the best

I've avoided The Larder for years despite living two minutes away mostly due to it being like a creche. However, a friend said he had a great breakfast so we thought we'd give it a go. Well it's still like a creche so not a relaxing environment by any means but the food was lovely. We both had a breakfast bowl and the flavours and quality of food was impressive. I particularly liked the combination of the feta with beans and spinach but both our meals were sadly let down by a very over cooked fried egg and overall the food could have been hotter. Whilst we won't rush back as it was really noisy I was pleasantly surprised by the food choices and would recommend the breakfast - if only they could learn to cook an egg.

Lovely place to sit on Wanstead High Street. I’d recommend the Turkish style hot chocolate (I get mine with oat milk) and the soups are always delicious there is also some vegan selection on the menu which is great. Staff are friendly and accommodating and there’s a nice atmosphere inside.

Sad to see how low this place has fallen. Used to love there latte’s and rated it the best! Had a gap of few years came back and boy things have changed! Talk about killing a good business!

Nothing really bad to day but not blown away

Wonderful experience ! The food was legendary,faboulus coffee and the staff was very nice! Definitely coming back!

Food was below average. breakfast sausage was very dry and the smashed avocado was super below par. Soup Felt like they just got it from a tin and put it in the microwave to warm up.

It was my first visit there and I really enjoyed it. Very positive vibes and the staff was nice and polite. Will go back again for sure.

Service was at times hilariously muddled, which was acknowledged by the staff. But we had a marvelous time and the dear baby enjoyed playing the various toys they had out. Good size and space.

Avacardo on toast is the one. Cappuccino with almond milk is fire too 😋

Loved this place. Really friendly and smiley staff. Great gluten free brie and chilli jam toasted sandwich and a great atmosphere. I am often in Wanstead and have not been here before. It will now be my goto place for a coffee and lunch when I am in the neighbourhood.

Wonderful falafel wrap and cappuccino when some cafes are Covid closing. Really excellent

Had to order at the counter. No please/thank yous. Took ages to input the simple order - bacon breakfast bowl, extra toast, sausage ciabatta and drinks. No choice of toast, just small, hard whole meal. The man that delivered it was nice enough. The extra toast wasn’t on the order. Breakfast bowl was very dried up. They only bake eggs, no fried or poached, so solid and rubbery throughout. Really bad. Bacon hard and dry but edible, just. Vine tomatoes ok. Half mushroom ok. Beans totally not to my taste, it was chick peas/kidney beans/other beans mix rather than baked beans. And looked old. Overall this breakfast was really disappointing. They were unable to improve it so most was wasted. I think this cafe has tried to go to far towards upmarket vegan type food. It wasn’t nice to eat. The sausage ciabatta was again ok but not great. Coffees fine/nice. Maybe this cafe would be nice for coffee and cake, but the cooked food was BAD.

First time visiting The Larder, and I was very impressed! The service was polite, I was on a time crunch which I let them know, and the food was served very quickly. I ordered the veggie breakfast bowl and it was delicious, very filling and a super reasonable price. Would definitely return again!

I do not recommend this place. They all need to learn some manners particularly the young blonde girl who waited on tables. When asked a simple question regarding the kids picnic bag her response was not only rude but her attitude is disgusting. I have no idea how she gets away with that behaviour. Regarding the kids sandwich there was no butter in the bread and only a thin slice of outdated cheese. Used to be a lovely place I enjoyed going to with friendly staff. But after today’s experience I wouldn’t go again. The young blonde needs some customer service training and taught some manners on how to speak to people. I work in retail and I would never keep a person like her brings the place down.

I had a lovely brunch here with a friend. Delicious food, good coffee and accommodating staff. I'll definitely go again.

Very odd place. Food served on degradable plates and served with degradable plastic cutlery. Surely more eco (and more pleasant) to wash up regular plates and cutlery. But then drinks served in plastic cups and juice stored in plastic bottles. Food was alright, quite small portions. There's so many other places for breakfast and brunch on the high street, we won't ever go back

The eco friendly Larder with the curved bamboo plates that twist around when you eat, together with the very eco friendly plastic cutlery, with which you are supposed to cut sourdough… Good luck with that. When we asked for proper cutlery we were told there isn’t any. The 2 stars go for the staff and the interior as the food was overcooked.

when i came there I waited 15 min with dirty table. they even didn't ask me why i sit and wait in table. Then i left.

Very nice sandwich and tea. Sat outside in nice autumn weather.

Great tasing coffee better than. Coffee chains, but brownie was stale and hygiene was questionable

They have done away with proper cutlery and plates, now plastic and paper!? Not ideal eating a cooked breakfast with a plastic knife and fork! And drinking a tea from a paper cup… why has this changed?!

Really poor experience this Sunday. Waited quite a while for 3 sandwiches. This was my “Reuben”. No meat and my bread is more hole than bread.

Could not be further than “fine food” and “artisan coffee”. Sausage breakfast bowl served on a disposable plate with a plastic overcooked egg, warm bread instead of toast and an anaemic sausage. Sandwich with dry, untoasted ciabatta with a pathetic amount of filling. Coffee tasted like hot milk and the place was generally grubby with sticky menus. Irritated that this continues to take up space on the high street whilst being sub-standard.

lovely staff and excellent food, boy who served our food was nice, overall great atmosphere, would definitely come again

Came on a Saturday for brunch. Grumpy young lad serving, who 100% did not want to be working there! They told me to fill up tiny cup when asked for jug of tap water for the table. No proper cutlery, flimsy plastic forks, tiny portions of very average food. Don’t come here!!

Giid selection if breakfast and lunch bites. Goid for mums and prams and has a small child play area

I used to come to the larder all the time for breakfast and lunch before COVID. However the last couple of times I’ve been I’ve been extremely disappointed and therefore won’t be going back again. I went for breakfast on the weekend. The breakfast menu has reduced massively since COVID and has stayed reduced (only 5 options in total). I went for the bacon breakfast bowl and asked for it to come with poached eggs not baked, but they weren’t prepared to do that. So I ordered it as it was and was shocked when it came up. It was half a portobello mushroom, four cherry tomatoes, one rasher of bacon and one egg. The half a portobello mushroom was particularly embarassing in my opinion - why can’t I have a full one?! We were sitting inside the cafe and the breakfast was served on a wooden take away style plate and we had plastic knives and forks. I asked for a proper knife and fork but they said they don’t do it. Not exactly good for the environment is it. Coffee and tea is also all served in plastic mugs. I have heard from a few other people who used to love the larder that they also think it has got pretty rubbish and don’t go anymore. So unfortunately we won’t be going back again and would recommend people to avoid it. There are so many more cafes in Wanstead that are better and cheaper!

I used to come here regularly, and it was one of my favourite spots for coffee and lunch. I was very disappointed today when I returned after a long time. The sandwich size has shrunk dramatically. I paid £6.95 for a sandwich that was smaller than a little child would usually eat! The member of staff put an extra £1 on my bill, without informing me, because I asked to have tomato included in the chicken & bacon sandwich. For £1 I would expect more than 2 and a half slices of tomato! The coffee is nice, but the food is extremely over-priced and the atmosphere is not as friendly as it used to be. The staff seemed like they didn’t want to be there and I don’t think I’ll be going back anymore. I know times are hard for all cafes lately, but skimping on portion sizes and sneaking extra charges onto the bill isn’t going to help with customer retention. I feel very sad to write this review, because The Larder used to be one of my favourite cafes.

The place was dirty, I had to clan my owAn table after other guests left tons of dishes there (meanwhile it was nit busy at all). The cashier over-charged me, made my meal in rather than out and I was served tepid iced coffee. The meal was sparse as well. Such a waste of money. I will never com back here again; and I suggest you skip it should you pass by.

Canteen food at hocked prices! It's not that eco either as the cutlery has to be industrialy composted... Cups not any better. Food was not all that! Disappointing experience!

I love the coffee and food in this place. Use to come once or twice a week before lockdown. Due to lock down i have not been for a year. I came today- ordered my favourite ciabatta and it was gone in 5 bites. It was so so tiny it was smaller than a kids sandwich. I will struggle to come back - amazing food but very poor amount for the money. Hence so so disappointed. I'm not one to complain- but have to this time.

Great coffee - iced latte with almond milk was spot on! Also offer tasty sandwich combinations, ideal if you want a quick bite (GF and veggie options available)

Nice selection of sandwiches and savouries.

Cream tea outside on a sunny Sunday... what more could you ask for?

Good coffee, home made cakes: I'm happy. Paint on outside table/chairs showing some sign of vivid fatigue, but then isn't everybody?

I only had an iced coffee so can't comment too much tbf. The outdoor seating is nice and it's covered incase it rains.

Eco friendly cutlery struggled with cutting the sourdough

The food is always lovely and fresh. Staff are always friendly.

Love the larder, great coffee, great service a local gem!!

Great coffee and hot chocolate. Great service.

Good to see they were still open for takeaway, even on the first day of the tier 4 restrictions. We very much enjoyed our coffee and hot chocolate. Plenty of space to wait for your drinks whilst keeping social distancing. Definitely recommended overall.

The halloumi and pickled cabbage sandwich on ciabatta is one of the best sandwiches I've ever eaten. 10/10, would recommend.

Good customer service and a great bacon sandwich;).

Only stopped for a cuppa. Felt very covid secure. Friendly people working there. Will be back.

Very expensive not the best coffee much prefer Costa

I love the food here but everything always seems to take a long time to come.

Really enjoyed it here the few times I went pre-covid. However the measures that have been brought in mean it's now far too expensive for the experience you get. A full English breakfast is not supposed to be eaten from a small cardboard bowl with small wooden cultery. It's difficult to eat for one, and you also just send up with a soggy, eggy, beany mess. Confusing ordering/seating system also didn't help. I probably ended up walking closely past more people than I would have with normal table service. I think other places have definitely opened up better and more sensibly than here. Hopefully get back to normal pretty soon.

Nice atmosphere. COVID secure. Nice vegan cake. Good local shop.

They turn something as everyday as a sandwich into something amazing, the Chai latte was also fantastic too

Love this cafe... fab coffee, homemade cake and fresh food

La ensalada de la foto cuesta 9. Esperaría más que un puñado de hojas de ensalada y un poco de mezcla fría de pollo y tocino en una caja desechable por la mejor parte de diez. La despensa siempre fue un poco cara, pero la comida y el servicio lo compensaron. Si bien el personal y el café siguen siendo buenos, desafortunadamente su nuevo menú adaptado no tiene una buena relación calidad-precio. No volveré con prisa.

It is a calm and relaxing place to be if you are in need of a coffee, tea or a snack also has that lovely rustic feel 😊.

Had coffee which was very nice and a chicken and bacon baguette. Very disappointing. The filling was no more than a few salad leaves and some pink mayonnaise. I truly struggled to find any chicken or bacon in. This place used to serve great food. No more it seems. I will come again for coffee but definitely not to eat. Avoid for food.

I'm a local customer. I've been coming to the larder regularly for their food and coffee. Initially I was happy when I found out they were offering take away during covid-19, however I'm very disappointed with the coffee take away quality. Last couple of times the coffee was way too hot and no matter what I order (Cappuccino or flat white) I seem to get the same coffee, it seems they make you whatever they feel like despite what you ask for. Come on guys you can do better.