The Willow Tree Arts Café in Waltham Forest

Sign on door says it’s now permanently closed 🙁

I would like to write a better review of this place. It's an interesting space and the coffee and cakes were fine ..... but...... the service! Oh dear. As we entered the member of staff looked nervously at the time. The cafe would close in half an hour we were told with no smile or attempt to make us feel welcome. We only wanted a coffee and cake so we chose to stay. We were then told that our drinks had to be in paper cups because it was so close to closing time. We offered our own reusable cup to be told they could transfer a drink from paper cup to the reusable one. Kind of missing the point? Our cakes were served in paper bags for the same reason. A little customer service training could make a huge difference.

Rude staff with no customer service mindset. Saturday morning 10am 6 April. Flippant attitude. Cafe was only half filled, barely any rush, asked for a toasted croissant as usual, was told chef is busy. Was with my daughter or I would have responded.

Nice cafe where dogs are allowed (on leads) and nice open space and big windows.

Where to start? Our group experienced bizarre service from a person who I believe had zero people skills. The Willow Tree itself is a perfectly nice place with a simple menu comprising the usual go-to contemporary cafe staples... HOWEVER, THE STAFF ARE LAUGHINGLY AWFUL. On entry we were greeted by silent and non-expressionate faces, so non-responsive that I had to actually stimulate conversation with them in a way that I felt I was having to teach someone how to converse for the very first time (the bizarreness actually started the previous day when we popped in to try and book a table for the following day, only to be met by 3 people who between them didn't seem like they fundamentally understood what I was asking when I said "Can I book a table for 4 people tomorrow?". Anyway...). On trying to explain we had booked a table and receiving the response "Well they don't ever tell us anything" we were then pointed to the main seating area and told "Just pick anywhere" . When we got around to ordering I politely asked if I could swap out a component of the meal for another (which is usually ALWAYS OK ANYWHERE AND EVERYWHERE ELSE), to which I received a slow and blank shake of the head and a terse "No" and then after some awkward silence from me I got a further "You can get the other thing but you pay extra for it" (fair enough, but there's a way to say that. And ironically the extra thing I wanted? they didnt even have as they'd run out, to which I mentioned "All Day Breakfast? It's 10:50am, I think you probably want to get some more of that?" only to receive the curt reply "Well we close soon". They close at 4pm on Sunday....ANYWAY). After we received all of our food, one of us noted there was no cutlery, to which the previously mentioned staff member seemed to suddenly realise, but then just as quickly chose to (instead of get us some cutlery) silently slow-point at an area where there was some cutlery. At this point a neighbouring table turned around and, rather apologetically, told us "it's awful like that here ... they're soooo bad. It's a nice place but the staff..." . Anyway, I could go on and mention other things but tbh this is by far the longest review I've ever written lol. It's just that we experienced such AMAZINGLY POOR SERVICE that, as the person who made the booking, I feel compelled to pass on the feedback. I wish for no people to lose their job, just for people to show a basic level of competence and interest. Also I am hugely supportive of independent business. Good luck!

Waitress/Waiters are always grumpy. The cafe always run out of food after 12noon. Don't bother going if you expect to have brunch.

I visited this cute cafe about 10-15 times during my stay in London and omg every time the food tasted divine. I tried every single vegan option they had and let me tell you I can’t decide which one I like the best because all of them taste soo good. The staff is super friendly. So if you are in London and are looking for a cute, cozy, little cafe this is your go to place. It is definitely worth a visit because the food is just ahh amazing and delicious.

Lovely dog friendly cafe for brunch with friendly staff. Nice and airy and plenty of space for the pup to settle and watch the world go by! Had the breakfast plate with salmon- delicious, fresh and filling and the cinnamon and salted caramel buns are to die for🥰 thanks!

Fabulous coffee, brie and salad sourdough wholemeal bun plus a delicious cinnamon roll 😋

Great coffee. Same as armstrong radio workshop in blackhorse. Great place to meet and catch up with friends

They start serve breakfast only at 9am. They don't have any syrups for coffee

It was very good! We had cheesy toasts with cappuccino and kombucha. Also a carrot cake. I put 4 because the drinks came so early and it took a looong time for the food to arrive (when my cappuccino was already cold. Staff was very attentive and nice.

I was coming here fairly regularly with my partner, and we both enjoyed getting the breakfast plate, which was previously really good as well as reasonably priced. The atmosphere in the cafe was not always great, not sure why, but some of the people working there were friendly and this helped. However, we came for breakfast last weekend, and had a much worse experience overall. The cafe has changed to table service (with a 'wait to be seated' sign, despite the place being pretty quiet), which made things feel awkward and less welcoming, but some food items have also completely changed, despite appearing the same on the menu. I understand the need for menu development, but the breakfast plate now contains fewer items, and was not as good quality. I also had a ham and cheese toastie, which came out cold and chewy, as if it had been sat around for a while. My partner asked for a filter coffee, but at 10am on a Saturday we were told that they had run out of filter coffee - meanwhile, 3 of the 5 staff members were standing around or leaning against the counter. We also ordered a cinammon bun, but were given a chocolate bun - we couldn't change it, because the cinammon buns had then run out. The service by the person who took our order was not very good, but bordering on rude; though another person was very friendly when I went up to pay. We paid £27 for a really disappointing breakfast, and this is something we can only afford to do occasionally. Having worked in cafes for years myself, I don't take complaining lightly, but this sort of experience isn't good enough when you're paying around £30 for not very much.

nice place but has two factors that stop me from being a regular. - Bad service, waitresses are in a bad mood & put the food on your table aggressively. - They ran put out of pastries & sandwiches regularly, so when I crave something specific, it may not be there. I prefer to go to the nearby Deja Brew, owner is so kind with clientele & they always have my favourite items from their menu.

Has potential but uncomfortable atmosphere (have only been in the day) staff are unwelcoming bordering on rude- have been a few times hoping it would get better but unfortunately not.

A confusing place, not sure what it’s offering. It’s a really lovely space and the idea of it being an arts cafe was really lovely too! However it doesn’t really deliver on the arts or the cafe. The food is very average, overpriced and not much selection. After forgetting my coffee and then making me the wrong coffee and having to do it again, the coffee itself was not nice and had a chemical taste to it. I was really excited for something I expected to be vibrant and encouraging for the local community, but it was very flat and awkward vibes inside. No wifi either so not a good place for collaborating with friends, artists or coworkers or even getting a bit of work done! Not up to par! Lovely idea, so much more potential!!!

One of the best cafes in London

Beautiful space and interior but thats about it. I have been to this place few times since it opened and every time it was a massive disappointment and I have regretted going there again. Below average quality of coffee, burnt milk, and poor choice of hot and cold drinks. On another occasion I bought a pricey pastry cardamom swirl as it looks delicious but it was raw dough inside, it put me off these sort of pastries for good. Another time i went for avo toast with egg and avocado was really not fresh, more then half of it was brown. But you couldn’t see it u til started eating, also overly salted. The baby high chairs are absolutely filthy as if they have never seen a wipe. And on every occasion the staff is just so unpleasant. Barely acknowledge you to come in, look really miserable. Actually apart from one lady she was really nice.

The food was ok, well presented and fresh, also liked the decoration. So why 2 stars out of 5? Well, basically the lady that took our order was rude and had a bit of an attitude, insinuating that we wanted to leave without paying which was not true and of course very uncomfortable.

Was very quiet when i went. Perfect place for studying or getting some work done. Great smoothies and customer service. Baristas were so polite and make good recommendations based on what you fancy. Lovely interior, high ceilings, open space, light colour. All round, a very beautiful space.

Lovely modern cafe. Dog friendly. Coffee is great. Lovely environment. Food selection is limited but the food available makes up for it.

Food is cold premade cabinet food, it's okay at best

Nice staff and coffee was great. Very cold though, I had my coat on the whole time

Nice people who works there. Nice everything.

Lovely cafe. Would be great for more food options like poached/fried egg and if they were open until 6/7 so I can work longer. 😄 also think the staff could be more friendly and chatty. I’ve tried to make conversation in the past and feel like they’re not keen to chat

Really really good coffee and nice, friendly people

Liked the piano and great coffee. Friendly service.

Good atmosphere to work or study, but no sockets to charge your laptop

Nice cafe - wish they had some more food options for a proper brunch place (really lacking more in the area!)

Great cafe with delicious food and attentive service

A really lovely place tucked away in the new builds around Blackhorse Road. Really chill atmosphere and super reasonable prices. I've heard they do live music as well some of the evenings but I've yet to experience it myself. Would definitely recommend for brunch though.

Beautiful spot for coffee stop. Food is really good too. Well done team it really is an asset to the Walthamstow community.

Excellent coffee, lovely staff.

a lovely cafe that does great coffee. the staff are great and friendly and the cafe itself is very beautiful. the pastries are good and fresh and they do drinks on a friday too!

Very elegant cafe in Blackhorse road. They have some foccacias and breakfast options. They also do live music. The staff is friendly.

Tasty food, lovely atmosphere, and dogs on leads are allowed inside!

Beautiful place, and great coffee and food!

Amazing cinnamon buns and sandwiches really made with love.Beautiful decor.

Nice place and foods are ok, coffee strong taste but not my favourite coffee type as bit sour

More spacious than cozy, decent food and drinks. On the downside - blasting standard Christmas songs on a weekday morning is more appropriate for a supermarket. But overall, it's great to have a cafe opening in this new development.

Good coffee and friendly staff. Wifi could be better but it’s a nice place and I’d recommend a visit.

Visited the first time. Loved their filter coffee. Plenty seats, good vibes.

Good selection of pastries and croissants, friendly and relaxed environment with good service. Also sells fresh sourdough loaves which are very good!

Great atmosphere and a lovely place to eat and relax with friends.

Great location, coffee and food