Paul

Another Paul, but it has a mezzanine level that I use to get work done. It can get quite crowded and loud during lunch but the afternoons are pretty quiet. Most of the staff are very friendly and will recognise you after awhile. Most of the times I’ve gone there the toilets have either been out of service or locked.

What is it with Paul and its surly staff. Almost every branch I have ever been to the level of service has been terrible — and I’m not the only one, friends report the same coincidence (?).
Anyhow, this particular branch is the worst I have encountered so far. I attended a weekend event nearby. And while Borough Market provided the obvious choice of lunchtime choices, on Sunday everything was shut. Except the various chains dotted around the Blue Fin Building. If I’d had more time I would have carried on to Tate Modern but I didn’t want to be late for my afternoon session.
Not sure if the guy ahead of me was applying for a job, but he was taken to one side and given the server’s full attention while I was being ignored — until the second member of staff turned around from the coffee maker and took my order.
I opted for one of their toasted sandwiches which was warmed up in a microwave to soggy imperfection. Half the toast stuck to the oven and I felt rather short changed … it somehow summed up this rather lacklustre experience on a dreary drizzly Sunday afternoon.
Thank goodness, this was made up for by some rather excellent speakers at the aforementioned event!
Ah, and apparently, there’s free wifi — but I didn’t have any reception.

This location is on the ground level inside the BlueFin building. It can get crowded during early morning and lunch hour, but is quiet throughout the day. Visible from Southwark St. but I usually take the scenic route and walk along the water.
This location has seating on the mezzanine level, but it does get warm.
The queue moves faster than other locations…

We had a team lunch today to welcome a new girl to the team and as we hadn’t been to Paul but it’s just on our doorstep, we choose to give it a go.
I was worried that it would be really expensive but it was more reasonable than expected. You pay more to eat in and it’s more than I’d pay for lunch usually but I went for a salad with ham and emmantal (not sure if that’s spelt right!) cheese. They gave me a huge chunk of bread with it too, although a bit of butter wouldn’t have gone amiss.
Most of my colleagues had baguettes filled with cheeses, salads and/​or nice meats and they said how good the bread was.
There were so many amazing looking cakes, macaroons and pastries that I might have to go back just for a sweet treat one day!

Great desserts and sandwiches. Celebrating 125 years. The best one is in Paris. Although this location is better than others in London.