Silhouette

Coffee and cakes to die for.

I’m surprised nobody has reviewed this place yet.
I’ve been meaning to get here for a while, I’ve seen my favourite coffee slinger (Macintyre) remark on the attitude and quality of this place and heard positive reports from other respected baristas who have passed by and with a day to kill before a flight I decided to head into London and give it a go for myself.
Silhouette used to be a stall in China Town and is ran by a husband and wife team (Lee and Syirin). He’s got a focus on customer service and his attitude is that «the coffee should be good by default so let’s stop dwelling on it» and that’s well complemented by his wife who did the interior design of the place — decking it out in armchairs and keeping it homely with hanging lanterns and wall fittings.
The coffee itself is on rotation from various roasters which is fantastic — it’s not your run of the mill London coffee shop doing the same old Square Mile day on day out. In fact he says that he avoids London roasters altogether and when I came in he was doing coffee from Cornwall (Origin). The espresso is coming from a Linea PB and Mythos combo and the shots are well crafted and balance (I’m really happy to report that this isn’t your standard high dose low output joint).
The filter is surprisingly good given it’s coming from a vario, but he says he’s saving up for an EK43 and I’d expect some fun times when that happens.
Okay now I’m dwelling on the coffee — let’s stop that. The coffee gear is behind the bar and out of the way — which is a good move. Too many coffee shops place their machinery on the front bar and it presents itself as a barrier between you and the person serving you your coffee. It’s nice to be able to watch the barista make your shot properly and get a feel for their process as well as being able to carry on a conversation with them.
The open and cosy nature of the environment aids in facilitating conversation too, while I was sat here over three hours a few baristas/​roasters came in for a chat and everybody sat around had something to join in with. It felt more like I was sitting in somebody’s lounge than a coffee shop.
Available also is toast, sandwiches etc — and at the weekend apparently real food is available (nice!). I’ll be back to try that out next time in London — this is definitely going to see me through until Macintyre opens his new place up…