The Elan Cafe - Is it Worth a Visit?

Wednesday, 11 March 2020

The Elan Cafe - Is it Worth a Visit?

This year I vowed to start exploring London more, experience new restaurants and cafes and to be a tourist in my own city.  So I have decided to document and review some of the new places I visit.

First on my list is Instagram famous Elan Cafe, you can't deny how pretty their cafes are and of course very instagrammable.  They have grown to 7 branches already. I chose to visit the Park Lane branch as it was the easiest to travel to from South London, I did regret picking that branch a little bit, see why below when I get into the review a bit more.

The Decor

Undeniably pretty and eye catching, the cafe is beautifully decorated in every corner possible. As we entered the cafe we were greeted with the till area and just past that, there was a flower wall near the stairs where you can take photos, it was a bit of an awkward place to take photos as people were walking up and down.  As we walked downstairs there were flower walls near the tables and also flowers around cute mirrors they had displayed on the walls.

 So the one issue I did have was how small the cafe was, It is next to the Dorchester hotel so most if not all the customers were tourist, I can imagine how busy it gets in there. We got there at 12pm and managed to get a seat.  In terms of getting a picture perfect photo it would be a struggle if there were a lot of customers in there.

The Food

The food was delicious! I ordered a flat bread with egg and salmon which cost £9.50, so a little bit on the pricey side.  As I was meeting my friend for brunch I decided not to have breakfast which was a big mistake because the flat bread did not fill me up at all.  I ended up splitting a red velvet cake which was about £7 with my friend.  So as you can see these aren't your regular every day prices but you are paying for the location and popularity of the cafe so I felt like it was worth it as a treat.

The Service

The service I felt was quite rushed, it wasn't particularly busy when I went but I felt like they wanted you to quickly order, eat and leave.  I didn't feel relaxed, I don't know about you but If I'm meeting a friend in a cafe to have brunch then obviously we were intending to have a big old catch up and take our time! Not to say their staff were horrible but they just seemed rushed off their feet even when it wasn't busy.  It wasn't that bad to put me off but definitely keep that in mind.

My overall thoughts

I enjoyed the experience and the food, I wouldn't go back to that particular cafe as I felt it was too small, I will definitely try out a bigger branch and hope the customer service is a bit more warm then in Park Lane.  But if you're close by it's definitely worth popping in.  I also vlogged the trip to Elan Cafe which you can watch here to see it in action!

Read more »

No comments