East London Food & Culture

Unity Cafe Leytonstone E11

Unity Cafe Leytonstone E11: coffee, sandwiches, cakes

We already love the new E11 coffee shop and deli, with the outdoor terrace about to open

Interest piqued by the new cafe at the top of Richmond Road? Unity is an incredibly stylish addition, already with queues snaking out onto the pedestrianised corner.

Owner Gianluca, who is originally from southern Italy, wanted to, he says, “embark on a new adventure.” He chose the location on the corner of Richmond and Pretoria as he felt “we lacked a nice coffee place” there. In that particular spot of Leytonstone, we’re inclined to agree.

Unity Cafe serves justifiably ubiquitous Perky Blenders to drink in or take home by the bag. And the double espresso is 100% spot on: smooth with a thick crema.

There are pastries, cakes, a daily chalked-up board of sandwiches (toasted, too), and deli products, Italian and otherwise. We’ve tried the broccoli crisps (not as healthy as they sounds), but especially rate the sourdough, which they source from the acclaimed Galeta in Hackney Wick as well as Today in Walthamstow (which Yardarm also use). And the meltingly gooey brownies: OMG. Another, please.

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Unity
Mouthwatering: Unity Cafe. Photo: SE

“Once the business is more solid,” Gianluca says cautiously, “we’ll start with hot and healthy dishes for breakfast and lunch.” Which, having spied the west-facing, afternoon-suntrap decking, sounds like an extremely pleasant way to hang out on that pedestrianised corner.

Those of you that traipse up and down Leytonstone High Road on a regular basis may also be interested to learn that Gianluca is also the man behind the new pizza place opening in May called Bocca Bocca. So this man and his team are undeniably doing good things in E11. It’s worth chucking in some support.

Finally, as regular readers and locals know, Unity is just one more lovely independent business to join the happy Grove Green Road enclave of Cycleway, Happy Valley, Sit Collective, Solvay Society’s new brewpub, Filly Brook and the mighty Heathcote And Star.

Unity Cafe, takeaway only until April 12th. 8 Richmond Road E11 4BA, follow @unitycafeleytonstone on Instagram for the latest.

Feature updated April 11th.

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