Blues & Royals | Artisan Coffee and Fresh Juices

Coffee and fresh juice from a park kiosk

The order here splits two ways, and the name says so: artisan coffee on one side, fresh juices on the other. That pairing gives the bar a different shape from the espresso-only counters that fill central London, since the fruit-led drinks are not a concession but half the business. Iced lattes cover cold coffee, smoothies and juices carry the rest, and the whole range is built for drinking on the move rather than lingering over. The kiosk sits in Victoria Embankment Gardens, which puts it on the natural walking line between the river, Embankment, Charing Cross and Covent Garden.

A family business with a long London run

The bar is family-owned and its history runs back to 1947, which is an unusual thing for an independent coffee and juice counter in central London to be able to say. It predates the city’s contemporary specialty scene by decades, so its identity was never built on rotating guest roasters or competition brew bars. It was built on being there, in the same corner, for successive generations of commuters, gallery visitors and people cutting through the gardens on the way to somewhere else.

A stop on the way through

Treat it as a pause rather than a destination. The setting is a small kiosk with a relaxed park atmosphere, a short queue, and friendly service that keeps it moving. It works best in the gap between other things: a coffee before the National Gallery, a juice after Trafalgar Square, a smoothie carried down towards the Thames. Order by category rather than by a named house blend, since the appeal is the pairing and the position rather than a single signature drink. Artisan coffee or an iced latte if the visit needs caffeine, fresh juice or a smoothie if it does not.