Are you bored of your usual cycling routes out of London?
Looking for an awesome cycling cafe that will serve as a destination point for a weekend cafe ride? Somewhere to warm up, re-energise and have a natter with friends?
Here South West London local, John Maskell, shares his three favourite cycling cafés in the Woking area. They’re all a reasonable ride from South West London and are places he’d happily return to again and again.
Enjoy!
If you want to know more about the criteria we look for in a top rated cycling café, take a look at this article, which also links to our other “great cycling café” guides to the Surrey Hills, Hampton Court and Woking areas. Find our favourite London cycling cafés in this article.
Please check for temporary closures and opening times before planning your ride around a particular café being open.
A bit about the area
Most cyclists from South West London tend to head down south to the Surrey Hills or out west towards Windsor at the weekend. However, in between the two areas is Woking, around 30 km from London.
This is the area to go to if you want to avoid the weekend cycling warriors en masse.
The woodlands around Woking are flat, with well-maintained and quiet roads. The lack of hills and traffic make the area ideal for the less confident rider, for time trials and for building winter miles.
This is also the preferred weekend destination for some of South West London’s better cycling clubs such as Twickenham Cycling Club.
The 3 best cycling cafés in the area
The map below gives a rough idea of where each of our three favourite cycling cafés are located. You can also zoom in and click on each coffee cup for the name of the café. Read on for more information on each!
1. Beggar’s Banquet Café
Old Woking, GU22 9NG
Opening hours: 8am-3pm and closed Sunday
Location
Beggars Banquet sits on a good, fast circuit on the outskirts of Woking.
On arrival there are some bike racks in front of the café, some limited outside seating and limited inside seating.
Our view
At first glance this café has little merit. The décor is functional, the presentation of food vey old school, there is no wifi and the staff are not young and “swish” like at Giro or Dish.
However, very much like the cool wall in the TV program Top Gear, the Beggar’s Banquet is so retro that it is actually fantastic. You are stepping back in time as Beggar’s Banquet is almost like a café museum.
All the food is very old fashioned and homemade with delights such as treacle tarts, bread pudding, eccles cakes, cream puffs and shortbread. Our favourite is the treacle tart.
The service is very good, fast, friendly and warm: by far the warmest service we have had at any café.
The cakes themselves are only 75p each (February 2019) and when this is compared to say £3.50 at the Dish café (Hampton Court), means you can have four times as much and still have change. There are other price anomalies such as a full English will only set you back £5.75 (February 2019), or try the delicious fish finger sandwiches.
Conclusion
The reason we like this café so much is that it has absolutely no pretension and great service. It allows you to unwind from the chaos of London (or the ride itself!).
You’ll also probably save enough money to buy your next few inner tubes.
2. The Hanger Café
Fairoaks Airport, GU24 8HU
Opening hours: weekdays 10am-4pm, Saturday 9-4pm, Sunday 10-4 pm.
Location
On arrival via the main airport entrance, head right, go past the car park and around to the front of the airport.
Our view
Let’s face it. As cyclists we generally like our toys, so to sit so close to an active airport with smallish planes and helicopters, enjoying a coffee and cake stop with mates is about as good it gets.
Bike parking at the café is plentiful and there is generous seating, both inside and outside (seating outside is south facing so sunny). If going on a Saturday morning try to get to the Hanger Café before, say, 10:15 am as that’s when Twickenham CC tend to descend on masse, causing a backlog in the kitchen (alternatively wait until after 11am).
Service is reasonable, prices are on the low side with a Full English at £7 (February 2019) and the range of cakes is reasonable.
Be aware that we have found that the cooked food can sometimes take a bit of time to come (it is a busy café) and the internet is also not the most reliable.
And finally – another reason to love this place: we just found out that the café used to be the regular haunt of our friends at stolen goat. Their offices used to be in the airport’s business park. What are the chances?!
Conclusion
The setting is great: it’s not often that you can sit so close to an active airport and watch people going off for their helicopter or small plane lessons. The roads to and from the Chobham/Woking area are also in good order: quiet and flat making the Hanger Café a more relaxed ride destination.
3. Pinnock’s Coffee House
Ripley, GU23 6AF
Opening hours: 8:30am-5:30pm Monday-Saturday and 10am-5pm on Sunday
Location
Pinnock’s is situated in the beautiful village of Ripley which boasts old coaching inns, an old sweet shop and a plethora of antique shops.
Our view
Pinnock’s prides itself on its coffee which is served through a drip process into each cup.
On arrival, bikes can be parked outside the café: we recommend bringing a lock.
There is little outside seating at the front (a bench or two). The majority of the seating is inside, spread over two floors. There is courtyard seating behind the café with seating for around ten people (sunny in the afternoon).
The ground floor has wooden tables and chairs and is generally pretty busy. The first floor is very cosy and atmospheric, in the style of an old gentleman’s club with sofas and armchairs. It is here we would probably recommend you go; but mind your head on the beams.
Order at the “bar” and your food and drink will be brought to you.
The food and the coffee is good with specialities such as club sandwiches and American pancakes and a good selection of smoothies. The range of homemade cakes at the counter are nice too.
Prices are reasonable, service is good and there is internet.
Conclusion
Pinnock’s is a very comfortable, welcoming and interesting café in an “olde” world kind of way in a great location.
What’s your favourite cycling café in the Woking area?
Tell us in the comments below!
Don’t miss our guides to the best cycling cafés of the Surrey Hills, Hampton Court and Windsor!
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John Maskell is a roving reporter whose mission in life is to find the best coffee stop on any given ride.
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