If you live in or around South West London then, like us, you probably spend a lot of time cycling out of London. (For cycling cafes in London, read this article.)
On such rides, it’s nice to have a destination point in the form of a cycling café you know will happily serve you up a well crafted coffee and a good slab of cake in a nice environment.
To save you the disappointment of a weekend ride marred by a poorly poured latte, and in the spirit of opening up the many and glorious destinations around London, we have put on our thinking caps, weighed up our years of serious coffee and cake sampling and pulled together this list of our favourite cycling coffee stops.
Sshhh: secret cycling café gems
We did wonder if we really wanted to share the cycling cafés we love so much – after all we don’t want them to get overrun or to start hiking prices! But, true to Epic Road Rides’ spirit of sharing and celebrating the best of the best, we’ve decided to take that risk!
Be prepared to revolutionise your bike rides
Below you’ll find our totally personal and subjective take on the absolute best cycling cafés accessible from South West London (though we did try to use some criteria – see below!).
Also, just to be clear, no café has paid or given us anything to appear in this guide.
Be prepared for an eclectic bunch that take you well away from the usual cycling cafés that always come up. From cafés on farms, above boat houses and beside airports – you’re in for a treat.
Enjoy!
Please check for temporary closures and opening times before planning your ride around a particular café being open!
Cycling café ride destinations
Find all of our recommendations for the best cycling cafés in each area by clicking through to the regions below.
Each guide shares our top picks. You’ll find everything from practical details (like the opening hours and bike parking arrangements) to the interesting stuff, like décor, coffee and the best choices on the menu.
1. Hampton Court, Esher and Cobham (for shorter rides)
2. Woking and surrounds
3. Windsor, Henley, Marlow
4. Surrey Hills
Alternatively, you can go straight to the relevant review, by clicking on the relevant café on the map below.
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Cycling café quick guide
Fancy a particular type of food, ambiance or price range? Our quick guide is for you!
Our favourite cafés based on…
1. Food/drink
Best coffee: Giro (Esher)
Best selection of cake: Dish (Hampton Court)
Best for cheese on toast: Milk Churn (Rudgwick), then Velolife (Warren Row)
Best for sausage rolls: The Shop at the Plough (Coldharbour)
Best for chocolate: The Chocolate Café (Henley)
Best for full English: The Old Post Office (Wargrave)
Best winter soups: The Medicine Gardens (Cobham)
Best for homemade treats: Beggars Banquet (Old Woking)
Coffee and cake at the Milk Churn
Shop at Tanhouse Farm café
2. Ambiance/Service
Best for winter warmth: Tanhouse Farm Shop (Newdigate)
Best summer seating: The Shop at the Plough (Coldharbour) and The Medicine Gardens (Cobham)
Best view: Eight on the River (Hampton Court)
Most comfortable: Upstairs at Pinnock’s (Ripley)
Most friendly staff: The Shop at the Plough (Coldharbour) and Beggar’s Banquet (Old Woking)
Best for large groups and slick service: The Cinnamon Café (Windsor)
Most cycle friendly: Velolife (Warren Row)
Low prices: Beggar’s Banquet (Old Woking)
Cakes at Beggar’s Banquet 
Early morning ride to make room for coffee and cake!Methodology
(A quick note on how we’ve compiled this list of our favourite cycling cafés accessible from South West London)
Over the last five years, we’ve tried and tested a lot of cafés on our rides south and west of London.
Here are the criteria that we’ve considered on our visits:
Over to you!
What do you think of our choices?
Here are the links to the region guides again: Surrey Hills, Hampton Court, Woking and Windsor/Henley/Marlow.
If you know of a really great café we should try, please let us know in the comments below!
Tell us the name, where it is, why we should go – and if you happen to have a GPX file for a great ride nearby, so much the better!
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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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Canela cafe Hampton court. Ride London goes right past it every year. Best coffee around. Healthy freshly cooked dishes. Friendliest staff and quirky place
Sounds like we need to check it out! Thanks!