Colonna & Small's is the London outpost of the Bath coffee name, set on Leather Lane between Holborn and Farringdon, a central market street that already pulls in serious coffee drinkers. It brings the Bath shop's conversation-led service, changing coffee list, and roaster-backed retail offer into a compact London room rather than flattening the idea into a commuter counter.
Go when you want the coffee to be the point of the trip: a filter, a split-shot espresso comparison, a rare frozen release, or a bag of beans to take away. It can still work as a quick Leather Lane stop, but the best visit is unhurried enough to ask what is tasting good that day.
Coffee style
The London shop centers a curated, changing coffee menu, with coffee-focused events, retail coffee, merchandise, and equipment. That matches the wider Colonna universe: the Bath shop began in 2009, later moved from multi-roaster cafe to its own roastery, and built its reputation around origin, tasting experience, and barista guidance rather than a fixed house-coffee script.
In practice, the order board reads espresso-led but filter-serious. The order board has carried three filter choices and three espresso choices on the board, plus limited-release coffees individually dosed, vacuum sealed, frozen, and ground from frozen. The shop also works around espresso and brew bars, rare coffees, and staff who can guide both newcomers and coffee obsessives.
The room
The room is narrow and blue-accented rather than loungey: retail shelves at the front, a long counter, espresso and brew bar service, and a seating area tucked farther back through exposed brick. Leather Lane's weekday food-market energy is close by, but the shop itself reads more focused than frantic. It is a place for tasting notes and questions, not disappearing with a laptop for hours.
What people go for
Most repeat signals point to coffee first: precise brewing, knowledgeable staff, rotating single origins, rare or frozen coffees, and beans to take home. Pastries and cakes appear on official and customer-facing sources, but they are supporting cast rather than the reason to cross town. The tradeoff is that this is a specialist stop. If you want a big brunch table or long afternoon sprawl, choose accordingly.
Why Colonna & Small's is shortlisted by Filter Notes
Colonna & Small's earns a London shortlist place because it gives central London a direct line into one of the UK's most influential roaster-cafe families without losing the exploratory feel that made the Bath shop known. Come for a deliberate cup near Farringdon, especially if you care about espresso, filter, rare coffees, or leaving with beans. The page stays a shortlist note because the evidence is strong on coffee and room character, but less broad on food, seating, and long-form visit range.