M1lk, Balham

M1lk, or MILK, as its name probably suggests, is a hipster café complete with bare-brick walls, dark wooden counters and a great indie playlist. Coffee at M1lk is brewed at Berlin roastery The Barn and creative new specials are available every day.

Whilst the atmosphere of M1lk cries ‘hidden gem’, this Balham brunch spot is hugely popular and has been known to garner queues at weekends, so it’s best to avoid peak times.

The specials are worth waiting for, however, and are often on the cutting edge of new food trends: recent examples include fermented pumpkin and wild mushroom soups. Other menu highlights include the Sweet Maria: corn pancakes with avocado and spiced kasundi tomato sauce, and the Convict: Moen & Son sausages with dry cure bacon and hash browns.