London Brunch Fest 2019

A buzzy café, poached eggs on sourdough, a flat white steaming at your side and a glass of prosecco in your hand, poised to cheers in the weekend. If you like nothing more than the ritual of a lazy weekend brunch, we have the event for you: the London Brunch Fest is making its return to the Old Truman Brewery for the second year running.

The festival features 10 brunch ‘headliners’ under one roof. Each chef has been tasked with making a dish exclusive for the event – their take on the ‘ultimate brunch dish’ – which will be served alongside plates from their eatery's regular menu.

Keeping with last year’s commitment to serving brunch for a good cause, the festival has partnered once again with Magic Breakfast, a charity which provides schools with healthy breakfast foods to ensure no child is too hungry to learn.

The traders…

Aussie-inspired mini-chain Brickwood is among the line-up at London Brunch Fest this year. If their banana bread with espresso butter is on the menu, it’s not to be missed. Meanwhile Avobar, aka the city’s first all-avo restaurant, is sure to draw in the crowds. Bacon butty masters Le Swine are also there, as is Balham brunch spot Brother Marcus. Meanwhile, those who prize their brew as highly as their breakfast should look to the Espresso Room, and those for whom its all about the best-in-show should join the queue at Urban Pantry, winner of the UK’s best breakfast at 2019’s National Breakfast Awards.

For the first time this year there will also be the addition of ‘Sweet Street’, a whole room dedicated to sweeter brunch dishes. Among the line-up of sugary treats available, expect warm slices of fruity goodness from A Pie Party; raw, rich cookie dough from pioneering company Naked Dough; vegan soft serves from DAPPA and cakes of all sorts from London bakery Butter Believe It.

On hand to supply the caffeine is speciality coffee roasters Origin Coffee – the blends from where are served in cafés across London – and hip, pink and achingly cool Urban Baristas. Looking to make yours a boozy brunch? Look to Longbottom & Co’s Bloody Mary Bar, Bubble Bros’ prosecco bars or Buveur’s bottled espresso martinis to get a caffeine and alcohol fix in one go.

The talks…

The London Brunch Fest also hosts a line-up of talks throughout the weekend for those looking to hear more from some of the city’s most successful ‘brunch makers’. Among the programme is a panel discussion led by the teams behind Brother Marcus, Brickwood Coffee and Bread on how to launch a successful brunch café. The founders of pink and floral Elan Café are also there, divulging how they built one of the world’s most Instagrammed cafés.

Authors Laura Benninson and Eve Simmons are speaking about their book Eat It Anyway: Fight the Food Fads, Beat Anxiety and Eat in Peace, and Claire Conner, founder of cult pie brand A Pie Party, is sharing her story on how she rose to success.

The masterclasses…

If all this eating and listening to inspiring stories leaves you wanting to make your own, you can book into a number of masterclasses – from using a V60 and AeroPress to brew your own top notch cuppa with Origin Coffee, to blending your own granola with the founder of Husk and Honey. For something a little more adventurous, take part in a kombucha-brewing workshop with JARR Kombucha, or test your art skills in a cake decorating class lead by the team behind Butter Believe It.

So, if you like nothing better than starting your weekend with a leisurely breakfast, retire your muddy wellies, follow your heart and head along to the London Brunch Fest.