The London bakery owned by Prada: Marchesi 1824, Mayfair

Prada, the luxury Italian fashion house that’s been a staple of the style world since 1913, is best known for its handbags, shoes and perfumes. But the brand is also the proud owner of a painfully Instagrammable Milan café: Marchesi 1824.

Now, London’s fashion crowd and pastry connoisseurs alike can rejoice, because a branch of Prada’s Marchesi 1824 has opened on Mayfair’s Mount Street.

Pasticceria Marchesi was founded as a family-run bakery in Milan in 1824, then later acquired by the Prada Group. Today, you can find several Marchesi 1824 bakeries dotted around the city, but the London opening marks the first outpost for the bakery outside the Italian capital of fashion.

Now, fashionistas with a penchant for something sweet can enjoy Marchesi 1824’s glossy style, sugar-coated treats and Wes Anderson-esque mint interiors in London. Exquisite Italian decor has been recreated in Mayfair's Mount Street, with opulent tiles, marble floors, plush velvet chairs, and a charming wooden bar decked in colourful confectionary which hopes to encourage the tradition of sipping espressos whilst standing.

The bakery – which is a stone’s throw from 5-star hotel The Connaught – serves favourites from the Milan menu, including pastel-coloured dragées, gianduja chocolates and sourdough panettone; all of which can be enjoyed with an Italian-style coffee from the on-site espresso bar. Shopping for gifts? Marchesi 1824 also sells a selection of gorgeously-wrapped biscuits and sweets, all fit to impress any well-heeled, sweet-toothed friend.