Bertie and Boo

I have come here on several occasions and have always been impressed. The food is good and I recommend the sandwiches. They often have fresh fruit juice which is a bonus. The décor is great and gives it a different feel to most other cafes. It is child friendly but they have a bigger place down the road with a soft play area great for kids.

I have been coming to Bertie and Book’s for 6 years and I love it. I go to do my French and Spanish homework on the high bench outside. Even in winter it is warm enough to side outside. I live the salted caramel chocolate brownie (heated up in the microwave) and the vanilla chai.
If you don’t like children then this is not the place for you. To miss the most of them go later in the afternoon.
My one problem with this place is that they v allow for smoking outside. Considering it is child friendly and the outside space is small it would make sense to stop the smoking altogether.

I love this coffee shop. It’s so refreshing to go to an independent place opposed to the usual Starbucks and the like… it can get quite busy and seating is limited. Best seats are outside where you can watch the world go by. If coffee’s not your thing they do yummy milkshakes and brownies to die for!

On the plus side, the quality of comestibles here is very high– superb cakes (apparently all produced in house, or by «local mothers” — their claim, not mine!) and good, ethically sourced coffee). Definitely pitched at yummy mummies and the middle class bratterati of Balham. I gather B & B also do kiddies parties from a different location.
On the minus side– and I’m being picky– the music indoors is a bit loud, and brought to mind a Frankie & Bennies vibe, presumably having been selected for the younger clientele and/​or people who want to live in the 1950s Mid West. The outside seating is great to watch the world go by. Although that world includes artics on their way to the South Circular.

A fun and relaxed place to sit down and have a mocha while finishing homework or reading. The coffee is always great (which is a plus,) and the customer service is excellent. No complaints!

I really like the vibe in here! Really yummy mummy and posh! haha! They make lot’s of fresh cakes and sandwiches and I had a white chocolate and walnut cookie (it was massive!) and a cajun chicken baked potato! Really cute place to go as a bit of a treat…

Sat in Berie and Boo with a friend on a particularly dark, cold and snowy evening with a hot chocolate and cupcake. Found it to be friendly, welcoming and cosy. I like the mish-​mash of furniture and the old school desk tables. Very cute.

My favourite. I like Bertie & Boo’s but I can understand how some people may have a different opinion in their reviews. I’ve been impressed with all the brews I’ve tried there and for a small place the food is pretty good (it would be great if they had a veggie savory option for breakfast though). I mainly like the ambiance (they put lounging chairs outside in the summer) but this can be interrupted in midday visits by moms with tons of kids. They also offer free wifi (no signing up or anything) but it can be a bit slow and doesn’t reach outside. Overall, just a warm, welcoming independent coffee shop. Also the prices are reasonable for a small joint.

I love this place, it’s only 5 minutes from where I live now — I actually first went here about 4 years ago and was taken by the cool décor (old school tables & chairs, old books etc) which is a bit shabby chic without the white was — jsut my style.
The service is really nice and no fus, great cakes & coffee. The only gripe I have is that every time I go I have the same thing (chocolate cake with white chocolate ganache) and sometimes it can be a hit or miss. Sometimes it’s a bit dry as they have it out to the elements and sometimes it has less ganache than other times. I did notice today that they have it in a cabinet now — nice work, but thinking they didn’t have any left I ordered a chocolate muffin and then sadly saw it in the cabinet as I got up to get my hot choc.
Their hot choc’s are fab and I always have mine with marshmallows — sometimes they serve them in and sometimes on the side — would love some consistency (yes I know it’s a tiny thing!)
Anyway wont stop me from passing by for a little chill out time — is packed on the weekends so if you like things a little quieter go during the week.
I think they also have wifi as they always have a few people tapping away on their laptops.
Anyway look out for the chocky cake is fab…

A little overrated and overpriced — it seemed to rest on its laurels and ostentatious location (busy corner of Balham) after it won some ‘best independent coffee shop’ award… but it does have a very trendy atmosphere and some pretentious smoothies and cakes available.

It’s cute, but not cute enough. There are touches that feel really authentic and homely like the old school desks they use for tables. But then you see the giant red and blue menu posted on the wall in cheesy font and you wonder if you might actually be in a chain diner. The bacon sandwiches are pretty good, but can’t touch the ones from Trinity Stores (just around the corner). The cakes are tasty, and rather beautiful to look at, but aren’t anything truly special.
On a nice day it’s quite nice to sit outside, although you are on a very busy road so don’t try to a real conversation sitting there.
Overall, I think it’s just a place that tries a bit too hard and hasn’t quite made the cut. But given the choice between this independent coffee shop and Starbucks or Costa I’d choose Bertie and Boo every time.

Bertie and Boo has the potential to be the best coffee shop for miles. Great service, good food, good coffee, cheap prices, and nice surroundings. Unfortunately, as already mentioned, this place is not-​so-​yummy mummy central. Way too many kids, way too many prams, and way too many self important breeders. And the name is ridiculous.
Stick in a huge f*ck off speed ramp to stop all the prams getting in, put some death row techno on the stereo to scare off all the Coldplay fans, and I’d give this place 5 stars.

I popped back into Bertie Boo for a little tet-​a-​tet with my buddies. On a rainy afternoon the place was packed. As the first time I came the cakes on display were so tantalising, and my friends muffin looked so moist. (Somehow that sounds so wrong. Any who!) I had a tasty raspberry smoothie that was ok, along with a slightly disappointing tuna panini. I’m sorry but neither of my choices grabbed me as being anything to rave about or even recommend. Annoyingly, even though I don’t drink the stuff, the coffee my friends ordered looked great.
For those that have read my first review, I’m sorry guys but the attractive ladies have left, to be replaced by pretty boys. Although be it that we are in bohemian London, some of you may like that even more.
I am dropping a star due to my lousy panini.

My favourite coffee shop in England, and as a true Costa lover, that is saying something!
Cute & cosy, warm & inviting, if you go there you must try the homemade carrot cake or the blueberry cheese muffin… so scrumptious. Prices fairly match the gorgeous cakes and drinks, this is the perfect Sunday afternoon chill out spot in Balham. I live in Tooting Bec and make the weekly trip for a Sunday coffee, but would travel further to get here if I had to!

Bertie and Boo was a lovely break from your typical Starbucks and Costa Coffee. While the venue welcomes families with open arms and even has pamphlets for Bertie and Boo birthday parties, it remains a place where adults can have adult conversations in the presence of children.
The café’s colourful décor was very inviting but their covered patio seating is what sealed the deal. The royal blue awning allowed me and my friend to enjoy the warm weather without the downfall of the damp drizzle.
Inside, the counter displayed an array of fresh homemade cakes, muffins and sandwich that were all tempting. The vanilla chai latte and hot chocolate I ordered were delish.
My favourite part was by far the old school house desks. The connected chair and desktop would have made the perfect seat for one and the typical scratched initials encircled by a love heart sent me on a trip down memory lane.
So, if you’re in the area, Bertie and Boo is worth a visit.

A quirky, independantly owned coffee shop; makes a nice change from the usual chain coffee shops that adorne every high street.
I would have rated higher however everytime i’ve visited the shop it has always been over run by lots of kids and prams! Usually, I stop in for a coffee on my way down the high road, it’s a fair bit cheaper than Starbucks or Café Nero and certainly tastes better. The food is a little on the pricey side.
A really excellent place to come with the kids, just not with a book/​laptop.

Better coffee and cake than the awful starbucks, and costa lotty, but unfortunately if you are a bloke, on you own in there having a brew, I suggest you make no comment, reference, or even glance towards a noisy child. A very uncomfortable feeling from the piercing eyes of the mothers will result. I will always attempt to go to this lovely little coffee shop but often find myself glancing from across the road in the quiet calm of Neros. Looking forward to having a baby and a Bertie & Boo’s coffee :-)

This is very local to me so I often find myself popping in for a tea or a coffee on the way to M+S! It’s a cute place kitted out in old school desks and clearly aimed at the stay at home mothers group.
I believe all of the food is organic hence the price (its not cheap!) but they do carrot cake to die for so it’s worth it!
As mentioned in the other reviews it is often filled with young kids so it’s not the kind of place you go to have a quiet moment! Definitely worth a try.

Bertie & Boo is an independent coffee shop a couple of minutes away from Balham station. When walking past it, I couldn’t help but want to check it out. The décor was very different to any I had seen in a coffee shop before, made up of bright colours and patterns as well as an array of furniture which looks as if it was came from a school which gave me something to look at whilst I queued. The shop appears to be aimed at being a child friendly environment. I was interested to see that the owners of the shop are children’s entertainers by trade and so after this discovery the shop’s vibe began to make sense.
I popped in during the rush hour and the bulk of my fellow customers were commuters. There were not enough spare seats for me to sit down inside as it is quite a small place but there was seating outside in the decked area which was a little cold.
There were a wide selection of delicious looking cakes available and if I fancied it, hot food too which was around the same price as its chain store rivals.
If you fancy somewhere that is a bit different or if you want to enjoy a coffee but have the kids with you, then Bertie and Boo should be checked out.

One for the yummy mummies and their babies this. Excellent child friendly independent café who offer any coofee you like for a pound before 9am midweek. Something for the commuter there, but it is midday when this place comes into its own when its core customer the young parent and their offspring come to this cool café.
The décor is designed to entertain the youngest of minds and the menu described to appeal to those under 7s. I mean not in a dirty advertising kind of way but in the waqy you can have your toast as soliders. I mean, come on if you were six and learning to read that is what you want to see on the menu.
Definatly worth dropping in here, but beware babies can be noisy.