"In an area of London known for its latte art and queuing-for-brunch culture, Brioche in Balham is a little bit disappointing. The cafe serves a lot of the usual breakfast things, but their specialty is replacing sourdough with thick brioche. While that sounds good in theory, it doesn’t hit like it’s meant to. The dry brioche tastes like it’s come straight out of a packet and has never met a toaster, plus the ratio of toppings to carbs is off—so we’d stick to the sourdough. Inside it’s plain, bright, and perfectly nice-looking with enough space to gather a couple of friends over a coffee and slice of banana bread—and for that, it’ll do just fine." - Rianne Shlebak