There’s a new arrival on Lavender Hill: Lane Eight Coffee opened a couple of weeks ago at No. 125 (at the corner of Stormont Road, opposite the Church of the Ascension). Lane Eight will be familiar to some of our readers, as they’ve been trading from a tiny little branch more or less opposite the entrance to Clapham Common tube station for a couple of years (and before that, they ran a site in east Dulwich). Lane Eight offer a small selection of top quality coffee – as well as a premium ceremonial Matcha on the menu, that owner George and his partner sourced from Kyushu, Japan.

The focus here is unashamedly on the coffee – which is sourced and roasted by Red Bank coffee in Kendal, a location your author happens to know well! Kendal is a market town in the Lake District, right on the edge of the most touristy area – and it has developed quite as strong coffee culture of its own (and a note for Kendal people: Red Banks roastery is just off the mysterious ‘private road’ that works as a short cut to the by pass between Kendal and Underbarrow, where you occasionally pay 50p to the chap in high viz).

Red Bank source coffees from a network of small producers they go out and visit annually, and roast their beans on site in Kendal. They’re a are a certified B Corp, and put 2% of their revenue to rewilding projects in the Lake District, donations to Growing Well, an organic farm and mental health charity (for Kendal people – they’re right next to Low Sizergh farm between Kendal & the M6, the one where you can watch the cows being milked), and donations to their importing partner Raw Material, a not-for-profit social enterprise that exists to improve the lives and working conditions of the producers that they work with.

There’s a clear design approach at Lane Eight’s new venture: 125 Lavender Hill is a good quality corner unit, blessed with huge windows and lots of light, that previously spent a good few years as a sash window showroom, and before that as an estate agents. Owner George Rendall has a strong interest in design (as well as running, hence the name), and his fit out of the space has done it justice, keeping things clean and simple, with a feel of air and space – with pared-back look keeps the focus on the coffeemaking, and provides for a moment of calm. The same approach is visible in his other branch at 6, the Pavement on Clapham high street, but the space on Lavender Hill has clearly given much more room to run with the theme.

A large central coffee counter is coated with Mortex (a sort of waxed concrete) and has all the services built in, to make things tidy and efficient. The walls and ceiling have a lime wash texture, and the floor was completely replaced as part of the works, while some quality carpentry also went in to the long dark wood bench along the windows, that also conceals the heating system.

The space on offer allows for a different feel to the other branch – with a deliberately slower pace. The aim is to create a moment of calm away from busy life, echoing the peaceful landscapes and quiet calmness of the Lake District that roasts the coffee but also inspired some of the design, with soft features, wood textures and open space. Three tables are on the way – which will make the space work a little better than it does at the moment – but these will be coffee tables; the aim here’s not really at packing it with seating to make an all-day ‘work on your laptop’ place. There’s no food currently on offer (not least as there’s not space for a kitchen – bearing in mind that the back of the premises, that used to be even larger, were converted to a separate flat a few years ago).

Some might say Lavender Hill’s already rather well stocked with coffee shops. In the last year we’ve seen Phresh opening up with a coffee- and fresh juice venture, now supplemented by a proper food option as well (cue the Quality All Day Breakfast klaxon!), and within a few weeks Pique, as well as Turkish-inspired Spread (opposite Harley’s, and Spread also make a fine coffee – article to follow). Coupled with long established Italian-angled Il Molino, Portuguese bakery Sweet Smile which has its own proper fully equipped bakery at the back and sells freshly baked loaves as well as coffee, Abruzzo specialist Maiella Worth, the big chains like Caffe Nero, and the one that arguably started it all, Sendero – the market may seem crowded. But it’;’s also fair to say our many coffee options all have their own niches, and the large local population, a fair few of whom work at home at least part of the week (and a small but noticeable degree of tourist trade) have clearly created a surprisingly large local demand for all things caffeinated.

And we may only be a couple of weeks in, but Lane Eight’s new venture has clearly found its market. George’s first branch recently got a mention in Vogue (quoted below) in their feature on where to find the best coffee in London, and word has spread quickly on his new opening on Lavender Hill. We’ve been impressed by the coffee, as well as the high standard this has all been done to, and we think this brings something a bit different to Lavender Hill’s extensive choice of coffee. Do visit and see what you reckon!

Lane Eight Coffee, 125 Lavender Hill, London SW11 5QJ (instagram). Monday to Sunday, 8am-4pm (at the time of writing). We post from time to time on retail developments in the Lavender Hill area of Battersea, London – if you found this of interest you may want to see our other recent posts on retail and on food and drink in the area, or to sign up to receive new posts by email.