11th December 2007
The Prince of Cafes
I used to work just around the corner from The Regency Café, and I miss it terribly. It's the kind of place I would now get up early on a precious Saturday morning to go and visit, that's how great it is.
But lunchtime is when this place really comes into its own. By 1pm every weekday, it's a steamy, buzzing place, stuffed full of an unusual cross-section of people: cabbies make up its staple trade, but they usually pop in a bit earlier along with local builders, to avoid the rush of Westminster suits, Civil Servants, and Channel Four workers.
The food here does exactly what is says on the tin. Hearty, stodgy mains courses are always plentiful, and the special changes every day. The most common orders are for eggs, beans, sausages, and their legendary chips- huge yet somehow light golden bites of fluffy goodness. The scampi and the chicken fillet burgers are some of my other favourites. Scampi salad is a real pleasure- a chunky, basic salad topped off with refreshingly unhealthy fried morsels. My only criticism is that they’re still stuck in postwar school-dinners era as far as their peas are concerned- they use those sludgy khaki-coloured tinned processed ones.
But the most memorable thing about this place is the sheer volume at which the owner/ proprietor, Marco “The Voice” Schiavetti, bellows out the orders to customers as the dishes arrive piping hot from the kitchen. You’re expected to be on the ball and remember what you’ve ordered, as well as be ready to step up and collect it. If you’re female, he’s a pussycat. If you’re male, you’ll get an appreciative nod if you get to the service counter promptly.
This place has been used in all kinds of film and tv adverts and is an iconic slice of postwar London. It’s a cheap lunch and an unforgettable experience to boot! Get down there before your food goes cold.
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