London Diaries - Tinder Box Cafe

I really did not bother looking at the Café until my friend started working here.
Honestly, I never knew it existed despite my numerous visits to Paperchase – an upscale stationery store which housed the Café on its first floor.

Now seriously, who would want to walk into a stationery store, get your hands on some fancy fountain pens and head straight for a cup of coffee?

Apparently, not many did that.

It was the warmth of the coffee that held people close.

My first visit to Tinderbox was quite unintentional.
My friend, Anupa, a ball of happiness, insisted that I get out more often and enjoy the sun. Arshad, another friend of mine who is an architect, thought it was a great idea to fire up his synapses of creativity.

The walk down Tottenham Court Road has always been refreshing. It is unlikely that you don’t bump into a bunch of students talking about the sordid reality of tight coursework submissions. We had University College London located on one end, AA School of Architecture which was right around the corner & the Shoppers’ paradise Oxford Street just a stone-throw away to feed on the patronage of mentally disturbed students.

So you enter the store...walk past the aisle of greeting cards…go up the stair case to a viewing gallery of fountain pens…resist your temptation to buy one…walk right away in the opposite direction to enter the café.

Now, the tilling machine usually looks black & white like above, unless it is Nithu taking your order. For all those who are unaware, Nithila ‘Nithu’ is my short haired friend who is full of smiles & colour. A Barista by the day & an architect at night, she is the Batgirl who juggles multiple roles (oh and she dresses up in black as well!).

Being the low lives that Anupa had dragged us down to, we decided to have some fun.
We started off complaining about the lack of creativity in the menu when we could not spot Sambar Vada. Nithu being the darling she was, did not chase us away.

I asked for some Ice tea with extra ‘love’. The damsel was nice enough not to charge me for that :*.

But you see, ordering at Tinderbox can be quite frustrating.

You have Nithu with her gorgeous dimples looking right at you. You have Elena who is working on the coffee machine thingy making that ‘Krrrrrrrrrrr’ noise from the steam valve which is ever satisfying to hear. You have the aroma of freshly prepared coffee that forces your eyes shut but a split second later, the caffeine kicks in and your eye balls pop wide open. Boy oh boy!

We collect our orders and walk down the seating area with the sunshine on our backs.

A sublime reality is what I can define my time there.

I look out the viewing gallery to see people walk out of Goodge Street Tube station. Meanwhile, Nithu was kind enough to supplement my Iced tea with a warm hug because she did not conjure a heart shaped foam like she did for Arshad (I know..Iced tea doesn't have foam and I was probably her meanest customer). 

I hate to make this comparison, but London reminds me so much of Bombay.

Crowded city, people always on the run and a dense network of public rail system which forms the lifeline.

Oh baby!
Come back soon.