A family-run coffee house in the heart of Croydon.

Coffee Village opened on Saffron Central Square in the middle of 2014, when the square itself was still finding its feet. A family with a simple ambition — a proper coffee house of their own — started with an espresso machine, a pastry counter and a handful of tables outside.

The same family runs it to this day. You'll find them behind the counter, on the espresso machine and calling the regulars' orders before they reach the till. Builders at seven, prams by ten, laptops all afternoon, and the bagel order that never changes. The room is stone and warm wood, with leather armchairs pulled up to the window.

What people come back for is simple: quality espresso and specialty coffee, food made when you order it rather than hours before, and owners who are so much a part of the place that the reviews mention them by name.