Roadtrip: London Coffee Bars in the 50s and 60s

Before Starbucks, Espresso House, Nero and other major coffeehouse chains invaded every city on the western hemisphere there were thousands of smaller coffee houses or coffee bars as they were referred to back then. London, England saw a major expansion of these quaint places in the early 1950s, right about the same time as the first Espresso machine was introduced there. The clip below is taken from the DVD Look At Life – Swinging London, which features sixteen kitschy and fascinating short films about London life in the 1950s and 1960s. Groovy!

A joyous celebration of 1960s London from the colourful ‘Look At Life’ series, produced by the Rank Organisation every week for screening in Odeon cinemas. Explore London’s street markets with Sid James, browse the boutiques of Carnaby Street and dine at the top of the Post Office Tower. Welcome to Swingin’ London, home of ‘scooter boys’ and ‘it’ girls! Features sixteen short films: Report on the River, Shopping by the Ton, Rising to High Office, Coffee Bars, In Gear, Change at the Tower, Fire Over London, Goodbye, Piccadilly, Market Place, Members Only, Top People, On the Meter, Eating High, Down London River,

About the author: Chris

Founded Ultra Swank in 2005. Has a crush on Pan Am, Disneyland and the Century 21 Exposition. Lives life as an expat in Barcelona, Spain.

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Fhardyfan

Great atmosphere!
http://www.ultraswank.net Chris

I wish London still looked like this, although there are still some old double decker Routemaster buses in use which adds to the mid-century atmosphere there.
http://coolnessistimeless.blogspot.com Keith

The blog is looking great. I love this clip. So cool and hip. Cheers!
http://thermalcupcoffeemaker.com/ mosuskkel

A very interesting report for you to read
http://bestcoffeeclubs.com/blog/ Coffee of the Month Clubs

Cafe's before looks pretty great. Until now some cafe owners keep this kind of culture and ambiance in their cafe to attract customers.
http://coffeeofthemonthclub.net/ Coffee Clubs

The ambiance looks pretty great. I hope Starbucks and any coffee stores have some few 50's to 60's look cafes.
http://www.searchofficespace.com/uk/office-space/soho-serviced-offices.html Rent Offices Soho

I just sent this post to a bunch of my friends as I agree with most of what you’re saying here and the way you’ve presented it is awesome.

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Euston Serviced Offices
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Ultra Swank takes you back in time into the kitsch, chic and swank living of the 50s, 60s and the 70s. We mainly focus on the design, architecture and the lifestyle of the happy-go-lucky and space-age-living mentality of that era – but also on the music and movies that takes you back to happier times. Ultra Swank is run by Chris, a Swede born in the wrong decade that currently resides in Barcelona. Read more

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