Trade Made café opens near Hampstead Heath to 'huge welcome'

Alex Stone has opened his fourth branch of Trade Made in Swain's Lane and said of all his outlets, it "feels special".

The doors opened on July 25 and he said he was "surprised to be very busy from the get go".

• MOST READ: 'Absurd and dangerous scheme will make traffic worse - but nobody's listening'

Alex said: "We're really loving the vibe and the atmosphere of everyone in Swain's Lane, everyone's been so friendly and nice. It's different to other parts of London, it feels a bit special.

"All of our team are from outside of London and have gone 'wow, it's a proper village'.

Alex Stone inside his latest Trade Made café in Swain's Lane (Image: Nathalie Raffray)

"It doesn't feel Londony at all."

In natural surroundings of cream walls and wooden tables, staff cure and smoke the cafe's own pastramis and do American-style deli sandwiches.

He said the coffee has been popular and most asked-for dishes are the Turkish eggs and the corned bread with smoked beans.

Trade Made makes its own coffee blend which has proven to be very popular with Swain's Lane visitors (Image: Jeremy Freedman)

The father-of-two added: "In the next week or two we're going to open until early in the evening. We want people to be sitting outside having cocktails and small bites."

Alex runs the business with his mother-in-law Marion Boltman after originally setting it up with his late father-in-law.

Alex Stone, right, outside Trade Made in Swain's Lane where he said the customers had made him feel 'really welcomed' (Image: Nathalie Raffray)

The family opened their first cafe in Commercial Street, Spitalfields, in 2013, followed by others in Essex Road, Islington, in 2017 and Old Street, Islington, two years later.

The former Highgate School pupil, who now lives in Whetstone, Barnet, added: "The main thing that surprised me was the amount of people who came in, how nice the locals have been and how welcome they've made us feel.

"I've also seen a lot of people I know."

Harry Lobek, who runs the London Shell Co on the parade,and Anselm Chatwin, co-owner of the Duke of St Albans, are both Highgate School alumni.

Alex previously told the Ham&High it felt "like fate" to get the lease after failing twice before, first to Gail's Bakery, then to the Duke of St Albans.

Gabriel Smith, freelance coffee specialist with his scrambled eggs on sourdough with a side of chicken at Trade Made, Swain's Lane (Image: Nathalie Raffray)

Gabriel Smith, a freelance coffee specialist, was at the café and praised their coffee blend as well as his brunch of scrambled egg, sourdough and chicken.

"It's beautiful here, there's a really cool vibe, it's very green," he said.

"I love the set up they've got here. A good aesthetic goes a long way."