Tom Sixsmith from Batch Baby’s guide to London 🇬🇧

“When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life.”

Tourists when they visit London tend to hang out in the rich west end. This is a shame, not because the west is not great, but because they miss out on the north, south, and, always, the east.

In Hackney, East London, Batch Baby stands as the creation of Tom Sixsmith and his fiance, Saskia. Filter is the travel guide that gives authentic experiences enjoyed by real people who live there; it so happened that Tom and I spoke by WhatsApp a few days before an out of town friend came to visit, so the Filter below is as much a travel guide as it is a recording of one friend taking another friend around his town.

*Tom Sixsmith and his fiance, Saskia, founded Batch Baby in Hackney, East London. Photos courtesy of Tom Sixsmith*

Filter: What are your go-to fun activities in London?

Nothing has ever felt more apt to me than Samuel Johnson's famous quote, “When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life.”

There really is so much going on here, that it feels like you could really do anything. The museums and art galleries are amazing, there is live world-class sport on almost every day, there are always gigs no matter what music you're into, the architecture is great, and there are heaps of wonderful parks.

The list never ends really, and that's without mentioning London's food and drink scene which is where I spend most all of my time and all of my money.

Filter: If a friend came to visit, where would you be sure to take them?

I live in Hackney, East London, which is where my shop is also based, so I do spend a lot of time in this particular borough. My best mate lives outside of London and is actually coming to visit this week, so I might as well tell you what I plan to do with him.

Day starts walking to London Fields and Broadway Market (especially if it's the weekend)—there we will walk my dog, visit the world-class Paradox Coffee, and definitely pick up a falafel from Pockets (which do the best falafel I've ever had). Then we will move down to Brick Lane, have a mooch around the vintage shops there, probably go and look at vintage football shirts I can’t afford, then watch footie in a proper London pub—my choice would be the Duke of Wellington in Haggerston.

After that, either dinner at Lyle’s (in my opinion the best restaurant in London) or cocktails at A Bar with Shapes for a Name. If there is any energy left, The Shacklewell Arms or Paper Dress Vintage to dance to end the night.

Filter: Where do you go to get out of town?

It's always important to escape the big smoke and luckily England is so small it's kinda easy to do. Either you go to the coast—Brighton is the most famous and easiest to get to, but I prefer Margate for its fantastic restaurant and coffee scene. Also, never going to say no to spending an hour in Dreamland, the little theme park.

Otherwise, Britain is full of national parks—places like the Lake District, Peak District or the Brecon Beacons, they are so beautiful and fantastic to hike around. My personal favourite is the Lake District but they are all really accessible and usually the hikes aren't too hard or anything.

Filter: London has its share of touristy spots—what’s worth the hype?

Quite a lot honestly worthwhile, but one that really really stands out is Borough Market. You'll find it on plenty of lists but it really is one that I would regularly go visit. They have a huge selection of interesting food stalls, as well as an amazing range of produce available from around the world. It's also surrounded by nice restaurants and pubs, including Monmouth Coffee which is without doubt the grandfather of speciality coffee in London.

Filter: Where are your favorite green spaces there?

We have a little podenco (Spanish hound) called Wanda, who is pretty energetic so we're always taking her to new places. Hampstead Heath is one of the best near us and really feels like you've left the city, but my real choice would be Hackney Marshes. There are actually tons of canals around and they're all really nice to walk around and they often connect up for miles. Hackney Marshes has a great walk along there, especially in the summer.

Filter: What's another London coffee shop that you really admire, and why?

There are so many but three really stand out to me: Formative, Paradox, and Nagare. Formative are the best option in central London—brilliant quality coffee, which is not surprising because the UK barista champion might be making it for you.

Nagare have a really interesting selection of coffees from roasters you don't see often here from places like Japan and Australia.

Paradox are brilliant at coffee again, excellent chat, excellent range of coffees, surrounded by great food in Netil Market, what more could you want?

Filter: What makes London feel like home to you?

I'm really lucky because I live and work in the same area called De Beauvoir, it's really a great pocket of London. People really know each other here, and you actually regularly find yourself waving to people in the street or having impromptu pub sessions. We’re surrounded by our friends and customers and it honestly really feels like home and I can't imagine moving anywhere else.

Filter: How did you end up in the London coffee scene?

Originally I'm from a town near Liverpool in the northwest, however my parents moved away from there when I was still a teenager. Since then my home has been split between Vancouver, Canada, where I learned to be a barista, and Dundee in Scotland. London was really the first city in England to embrace specialty coffee, so when I had to move back to England in my twenties, many years ago, it was really the only option.

Filter: Can you share about your role at Batch Baby?

I'm co-founder of Batch Baby alongside my fiance, Saskia. I tend to get to do all the fun things like order and brew coffee, play with food, and shout ideas out; Saskia tends to actually make sure our shop works properly as a business. It was a long term aim of mine to open up both a high-quality coffee shop offering some of the best coffee available from around the world, while also being as warm and welcoming as a local more residential cafe. It's brilliant to see how well its done in the first two years, literally like a dream come true—we've won some prestigious awards and financially done better than I dreamed but the most rewarding thing honestly is just how much our customers and staff share our love of the shop just as much as we do, it really feels like a community.

Filter: If you could move to any place in the world just for the coffee scene, where would you move, and what shop would be the biggest reason?

This is a tough one, both because I'm really pretty happy here in London and think it has one of the best scenes in the world and also because there are so many other great places out there.

Melbourne and Copenhagen obviously both stand out but for me it would be the Netherlands.

Personally I think the standard of coffee coming out of the Netherlands is so high—don't make me choose between Amsterdam or Rotterdam BUT if you're looking for great roasters—like A.M.O.C, Dak, Friedhats, or Manhattan; coffee shops like Locals or Dune; or brunch places like Harvest or Toki, honestly it's an excellent place for a coffee nerd to be.

Filter: Any last tips for visiting London?

I think with visiting London it's important to not stay too central all the time and also to not try to fit too much in—choose your activities and fully enjoy them.

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Batch Baby is located in the De Beauvoir area of Hackney, East London.

Food & Beverage

A Bar with Shapes for a Name