RAINBOWS AND GOOD VIBES AT CAMDEN’S PANCAKE ART CAFÉ
Nestled at the heart of Camden is the Pancake Art Café, a little haven of colours and flavours signed by the souvenir brand “To Home From London”.
We met with Julia, the manager and chef of the Pancake Art Café, who told us about the venue and the story that led to its creation.
But what is a Pancake Art Café, you may ask?
To understand this place, its concept and how it came to life, we have to rewind a few years ago.
Ten years ago exactly.
It all started with a love story
This story begins with a love story.
The one of Bianca, from Brazil, and Nacho, from Argentina, who met in 2012 in Rio’s street carnival.
After one year of long distance relationship, they moved together to London, as Nacho was studying there.
In order to keep in touch with friends and family, the couple started a blog.
A blog they named “To Home From London”.
As a child, Bianca used to paint, and Nacho had seen her artworks at her parents’ house.
Thus, for her first birthday in London, he gave her an art kit.
The couple already had the idea of creating a home decor business.
But as Bianca started to paint again, her new illustrations inspired by her adopted city were used to launch a first themed collection.
Julia said: “She was in love with her life in London and everything they were experiencing.”
In 2014, the couple started to sell their products on Portobello Market.
“Do you know any souvenir brands?”
The feedback they got at that time was a turning point, as people seemed to think of their products as souvenirs rather than home decor items.
Julia said: “At some point, [Bianca] was like: ‘Okay, maybe this is a souvenir business.’”
She came to the realization that when thinking of clothes or shoes, many brands came to mind… But there were no brands for souvenirs.
“To Home From London” started to have other points of sale such as on Christmas markets.
A first shop was opened in Camden in 2017.
The souvenir brand started to do collaborations with others as well.
Recently, they launched a collection with Ian Redpath and Jeremy Chopra, the duo behind “All on the Board”, whose famous messages are written on the boards in London stations.
With the pandemic, the souvenir business was badly affected and lost 90% of its revenue.
But the team did not lose courage and took this time to develop new projects.
“To Home From Where”, the sister brand of “To Home From London” with new collections, was launched.
And the Pancake Art Café’s idea started to materialize.
Artworks on pancakes
Before the pandemic, Bianca and Nacho had decided to take a new place in Camden to expand their business.
They wanted to open a concept store where people could personalize their mugs but also enjoy drinks or food while waiting for their item to be ready.
Thus, in 2019, Bianca called Julia, her cousin, who was, at the time, working as a pastry chef in Barcelona, to tell her about the new project.
And that's how a new character to this story came in: Julia moved to London.
Julia talks about the creation of the Pancake Art Café
Julia talks about the creation of the Pancake Art Café
The Pancake Art Café chef said: “We were trying to find ways of translating our artworks into food. So we were brainstorming for many days.”
After eliminating cupcakes or lollipops, pancakes were the lucky winners.
Julia said: “One day, Bianca saw a girl making pancake art on the internet and she said: ‘do you think you can draw my artworks in the shape of pancakes’. I said ‘I have never done it but let’s try!’”
Julia explains why they decided to serve pancakes
Julia explains why they decided to serve pancakes
The Pancake Art Café finally opened in September 2021.
Welcome to the Pancake Art Café
On the menu, the famous pancakes!
With different bottles of coloured batter, Julia draws edible artworks.
A treat for both the eyes and the stomach.
Julia wanted a vegan option for her pancakes, but she realized her vegan pancake was as good as the regular one.
As a result, all pancakes are vegan, as well as the toppings and the food colourings.
Each pancake is served on a palette, echoing the artistic vibe of the company and the Café.
Note: "To Home From London" does collaborations with Le Corgi
Note: "To Home From London" does collaborations with Le Corgi
Customers can also order drinks or a Rainbow Cheese Toast, Julia's signature sandwich.
She explained: "Throughout 2020, Bianca started to see rainbows everywhere and it kind of became the theme of the brand.”
That led her to offer a rainbow alternative savoury option to pancakes on the menu.
A menu they wanted short but of good quality, explained Julia.
The team also offers Art Brunches (not necessarily at brunch time), where customers can unleash their creativity and decorate their own tee shirt or eco bag - made from recycled plastic bottles - while savouring a pancake.
The venue also hosts events and birthdays.
And of course, customers can buy and personalise their own “To Home From London” mug as well, by choosing the colour inside, the design and the text.
In the future, the Pancake Art Café also hopes to organise workshops for people to make their own pancakes.
But until the next page of their story, Julia and her team welcome customers from Thursday to Monday, with colourful pancakes and good vibes.
Find the Pancake Art Café at 1 Water Lane, Arch S16, To Home From London, NW18NZ
The Pancake Art Café is open from Thursday to Monday.
From 12pm to 6pm on weekdays and 11am to 6pm during the weekend.
Bookings are encouraged but not mandatory.
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