Soho's independent shops: coffee since 1887, pasta since 1944, suits since 1960

For all the chains on its edges, Soho is still a place where you can buy coffee from the shop that has sold it on the same spot since Victoria was on the throne, pasta from a counter that opened in 1944, and a suit cut by hand on Berwick Street. These are the independent shops we keep going back to, street by street, with what to buy in each.

Algerian Coffee Stores, 52 Old Compton Street

Algerian Coffee Stores opened its doors in 1887 and, as its own history puts it, still stands on its original site. Coffee and tea have filled the shop since the day it opened, and it now supplies them far beyond Soho. It opens at 10am, Monday to Saturday, and stays open until 7pm from Thursday. Ask the staff which roast suits the way you make coffee at home, and leave with a bag of beans.

Gerry's Wines & Spirits, 74 Old Compton Street

A few doors along, Gerry's is the spirits shop for anyone who mixes drinks at home. The range runs from gins, schnapps and akvavit to vermouth, amari, bitters, syrups and miniatures. It opens at 9am, closes at 9pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and opens at noon on Sundays. Pick up a miniature of something you have never heard of and a bottle of bitters for the cocktail cabinet.

Lina Stores, 18 Brewer Street

The deli on Brewer Street has been trading since 1944, when Lina, a formidable woman from Genova, opened it. Lina Stores still sells cured meats, cheese and antipasti imported from Italy, but it is best known for fresh, handmade pasta and its own sauces. It is open every day and is now card only. Soho lost its other great Italian grocer, I Camisa & Son on Old Compton Street, in August 2024, which makes Lina all the more precious. Buy a bag of fresh pasta and a tub of sauce for dinner, and a panino for the walk home.

Maison Bertaux, 28 Greek Street

Maison Bertaux has been making cakes in Soho since 1871, which makes it one of the oldest names on Greek Street. Go on a weekday afternoon, take a seat and order a slice of cake with a coffee.

Milroy's, 3 Greek Street

At the Soho Square end of Greek Street, Milroy's is a whisky shop with a bar attached and another bar, The Vault, hidden behind a bookcase. The shop sells its own bottlings alongside single malts and rarer whiskies, and it runs tastings. Go to the shop counter, ask for a recommendation in your price range, and try a dram at the bar before you buy the bottle.

Foyles, 107 Charing Cross Road

On the eastern edge of Soho, Foyles has been selling books since the Foyle brothers founded it in 1903. The flagship moved in June 2014 from its old building a few doors along to 107 Charing Cross Road, and since 2018 it has been owned by Waterstones. The foreign language department, the old Grant & Cutler, is on Level 4. Spend an hour on the upper floors and buy the book you did not come in for.

The tailors

Soho has always made clothes, and two tailors keep the tradition going. Chris Kerr, at 31 Berwick Street, describes itself as Soho's oldest bespoke tailor. It was founded on the street in 1960 by Chris's father, known as Mr Eddie, who dressed show business stars of the sixties, and it still makes suits by hand in Soho. It opens weekdays from 9am and Saturday mornings. Its website explains the difference between bespoke and made to measure. Book an appointment and start with a made-to-measure jacket.

Mark Powell has been cutting suits in Soho for 40 years and now trades from 10 Newburgh Street, behind Carnaby Street, from noon. Book a fitting for a suit, and ask for a lapel sharp enough to cut yourself on.

How to shop it

Start on Brewer Street at Lina, walk east to Old Compton Street for Gerry's and the Algerian Coffee Stores, head up Greek Street for Maison Bertaux and Milroy's, and finish at Foyles. That is a morning. For the tailors, book ahead: they work by appointment, and the good ones are always busy.