This Soho boozer is called The Coffee House in reference to the fact that coffee was London's original social drink. London’s first coffee house opened in 1652. Proprieter Pasqua Rosee charged a penny for coffee and allowed punters to talk trade and do business.
It was the Portuguese bride of Charles II who arrived in England years later to change the national consciousness by saying something to effect of, ‘I could murder a nice cup of tea.’
Funnily enough, it’s all coming full circle now, as the number of pubs are dramatically on the decline, and coffee shops are on the up! Below is the site of London's original coffee house, notice the curved stone step weathered from centuries of footsteps!
It was the Portuguese bride of Charles II who arrived in England years later to change the national consciousness by saying something to effect of, ‘I could murder a nice cup of tea.’
Funnily enough, it’s all coming full circle now, as the number of pubs are dramatically on the decline, and coffee shops are on the up! Below is the site of London's original coffee house, notice the curved stone step weathered from centuries of footsteps!