For some people, this year’s big hit has been Serial, the true-crime podcast. Others would opt for Cereal Killer, the Brick Lane café which serves only what it says on the box. Boasting more than a hundred varieties and an equally wow-ing choice of milk, this bowl-and-spoon joint has racked up more than 14,000 followers on Instagram, and played host to star-studded guests such as Hollywood’s Dave Franco and professional East Londoner Russell Brand.
But there are others still who think that paying £5 for a bowl of the proverbial, can only mean you are snap, crackle and popped.
Let me lay my cutlery on the table: I’m with those who love it rather than loathe it.
On arrival I found myself in a small room decorated with Barbie and Simpsons-themed cereal boxes, and a menu written in fridge magnets. As promised, there was plenty of choice: different types of milk (banana, chocolate, strawberry), and cereal cocktails, i.e. mix’n’match, together with highly prized American imports such as Reese’s Puffs and Lucky Charms (a full 20 pence piece more than UK-based Rice Krispies priced at £4.80).
Early on a Thursday afternoon the waiting time was short. I had only just enough time to pick out my favourite cereal, a bowl of so-called Unicorn Poop (Rice Krispies, marshmallow and marshmallow fluff), which cost me a fraction under £5. Expensive, yes. But this is not just a handful of corn thrown into a bowl; more like a sweet treat and a novelty experience to savour.
Presentation was highly pleasing and definitely worth an Instagram snap. Once I had finished eating I noticed almost every customer taking photos of their bowls.
The basement seating area was clean, cosy and pleasant. The walls were littered with small trinkets from the noughties which only children from that era would recognise and fully appreciate, making the audience for the café around 16-25. The televisions on the wall continued the millennial theme by playing video tapes (yes, actual video cassettes) of old cartoons. The whole scene felt like a familiar playroom.
Service was a more hands off approach, which I generally prefer. At the counter, the staff asked us what cereal(s) we would like, put said cereal(s) in the bowl, took payment, and that was it. Customers are required to carry their own trays down the steep and winding basement stairs, which is a bit strange since one minute we were enjoying the kiddie treatment and the next we are expected to be more like mountain rescue.
Staff were friendly and polite, considering they put no pressure on me and my three companions when we stayed at our table for about an hour after we had finished eating (this doesn’t take long).
It’s an enjoyably quirky kind of place and worth the money if you are in the mood for a novelty treat. Only a killjoy would take a crack at the Cereal café.
Cereal Killer Café now has two branches: one in Camden Stables and the original ‘box’ down Brick Lane. cerealkillercafe.co.uk