London · Greek Street, Soho
Maison Bertaux
Since 1871
Maison Bertaux on Greek Street is the oldest patisserie in London, opened by a Communard in 1871 and unchanged in spirit since: a blue-fronted Soho institution with éclairs, Saint-Honorés, fruit tarts and a tea room upstairs where the theatre crowd has sat for a century.
The shop is small, blue and bohemian, with cakes on the counter under glass, a few tables outside and a room upstairs; the pastries are French and homely, the éclair, the fruit tart, the Saint-Honoré, the mille-feuille, the croissant, made in the kitchen behind. It has survived every change in Soho and is loved for it.
It is not the finest pastry in London; it is the most London pastry in London, and it belongs in the guide for that.
The signature
The éclairs and fruit tarts
What to buy
- An éclair
- A fruit tart
- The Saint-Honoré
- Tea upstairs
