No.23

Lotfi opened No.23 on Kirkdale Road in 2025 after leaving a career in fashion that had taken him from Algiers to Paris to London, working for houses including Patek Philippe and Louis Vuitton before deciding to run a cafe instead. The unit previously housed Dog's Dinner for twenty-two years, and after its owner Aysen died, Lotfi partnered with her sisters to convert the space in her memory. Chef Daddie, who spent eighteen years in the kitchen at Luc's Brasserie in Leadenhall Market, cooks a short counter menu of roasted vegetable salads, mini quiches and daily pastries alongside speciality coffee from Alt Roastery. The room holds only six seats inside and four more on the pavement, so much of the trade is takeaway. Lotfi and his small team plan to use the space for occasional book clubs and poetry nights.