Café Brood, London Bridge, UK

Paella and a Catalan meatball stew plus a glass of Tempranillo. Lovely!

It wasn't easy finding a decent caff in London Bridge, although I'm guessing that's my fault as I'm not familiar with the terrain. I was in town to attend a meeting at 2pm, meaning that lunch was out of the question as I'd be travelling when I should, by rights, be eating. So I left the office early in order to find somewhere to grab a snack.

My dilemma was this: should I venture over London Bridge – where the meeting was to be held – and find a caff there, or would I better finding something south of the river, bearing in mind that Borough Market was on the south side and there were more shops. I opted to staying south and, fortunately, stumbled across Café Brood at the foot of the bridge and down a few steps. Quite a secret as it's pretty much concealed from view. I spied the signage: Café Brood and decided to give it a whirl.

A giant paella – wonderful!

In all honesty, it doesn't qualify for Teashop and Caff as it's licenced, but I was desperate for food and decided to break my own rule. But this was an amazing place with a strong Spanish theme to it and freshly cooked food. There was a giant paella cooking outside as well as a giant Catalan meatball stew and it was possible, I was told, to have a bit of both...so I did along with a glass of Tempranillo.

What else was on offer? Rib Eye steak for £6.50; Café Brood burger for £6.00; Grilled Chorizo at £5.95; Marguez Sausage, £5.95; Lamb Kofte at £5.95; a hot dog for £3.65 and a vegetarian option too (Mediterranean salad, £6.50).

Well worth a visit, but better on a warm day. My advice to these people would be 'build a wall and add a door' and that way you'll keep the bad weather out of the customers' faces.

Top notch establishment offering quality food at reasonable prices.