Taste Talk: First-time cafe and shop owner Emily Wright

 

She's not even thirty yet but Emily Wright has already done what so many secretly dream of -- opening her own cafe and shop. She's the founder, manager and sole employee of T&SHOP in Newington Green in North London. She lives upstairs, bakes all the goodies and scours vintage furniture markets and local producers for quality stock. Oh and mere months after opening a Hollywood movie star has already become a repeat customer, while the local Turkish population has warmly welcomed the 29-year-old's impressive work ethic and ridiculously fragrant rose tea. Amongst all that she kindly took the time to talk with Tasting Pages, thanks Emily!   

How would you describe T&SHOP to people who've never been?

T&SHOP is a lifestyle concept shop with tea, coffee and food, where you can buy the chair you're sat on while having a cuppa.

When did you open T&SHOP?

It was born end of May this year and is still teething. It took about 9 months of prep so I feel like it is my baby; I imagine it to be emotionally similar.

How did the idea come about?

I have always loved tea... and cake. I like to host and bake and feed people, and I have a big family to practice on. I think I'd talked and dreamt about having a shop long enough that I had to make it happen and I realised I had nothing to loose and a lot of support around. Plus also to be honest, I had a big break-up shake-up!

Tasting Menus: Trangallán, tapas restaurant, Newington Green

The London neighbourhood of Newington Green flies somewhat under the radar. Tucked next to Stoke Newington and Dalston — two areas oft-mentioned in the media as havens of trendiness; where cafes, delis and restaurants seem to open weekly — it houses luminaries such as myself, but not many restaurants of note. So when a defunct shopfront shows signs of development, those of us obsessively on the hunt for new edible experiences hope something tasteful and tasty will arise.

Trangallán has teased us for a while. The smart striped monochrome facade has been in place for many months. The word on the street was... 'tapas'. The suspense is now over, it's open, and I'm tipsy with relief after my first visit. Newington Green is now home to a cosy and charming restaurant that I look forward to revisiting.