Brunch in Balham & Tooting: Reviewing Milk and Juliets Quality Food
When it’s the weekend that means only one thing – it's time for BRUNCH! But why wait until Saturday or Sunday when you can indulge in a must-try spot any day of the week? And the best part? No long queues to wait in! When you are in South London, there are no better spots that Milk in Balham, or Juliet’s Quality Food in Tooting.
These two well-known brunch spots in South London are actually sisters, owned by Jules & Lauren and open 7 days a week. But which one offers the best brunch? We went to both spots so you can pick your next brunch spot with confidence.
📍Milk, Balham, London
Bearing the title as the best brunch in South London, Milk was launched in 2012, then known as M1LK. Milk has quickly become a favourite among Balham locals, thanks to its relaxed atmosphere, great coffee, and delicious brunch options. Now, it's one of the hottest brunch spots in South London, attracting visitors from across London with the casual, calm and unique brunch vibe. Their website is simple, mentioning no offering of bookings with the focus on their sustainable suppliers.
OUR THOUGHTS:
From arriving, the brunch spot holds a prime position in Balham. Just a 2-minute walk from Balham tube station with outside al fresco seating on at the corner of Hildreth Street and Bedford Hill, however the uniquely shaped restaurant does offer limited seating. The Balham brunch spot drives crazy queues, leading to Milk buy the shop next door – however this seems to mainly be shop floor, offering a branding and food side shop. It seems to be a bloggers hotspot which has built long queues into this lunch spots DNA. Although, they have just had a small reno, offering a little glow up to the space, so I’m interested to see any changes!
From observing other orders it’s pretty obvious what the favourite dishes are. You can't miss their signature dish pilling out of the kitchen, the Young Betty, a burnt butter hollandaise twist on a classic eggs royale, or their ever-changing buckwheat pancakes – you can’t go wrong if you start your weekend with a sweet treat. But we also had to try their famous banana bread, and it did not disappoint.
We ordered the Convict, another strong contender, a pork patty muffin with streaky bacon, hangover sauce, and Lincolnshire poacher - the fanciest breakfast sandwich you can lay your eyes on. Sweet, sour and salty it provided all the flavours, it truly reminds me of a glorified McMuffin, which is no bad thing!
We also got the Banana Bread to share, this was the real star of the show, freshly baked banana bread, topped with heavenly halva butter and pumpkin seed tahini. Full of flavour, balancing textures and spot on presentation, the halva offers an intense flavouring that may not be for all, however, the creamy consistently really hit the spot for me!
My only criticism is that my drink did arrive fairly cold, definitely ready to drink, plus, we didn’t feel we could stay longer than we ate with the ever-growing queue forming, so we were only there for about 35 minutes (10:30-11:05). Overall, Milk is a great brunch spot and it is open 7 days a week.
And as, I missed out on the Young Betty that called for a visit to their sister restaurant… Juliet’s Quality Foods.
Milk Brunch Review:
Price: £££ - main dishes are around the £10 mark, whilst the banana bread is slightly pricey at £6.70.
Location: An easy walk from Balham tube, located in the pedestrianised corner of Hildreth Street and Bedford Hill.
Food: ★★★★☆
Insta Worthy: ♥♥♥♥♥
Photos: The Convict, pork patty muffin with streaky bacon, hangover sauce, and Lincolnshire poacher and the Banana Bread, freshly baked banana bread, topped with heavenly halva butter and pumpkin seed tahini.
📍Juliet’s Quality Food, Tooting, London
Set up as Milk Teeth in 2015, the founders had the aim to follow Milk’s footsteps in creating an energetic restaurant with the attention on simple yet creative food. Focused on their upbringing, the founders have used Julian’s roots in Byron Bay, Australia to inspire the interior and menu with simple natural ingredients and neutral interior design. So is it worth the trek to Tooting Broadway?
OUR THOUGHTS:
First things first, as expected there was a short queue when arriving. However, we were greeted by a friendly server offering a coffee whilst we wait, of course we accepted. It’s obvious it is Milk’s sister, with good-looking cakes on the side and minimalist décor, creating a retro, wooden and yet homely vibe. Plus, just like Milk, they also had merchandise perched ready to buy.
From a scout of their website, you can pretty much shop at Juliet’s, with merchandise and click & collect wine and grocery items. Their menu follows the footsteps of Milk, however a few changes along the way. With a focus on eggs, the brunch spot also offers the Young Betty, this time with a twist of expresso & fermented chilli hollandaise.
It was pretty hard to pick from the menu – all of the classic brunch dishes had their own unique takes, making them a standout compared to other brunch menus. But, as I missed the Young Betty at Milk, I had to get it here. After being tempted by the meaty Salmon, I went for the bacon version, there is also eel if that’s what you fancy! Poached cackleberry farm eggs on wood-fired sourdough, grilled dry cure bacon & their secret recipe espresso & fermented chilli hollandaise - it was delicious. The espresso hollandaise sauce is a game changer with an upgrade from the standard hollandaise, adding a bang to my day. Overall, a step up from the typical brunch.
We did go for a sweet treat to share at the end – the dark chocolate, marshmallow and sea salt cookie, which we had been eying up as we queued, it would’ve been criminal to leave without trying. It was a little delicacy, although I would have loved it warmed.
Julitet’s Quality Food Brunch Review:
Price: £££ - very similar pricing to Milk.
Location: A slightly longer walk from Tooting tube, however on the Main Street of Tooting making it easy to navigate.
Food: ★★★★☆
Insta Worthy: ♥♥♥♥♥
Photos: Young Betty Bacon, Poached Eggs on Sourdough with a side of Avo and a late.
So, which is better between Balham’s Milk or Tooting's Juliet’s Quality Food? Both rank pretty highly for a laid back brunch in my opinion! The restaurants are fairly unassuming as the food is the focus, whilst we prefer the location of Milk with a good offering of outside seats, The neighbourhood cafe Juliets is definitely underrated.
Overall, Juliet’s Quality Food has to be our winner, with shorter queues, more welcoming staff, yet equally stunning interior and food, it has to be on top, although Milk is fully worth it if you can outstand the queue. If you have had a chance to visit either Milk or Juliet’s, let us know which is you favourite!