Pophams
Ollie Gold used to cook for Formula 1 teams, and in 2017 he put a bakery into a derelict chemist's shop on a quiet Islington corner (Islington Gazette).
Why go
Lamination is the whole argument, and the person who makes it best is a competitor. Dee Rettali, who owns Fortitude Bakehouse in Bloomsbury, was asked to choose the London bakeries for The Times' 49 best bakeries in Britain in 2023. She picked this one, called them the masters of lamination
and said it is the one spot in London where she is happy to queue (Islington Gazette).
The shop sits off the Essex Road end, metres from a 150-year-old church, with pavement tables and a panelled counter backed in emerald tile. Racks of pastry stand between you and the till (The Nudge). The coffee is a house blend that Assembly roasts for them (Pophams). After noon the menu turns to sourdough toasties and sandwiches, a white tuna with red pepper, boiled egg and tonnato among them.
This is the first of three. London Fields opened in 2019 and Victoria Park followed, and Pophams Home & Pantry, a grocery and homeware shop, sits two doors along at 21 Prebend Street.
Order this / avoid
- Order: the Marmite and spring onion Schlossberger, which Hattie Lloyd calls
incredibly moreish
and which nobody orders on their first visit3. A lacquered croissant, or the almond one for the classic. At lunch, a toastie on their own sourdough. - Avoid: turning up in the afternoon for bread. The reporter who reviewed this shop arrived at Friday lunchtime and the loaves were already sold out2. Mondays, when this branch is shut.
What locals & experts say
- Dee Rettali, co-owner of Fortitude Bakehouse, selecting the London entries for The Times' 49 best bakeries in Britain, 2023: Pophams
are the masters of lamination
, and it is the one place in London where she is happy to queue.2 - Hattie Lloyd, The Nudge, February 2022, writing about this branch by name:
Best known for its highly laminated, perfectly flaky baked goods, Pophams Islington really is one of the finest bakeries in London... their majestic lacquered croissants are like art in pastry form. Not to be missed is the incredibly moreish Marmite and spring onion Schlossberger.
3 - Alex Marsh, Islington Gazette, September 2023, on where it came from:
Founded by Gold in 2017 on the site of a derelict chemist, the bakery has gone from strength to strength, and has since opened two more outlets in London Fields and Victoria Park.
2 - Two chef votes exist and are counted elsewhere. Thomas Stock of Burger & Beyond and Sam Scott of Ozone Coffee both named Pophams to TOPJAW, in 2025 and 2024, and neither said which shop. Both are recorded on the London Fields row as brand-level, and they are not counted twice by being repeated here.
Good to know
- Where: 19 Prebend Street N1 8PF, on a quiet corner off the Essex Road.
- Timing: morning-led, and out by 4pm. The 2022 branch page gives 8am to 4pm Tuesday to Saturday and 8.30am to 4pm Sunday, so check before a long trip.
- Booking: walk in.
- Get there early: the bread sells out well before closing.
- Next door: Pophams Home & Pantry at 21 Prebend Street, a grocery and homeware shop from the same owner.
- Sites: three. This one, 2017. London Fields at 197 Richmond Road E8 3NJ, 2019, which has its own row, bakes the biscuits for all three shops, and lost its evening pasta restaurant on 30 October 2025. Victoria Park at 110A Lauriston Road E9 7HA.
- Hygiene: FSA rating 5, inspected 18 November 2025, Islington. Hygiene and structure both scored zero, confidence in management scored 5. FHRSID 1090965.4
Verdict
should-visit — Make the detour off Upper Street, and get up for it. Ollie Gold used to cook for Formula 1 teams before he opened this in 2017 in a derelict chemist's shop on Prebend Street, and lamination is what the place is for. The best evidence is a competitor's: Dee Rettali, who owns Fortitude Bakehouse in Bloomsbury, picked the London entries for The Times' 49 best bakeries in Britain in 2023, put Pophams on it, called them the masters of lamination and said it is the one place in London where she is happy to queue. A baker admitting they queue at another baker is worth more than any listicle. Order the Marmite and spring onion Schlossberger, which sounds like a dare and is the thing people come back for, and a lacquered croissant that Hattie Lloyd of The Nudge described as art in pastry form. Come in the morning. The loaves sell out, one reviewer turned up at Friday lunchtime and they were already gone, and the shutters are down at four. After noon the counter turns to sourdough toasties and sandwiches. This is the original of three; the London Fields shop has its own page and bakes the biscuits for all of them.