LA Café Bistro, opposite Sutton railway station, has transformed from a struggling 16-seat café into one of the borough's most acclaimed food destinations, earning a rare five-star Google rating from 2,086 reviews and ranking first among Sutton restaurants on Tripadvisor.
From Pandemic Opening to Award-Winning Bistro
Chef-owner Ankur Baria opened LA Café on May 13, 2021, during one of the most uncertain periods for the hospitality industry. The first two years were difficult, with Ankur previously revealing he did not make “a single penny” and had to keep investing in the business to cover rent and salaries.
Five years later, the café has evolved into an award-winning neighbourhood bistro. It has won the Good Food Award four years in a row, secured its second Gold Seal for 2025/26, and received recognition at the Time & Leisure Food and Culture Awards. On Tripadvisor, it holds a five-star rating and received a Travellers’ Choice award for 2026.
High-End Bistro Philosophy with a Tiny Kitchen
Ankur, an Institute of Hotel Management graduate and former Taj management trainee, brought decades of hospitality experience to the venture. The business began as a more traditional café, but daily-changing specials, homemade soups, and increasingly ambitious dishes gradually pushed it towards becoming what Ankur now considers a bistro.
He previously told Your Local Guardian: “Calling it a cafe sounds like a greasy spoon. Running a cafe as a cafe is easy because people know what to expect. But we run it as a very high-end bistro. We do more than just your typical English breakfast. Everything on the menu is thought about, everything is sourced well, everything is cooked well, everything is presented well.”
New Daytime Menu and Evening Dining Pause
LA Café’s changing specials became a defining feature, with some regulars ordering the special before even asking what it was. Now, many dishes developed and tested over five years have shaped a new permanent daytime bistro menu. It includes a 24-hour slow-cooked steak breakfast, Wagyu beef burger, steak and blue cheese sandwich, and a grand breakfast with scrambled truffle eggs. Other options include smoked salmon and avocado, a spicy chicken burger in a black charcoal bun, and a mushroom, Brie and truffle melt, alongside desserts like crème brûlée, blueberry and mascarpone pancakes, and warm pecan brownie.
Earlier this year, LA Café underwent its first major refurbishment to prepare for evening dining. The café began opening on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights, offering a high-end, multi-course dining experience. It proved popular, with some evenings completely booked, but regular dinner service was paused just four months later after Ankur revealed the workload was leaving him working up to 20 hours a day.
He said at the time: “The reason is simply space. Our kitchen is tiny. Thursday to Saturday are already our busiest daytime services, and then we reset the same kitchen and go straight into a high-end, multi-course evening service. For me, that has meant 18 to 20-hour days.” He added: “If we had a bigger kitchen, we would absolutely continue. The customers, bookings and passion are all there. The space simply isn’t. And I will never allow our food, service or standards to suffer just to keep something going.”
Growing Following and Continued Recognition
The focus shifted back towards developing LA Café as a daytime bistro, while Ankur plans to bring back occasional themed dinners with limited tables and special menus. The café’s following has continued to grow, with Ankur saying people travel from across London and further afield to eat there. Google reviews have risen sharply: in May 2025, LA Café had almost 1,300 five-star reviews; it now has 2,086, retaining an overall five-star rating.
Alongside four consecutive Good Food Awards, LA Café has won the #LoveSuttonBiz award in consecutive years and was Highly Commended in the Best Coffee/Tea House category at the 2025 Time & Leisure Food and Culture Awards. Food reviewer Gary Eats awarded it 10 out of 10, describing the food as “exceptional cooking”.
Ankur attributes the transformation to consistency. He said: “Whether you’re coming in for a coffee, a special, or just a bap, we’re committed to consistency in the food, the service and the atmosphere. It’s a tough standard to maintain, but it’s important to us.”
Five years after opening, LA Café remains in the same small unit opposite Sutton station, with its new menu bringing together five years of dishes, experiments, and customer favourites as it enters its latest chapter as a daytime bistro. While there may still be room for only 16 people inside, its reputation has grown considerably bigger than the café where it began.
