The London Coffee Festival, the UK's premier celebration of coffee culture, returns to The Truman Brewery in Shoreditch from 15-18 May 2025, featuring over 260 artisan coffee and gourmet food brands, world-class barista demonstrations, interactive workshops, and specialty zones including The Lab, Latte Art Live, and the Roasters Village.
Coffee Masters Competition
Coffee Masters at the London Coffee Festival is a high-stakes knockout tournament where 16 elite baristas battle across multiple disciplines to showcase their skill, knowledge, creativity, and passion. Judged by industry leaders, competitors face challenges that test every aspect of coffee craftsmanship in head-to-head matchups. The 2025 competition features a revamped entry process where only shortlisted applicants submit videos demonstrating their signature drinks.
The competition offers substantial rewards, with the champion receiving £2,000, the runner-up earning £600, and all 16 finalists taking home £150 each. The semi-finals pit quarter-final winners against each other, culminating in an exciting final showdown from 13:30-15:00 at the festival. Coffee Masters has become a global phenomenon, with similar tournaments held at coffee festivals in New York and Los Angeles since 2015.
The Lab Presented by Lavazza
The Lab presented by Lavazza stands as one of the London Coffee Festival's intellectual hubs, offering an immersive space where coffee professionals and enthusiasts converge to explore cutting-edge industry topics. This interactive zone features thought-provoking talks, debates, and hands-on workshops covering sustainability, gender equality, coffee economics, and innovative brewing techniques. Sponsored by the Italian coffee giant Lavazza, known for their sophisticated Coffee Design laboratory and global Training Center network, The Lab brings together industry experts and visionaries to share insights and foster community connections.
For the 2025 festival, The Lab's program includes several must-attend sessions: "Rising coffee prices and the £5 flat white" with three-time UK Barista Champion Maxwell Dashwood, "Women in coffee: Inspiring leaders showing the way" featuring prominent industry figures like Freda Yuan and Emma Loisel, and sustainability discussions examining how environmental priorities fare during economic challenges. The Lab exemplifies Lavazza's commitment to coffee education and innovation, creating a space where the future of coffee culture takes shape through knowledge exchange and collaborative exploration.
Meet China Showcase
The London Coffee Festival 2025 will debut "Meet China," a dedicated showcase bringing China's largest outdoor coffee event to London for the first time. This exciting new zone will spotlight over ten representative Chinese coffee brands, featuring premium beans, professional equipment, and creative cultural products. Visitors can explore the rapidly growing Chinese coffee scene at Stands M05 and M13, where they'll discover innovative roasters and technology brands.
Among the featured exhibitors are Mobydick Coffee Roasters (a pioneering Shanghai-based specialty roaster founded in 2015), Caye Technology (developers of fully automatic coffee equipment), LINKBAR (creators of China's first commercial fully automatic milk frother), Terraform Coffee Roasters, SUGARMAN ESPRESSO, and several other distinctive brands. The showcase represents a unique opportunity for festival-goers to experience China's distinctive coffee culture and connect with key players from this dynamic market that has seen impressive growth in recent years.
Accommodation: Mercure London Paddington Hotel
If you're attending the London Coffee Festival and staying at the Mercure London Paddington Hotel, you're ideally placed for both comfort and convenience. Located just moments from Paddington Station with direct links to Shoreditch via the Elizabeth Line or Circle Line, the hotel offers stylish rooms, fast Wi-Fi, and a well-equipped fitness centre. Guests can enjoy onsite dining at Bella Italia or relax in the modern lounge bar after a day at the festival. For directions or travel assistance, speak with the hotel concierge team—they’ll be happy to help you plan your journey to and from The Truman Brewery.
