We are bringing Georgia’s most beloved dish to London
Freshly baked khachapuri, warm hospitality, and a place to slow down, share food, and feel at home.
If you're looking for khachapuri in London, our Crystal Palace café is dedicated to sharing one of Georgia’s most beloved dishes.
Our menu centres around freshly baked khachapuri — warm, comforting Georgian cheese bread — made by hand using traditional techniques and served with homemade sauces.
Whether you're discovering khachapuri for the first time or already love it, the café is designed to feel warm, welcoming and relaxed — a place to slow down, enjoy amazing coffee, and share food that brings people together.
Many people now visit us as a perfect lunch spot in Crystal Palace, stopping in for khachapuri, coffee, and a friendly welcome from the team.
It started with one khachapuri
The story of the café began in 2025 with something simple: a homemade dish shared between two people.
When Daniel first met Masha, she cooked him khachapuri. He had tried the Georgian cheese bread once before, but this was something entirely different. Masha later said that when he took his first bite and looked at her, she knew something had changed — it was the moment she realised he was falling in love with her.
That moment quietly became the beginning of something much bigger.
A simple idea
Soon after, Daniel and Masha began talking about what truly made Masha happy. One thing stood out clearly: she loved making khachapuri for people. Seeing someone try it — often for the first time — and watching their reaction brought her real joy. At the time, both were already running their own businesses. Daniel runs a website design company, and Masha runs a UI design business. But the idea of sharing khachapuri with more people kept returning to their conversations. Almost on a whim, Daniel checked whether khachapuri.co.uk was available. To their amazement, it was. Even more surprisingly, Khachapuri Ltd was also available as a company name. Daniel immediately bought the domain and created a simple single-page website with a short paragraph and a contact form. Within weeks, something unexpected happened: if you searched for “khachapuri London”, the tiny page was already appearing on the first page of Google. That moment made them realise there might be something real here.
The first people who believed
One of the first places to support the idea was a favourite local coffee shop in Crystal Palace: Etude Coffee. Daniel went in to speak with the owner, Mridul (known as Mritz), and began explaining khachapuri to him. To Daniel’s surprise, Mridul already knew exactly what it was — and mentioned he had been looking for something savoury for the café counter. That very weekend, Daniel and Masha trialled mini khachapuri in the café. The trial worked so well that it became a regular feature. Since then, every weekend from Friday to Sunday, Etude Coffee has served khachapuri made by them. It was one of the first examples of the local support that helped bring the idea to life.
The first pop-up
Soon another opportunity appeared. A friend of theirs, Nick, owned a Covent Garden bar called Mrs Riot which had a pizza oven. The bar was entering its final month before closing. When Daniel and Masha asked if they could use the oven while the bar was closed to try serving khachapuri, Nick generously said yes — and refused to charge them. It was an act of kindness that allowed them to experiment. In August 2025, they served khachapuri to the public for the very first time. Those early days were full of discoveries. They learned how to work in a professional kitchen together, experimented with selling khachapuri by the slice, and introduced customers to Masha’s homemade adjika and satsabelli sauces, which quickly became favourites. They also discovered something surprising: many people already knew what khachapuri was and were excited to find it in London, while others were discovering it for the very first time.
“Do you like cheese?”
During the pop-up, Daniel began filming playful Instagram videos asking people a simple question: “Do you like cheese?” Daniel asked statues and animals around Hyde Park as a joke for Instagram... it didn't get lots of views but those who saw it had a real laugh and connected strongly with the slogan. The silly, slightly antagonistic and sometimes divisive question sparked interest, conversation and reached a wider audience than they ever thought it would. Soon Daniel and Masha were wearing bright yellow “Do You Like Cheese?” t-shirts, carrying matching umbrellas, and bringing their playful energy wherever they went. What began as a joke slowly became part of the identity of the business.
Finding a home
After the Covent Garden pop-up ended, Daniel and Masha began searching for somewhere more permanent. They explored several opportunities, including options in Hyde Park, but nothing quite felt right. Eventually they realised something important: the place they wanted to build this was home. Crystal Palace. An opportunity appeared at a café space that had previously been a vegan café called Nama. Before committing fully, Daniel and Masha began running evening pop-ups there while the café itself was closed. These pop-ups introduced khachapuri to the local community and allowed them to see how people responded. The response was incredibly positive. Local newspapers began writing about the project, and more people started discovering khachapuri for the first time.
A very busy Christmas
Around the same time, another opportunity appeared. Through their friend Nick, Daniel and Masha were offered the chance to run a Christmas market chalet. From mid-November until just before Christmas they served khachapuri as festive street food. Visitors joined in playful activities — including searching for hidden “Mr Cheese” characters around the market. While all of this was happening, something even bigger was taking place behind the scenes. Daniel and Masha were negotiating to take over the lease of the Nama café space.
Opening in five days
On 5 December, the deal was completed. Opening the café was not easy. Daniel and Masha had to dig into their savings, secure business loans, and rely on the belief of people who trusted their vision enough to support them financially. Then came a whirlwind. They documented the process of buying and opening a restaurant in just five days. That same week, the doors opened. For the rest of December the café began establishing itself in the neighbourhood, opening on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays while the Christmas market continued.
Christmas morning
One of the most memorable moments came on Christmas Day. The café opened for a few hours in the morning. Families out on Christmas walks stopped by, children came in with their parents, and everyone was welcomed with free mini khachapuri. Instead of working behind kitchen doors, Masha set up a table upstairs and made khachapuri where people could watch. Children were invited to get their hands doughy and help make them. It felt less like a café and more like a home. Sandy, a much-loved part of the team, welcomed guests at the door — something she continues to do every day and something customers quickly grew to love.
Built with support
The café would not exist without the support of many people along the way. Friends, customers, neighbours and local businesses all played a role in helping bring the idea to life. One person who deserves special thanks is Nick. Nick not only offered the opportunity to run the first pop-up at Mrs Riot and the Christmas market chalet, but also helped with parts of the café you can still see today — including the panelling, the marble tables and the sofas. Without that early belief and support, the café might never have opened its doors.
A perfect lunch spot in Crystal Palace
While khachapuri is the heart of the menu, the café has quickly become a favourite lunch spot in Crystal Palace.
Freshly baked khachapuri makes the perfect comforting lunch — whether you're meeting friends, stopping in during a walk through the neighbourhood, or discovering Georgian food for the first time.
Guests can also enjoy excellent coffee sourced from Etude Coffee, the same café that supported the project in its early days.
Great food, great coffee, and a warm atmosphere have made the café a place people return to again and again.
Part of the community
From the beginning, the café has been built around strong local connections.
The coffee served comes from Etude Coffee, and new collaborations continue to grow with other local businesses — including working with the nearby craft beer bar Craft & Courage, where customers can order khachapuri from their table and have it delivered directly to them.
These partnerships reflect the same spirit that helped the café begin: local businesses supporting each other and building something together.
Our mission
What began with one homemade khachapuri between two people has grown into a café with a simple mission:
to bring khachapuri to London and share one of Georgia’s most beloved dishes with as many people as possible.
Today the café welcomes locals, visitors and curious food lovers discovering khachapuri for the very first time.
Whether you're stopping by for khachapuri, a relaxed lunch, or excellent coffee in Crystal Palace, the door is always open.
And it all still begins with the same question:
Do you like cheese?
Do you like cheese?
Whether you're discovering khachapuri for the first time or returning for your favourite, the door is always open.
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