A perfect little cafe with delicious (and adorable) cakes and very nice matcha latte. The stuff are Japanese as well, which creates a really unique and comforting vibe of an authentic Japanese cafe, and truly matches the name of the place -- Wa (和).

In the UK, the cakes I've had are generally sweeter, and the cake texture tends to be denser. I personally prefer the soft and fluffy Japanese sponge cakes paired with light, smooth, and mildly sweet fresh cream. I was delighted to find this Japanese cake shop. Due to its popularity, there was a longer wait for seating, but seeing the array of exquisite cakes made me very excited. Although the prices of the cakes were a bit high, the quality was truly satisfying. It was difficult to choose among the different cakes because each one was enticing and I wanted to try them all. In the end, I selected a few cakes, and each one was incredibly delicious. The restaurant had a Japanese countryside-themed decor, creating a feeling of being in a Japanese cafe. The staff were friendly and polite, and they kindly introduced each cake to us, making us feel satisfying.

Went at weekday afternoon, limited seats so would have to wait a while. Always love their gluten free roll cake, very light and fluffy.

Having tried WA CAFE several times over the year, I would definitely say the white grapes shortcake I tried today is my favourite at all. Just the perfect balance of sweetness with the cream and fluffy cakes and sourness from the white grapes (previously I found some of their other cakes rather too sweet for me!) The place is fairly small and it gets busy rather quickly as the day goes so you might have to wait for a bit or be lucky to grab a table for eat-in. Overall a good selection of cakes and tea for a short tea break!

Lovely dessert place - the desserts are delicious - good tea selection- the staff was friendly and helpful- normally busy - the sitting area is quite small and you might have to wait but it’s worth!

This is the place to go for a cake in Covent Garden! They have a wide variety with unique flavors, and every piece is gorgeous! Definitely a picture perfect location when you're craving something sweet!

Amazing cakes, delightful and helpful staff. quite possibly the best cafe in London!! absolutely love everything on the menu.

Wonderful staff, food & experience! For our anniversary, we splurged a little & got all the Japanese foods we always wanted to try :) We bought the croissants, tuna bread, soft bead, some cakes, and sandwiches! 10/10, staff was super lovely & let us pick some things up later on.

Very popular Japanese bakery & cafe. The hōjicha latte is my favourite drink 😋 The matcha tiramisu felt a bit heavy. I think I was expecting the cream to be lighter like in Japan, but cream here is heavier. If you are not very fond of cream, I would try the matcha gateau instead. The breads are very good as well. I’m very fond of melon pan (btw, it doesn’t taste like melon 🍈 the name comes from its shape, that resembles an asian melon with those crossed lines — it’s a soft bread covered with cookie dough, so baked twice — delicious 😋!) Since the place is usually crowded (at least during the weekends) and there are not many seats, you are not allowed to stay more than 1 hour.

LOVE WA Cafe! It's been a few years since we visited and yesterday was a reminder of how lovely this place still is. Their Sakura latte was so delicious - had this fragrant sweetness to it that tasted like cherry blossoms. The star of the show has to be their cakes though, if you love matcha you have to try their matcha roll cake. or if you're a chocolate lover we love their gateau which often gets sold out! Follow @uclfoodie for more our favourites!

Delicious cake. I got the matcha tiramisu cake for my mother's birthday and it was amazing. I preordered it and came in store to collect it. However the store is very small and it gets very busy so it felt a bit awkward having to squeeze past the queue to ask for my cake. Great service however as they showed me the cake to check and make sure I was happy with it. Sadly I don't have a pic of it pre-cut haha.

Love the sesame latte and matcha cake rolls. Will definitely come back again. May be hard to get a seat during peak hours.

The cakes and coffee are as always delicious 😋 Very close to what one would find in Japan. The disappointing bit was the service, quite impolite, unwelcoming and rude at times. the cafe was a bit busy and we first thought this was the reason, but even when ordering extras at times when no one was around we were met with various unpleasantries. I really prefer the Ealing branch.

Spent a very nice time in this beautiful cafe. Beautiful interior, the atmosphere is calming. The drinks are well done, a very special mention for the Chicken Teriyaki Sandwich which tasted INCREDIBLE. Will definitely come back.

The strawberry shortcake and matcha latte is soooooo good. Not too sweet at all! Some might not like how subtle the sweetness is, but just enough to taste the flavour. Very soft and moist cakes- def recommend! Very busy especially at night and limited seating. But we’re able to sit and chill for a bit which is nice.

Lovely Japanese patisserie and cafe, a heaven for matcha lovers but not just, since on offer are many specialty drinks and pastries that you'll hardly find elsewhere -- if at all. Each dessert is beautiful in presentation, and very carefully handled and served by the often overworked staff (since they serve both an endless queue of presential costumers and deliveries). Getting to the til might take a while at certain times of the day, and finding a seat even more difficult, but all worth the wait, since all is so delicately delicious.

I brought my non Asian friend here for lunch and we both enjoyed the food and drinks very much. The serve was very good as this is a small cafe and it was quite crowded on a Saturday morning, the server has requested some customers to sit together around a table to make space for us. The drinks are definitely worth the price as it was a decent portion and it was good in taste (not watery at all). The sandwiches were very good as thick Japanese style bread with good portion of chicken in the sandwich. My friend returned in the afternoon to buy further 2 strawberry cake to bring home!

The cafe is VERY small, but that is the only flaw. Everything else is great. Service was great, the cakes, pastries and lattes delicious and I wouldn't mind coming here every day if it was closer to me.

WA is a very small cafe with only few tables to sit in , the cafe looks very clean and the staff are very friendly and efficient. The cakes are very scrumptious and light and not too sweet as for the coffees is worth the money. Shame the cafe is not bigger and cakes can be sold out very quickly as it can get very busy. Highly recommend you should try this little cafe you won't regret it .

Great Japanese café with lots of beautiful cakes you would find in Japan. Their curry buns and katsu sandwich sell out quickly, so you'd have to be quick! Really nice place. Currently, no indoor dining.

Really amazing Japanese patisserie. Tried the strawberry short and it was light, fluffy and delicious. They currently have sakura flavoured products for the Spring season. The sakura latte had a pleasant taste and was really warm when it arrived. Definitely recommend! The staff were very nice and had big smiles underneath their masks. There isn't a lot of seating but it's very comfortable inside.

Lovely Japanese cafe with plenty of options. We loved the food and the tea. However, way too much single plastics so not very eco friendly cafe.

Japanese cakes that are beautiful and succulent. I had the Strawberry Shortcake and it altered my brain chemistry. Unlike my expectations, the cake is fluffy and the cream is light, which is added by sweet tart berries. And after that explosion of sweetness in the mouth, get their bitter sencha that rounds everything up in an epiphany. Will come back to try the variety of colourful cakes.

So many of my Japanese friends have been hyping up this cafe and I was finally able to go and it was so worth it. It was around lunch time on a saturday and we were able to get a seat in the cafe. There’s not that many seats in the cafe so we got very lucky. The kuro gome latte was super delicious and not sickly and paired really well with the black sesame cheesecake. The matcha latte was delicious as expected but the matcha tiramisu had too much cream in my opinion but once you get to the sponge on the inside it is very delicious. All of the cakes were around £6 which I thought was pretty cheap for the area and one of the cheapest one I’ve been to in central london so I think it’s absolutely worth it, esp if you’re getting it for takeaway.

If you want a dreamy gluten free matcha cake, WA cafe is the place to be. I’ve loved them since I stumbled across them during lockdown and it never disappoints. Cake are delicious and love that there is always a few gluten free cake options. Lovely baby changing facilities also available.

Great vibes, excellent service and a good amount of seating! The espresso drinks were some of the smoothest and satisfying drinks of our trip to London. I thoroughly enjoyed the egg mayo sando and my partner loved the matcha croissant. It's definitely worth a visit for some coffee and pastries!

Very nice ambience and beautiful food. The cakes are super beautiful looking and tasty and the drinks too. Me personally ordered a Matcha latte with oat milk, very rich in flavour and a Banana Chocolate cake 🍰 very delicious too. The service is super fast, you can also order for take away, but if you decide to stay you’ll have to get the table yourself, we had to wait for a bit, but is understandable the place is very cozy.

japan dessert is the best in london！！I love it so much, the cream is different in each cake( if Im not mistaken), I occasionally passing by the little shop and order three desserts, the taste is so good,cream and fruit have a good balance, sweet food can make my whole day!☺️

Such a nice place to eat! Very very clean, lovely interior and friendly staff, situated in Covent Garden! It’s very calming inside, not as bustle-y as the rest of Covent Garden which is nice if you want some peace to chat! Went here with a friend and had a great time. My only qualm is they need more seating. We got seated quickly but there were people waiting after us. We ordered the strawberry cake with icing. Forgot the name but I’ve attached the picture! 😊 would highly recommend!

Incredible desserts. The taste and texture were exceptional. Good value for money. I advice to buy the matcha cake with the cream on top (it has a gold leaf on top)

Food and service were great, but seating is limited in the Covent Garden branch and we had to queue a while to get a seat on a Saturday. The shop was also to hot, it felt like they were running the heating in summer. But eating the Matcha Tiramisu was like walking on clouds- absolutely divine!

Great Japanese Cafe. Cakes are amazing if a little small. Nice matcha based coffees and teas too. The chicken katsu sando was disappointing though. Be prepared for a queue

Went there twice and tried four different kinds of cakes, they all tasted so good and the service was great! Though the seats are limited, it’s still fast to get a seat! If you buy take-away, I recommend you to enjoy the cakes and drinks inside St. James park nearby! Definitely worth visiting!

Amazing! If you have East Asian patisserie craving…this is where you should go! The barista lady is always helpful and nice to the customers and would tell you about the seasonal flavours if you ask. Would visit the store whenever I’m nearby, such a tasty and enjoyable experience.

Best looking cakes in town! Good value for money too. I recommend the banana and chocolate cake. There is an area for indoor dining where you can sit and have a tea or coffee too.

A very lovely and tranquil patisserie that serves an array of the finest quality desserts that are so pleasing to the eye, you wouldn’t want to eat due to its prettiness. I went for the berry mousse cake that was topped with raspberries and blueberries. The dessert was quite small, but very light upon eating. The fluffiness of the mousse and the lightness of the cake complimented really well and made it an all-round delicious dessert. With that, I ordered the matcha latte. Like other places, the matcha taste was barely noticeable, perhaps overpowered by the milk. I like to have the matcha noticeable, but not strong. Still made for a great pairing with the dessert. I would definitely come back here whenever I’m in the need of a treat to try their other desserts that they have on offer. Staff were lovely and the service was prompt