The Bus Cafe

The Bus Cafe, within Waterloo Bus Garage, is a hidden gem of a place, offering a cheap eating experience for those in the know.

This traditional canteen, originally solely for bus drivers, has a simple decor, no frills plastic furniture and a pool table. Today it is a friendly and relaxed place with a retro vibe. 

Its menu, with many of its meals priced below £10, offers full English breakfasts, burgers, salads, sandwiches, soups, sandwiches and much more. Then there are the West Indian specialities like jerk chicken and mutton pies. There are also 'specials' that change frequently.

As the cafe is now open to anyone it attracts locals, office workers and tourists, while still serving bus drivers and maintenance crews. 

The Bus Cafe is located at 6 Cornwall Road, within Waterloo bus garage, with its entrance opposite Emma Cons Gardens.

Go through the gate, but keep to the pedestrian footpath, and the Bus Cafe entrance will be on your right. There is an outdoor seating area, but this is purely for bus drivers.

Waterloo Bus Garage

The site on which Waterloo bus garage now stands, was first used in 1951, as a storage and servicing location for buses attending the Festival of Britain.

It wasn't until the 1980s that it became a bus garage, operating London bus limited stop routes which were used as high frequency commuter services, in central London.

In the 1990s London's first fleet of Mercedes-Benz Citaro articulated buses replaced the AEC Routemasters that operated route 11. These Routemasters were transferred to Stockwell bus garage, as the articulated buses required more room.

In 2009 the Mercedes-Benz Citaro articulated fleet was replaced with Mercedes-Benz O530 Citaros.

In 2016 Waterloo bus garage was the first bus garage, in Europe, to be fully converted to electric.

In 2019 the bus garage won the prize for 'Sustainable Energy' at the 'Energy Globe' awards.

In 2023 bus routes 507 and 521 were withdrawn, leaving Waterloo bus garage with just one route, the 214. This is a 24-hour service between Highgate Village and Finsbury Square.