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SIAN BOYLEPublished: 13 January 2014

Updated: 16:29, 13 January 2014

A cafe where the food and drink are free sounds too good to be

true. But it exists – in the form of Ziferblat, the UK’s first ever

pay-­as-­you go cafe.

At the venue in Old Street “everything is free, except the time

you spend there”. Customers pay 3p per minute – or £1.80 an

hour – for unlimited food, coffee and wi-­fi.

Owner Ivan Meetin, 29, said: “Five days ago we had 20

customers and today we’ve already had a hundred, and we’ve

even had to turn people away because we’ve run out of seats.

“There are customers who have been back 10 times already and

they bring their friends with them.”

The cafe is the first UK branch of a Russian chain. Its name

means “clock face”. Customers who use the café are free to bring

any of their own food or drink except alcohol, and can spend

unlimited time there.

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Ziferblat, the pay-­as-­you go cafeThe trendy Shoreditch joint charges 3p a minute for a seat but offers free

wi-­fi and cups of tea

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Clocking in: the Standard’s Sian Boyle with Ziferblat owner Ivan Meetin (Pic: Alex Lentati)

255 10 Send

They also make their own beverages and wash up their own

crockery. Many Ziferblat customers leave donations on top of

their 3p-­per-­minute bill. Mr Meetin, who founded the first of 11

Ziferblat cafes in Moscow in 2011, said: “People aren’t paying for

consumption;; we pay for the space and they pay for the time, so

it’s about participation.”

Ziferblat, which overlooks Shoreditch High Street, opened in

November last year, but has seen a spike in customer numbers

this month. Mr Meetin says he plans to open more branches in

the capital if its success continues.

Customer Aaron Anthony-­Piuai, 19, said: “I like that the

emphasis is less on transactional value. It’s not about the coffee

I’m buying, and more about the place that I’m drinking it in.”

Ziferblat is open seven days a week from 11am to midnight.

london.ziferblat.net

Evening Standard's Sian Boyle visits Ziferblat

I’m handed a vintage mantelpiece clock and my “time in” is

chalked up on a board.

A friendly Ziferblat manager shows me how to use the kitchen

facilities and after concocting my first cappuccino I sit down to

relax.

Pastel colours, mismatched furniture, airy views over Shoreditch

High Street and Simon and Garfunkel records playing softly in

the background make the cafe feel like a living room.

Bushy moustaches, a scattering of Macs and the chance to be

your own barista for the day mean this place is hipster to the

core.

But it wasn’t just hipsters – throngs of different people walked

through the doors to enjoy a few coffees without having to eke

out an overpriced espresso just to avoid the cold.

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I had two cappuccinos and my 45 minutes there worked out at£1.35.

Although the “unlimited food” only really consisted of somebiscuits and crudités, the emphasis is on the quality of timespent rather than bang for your buck.

In spite of its name, Ziferblat is a place where you feel like losingyourself in time, and 3p a minute is a pretty good rate at whichto do so.

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