Santa Nata

Santa Nata is a Portuguese pastry counter inside the Market Building on the Covent Garden Piazza, devoted to a single product: the pastel de nata, baked in small batches throughout the day. The brand brought the tart to London to honour the original rather than reinvent it, and every tart is still made by hand.

The business is owned by a Portuguese family of second-generation bakers and takes its name from the parish of Santa Maria de Belem in Lisbon, where monks first made the custard tart more than three centuries ago. The recipe is closely guarded, and the result is a crisp, flaky shell filled with a sweet, creamy egg custard. Coffee comes from Allpress Espresso, and the pairing of a flat white with a tart still warm from the oven is described by the team as a ritual rather than a snack. Santa Nata also trades on New Row, at Battersea Power Station, Borough Yards and Spitalfields, with shops abroad in Qatar and Kuwait.

Portuguese custard tarts in Covent Garden Market

The Market Building shop is compact and geared to quick service, which suits the constant flow of visitors moving through the covered market. Tarts are sold singly or boxed, and because the trays come out in small batches all day, there is a good chance of getting one that is still warm. A seven-day week with long hours makes it an easy stop whether you are starting the morning on the Piazza or finishing an evening at the theatre.

What to expect on a visit

Expect a short, focused menu, fast service and a counter that is busiest in the afternoon. Take your tart out onto the Piazza, where there is plenty of room to stand and watch the street performers, or tuck a box under your arm for later. It sits alongside the other dessert shops in Covent Garden, and if you are walking west towards St Martin's Lane, the brand's second branch, Santa Nata on New Row, offers the same tarts on a quieter street.