This one has been in my sights for a long time, so I was pleased to make it my first 'new' cafe of 2011. Good enough for Norman Wisdom, good enough for me. In my imagination I pictured a shrine to the late, great comedian with Albanian sightseers packing the place, taking photos, leaving offerings, perhaps indulging in dancing and/or gunfire.
In the event, the dark wooden door opened onto a slate floor and I looked round at dark wooden tables, chairs and beams. All set off by nice red gingham tablecloths and calor gas heaters, it being a cold day. What struck me most was the old oven in the wall - a bread oven I imagine. So, was this an old bakery that diversified? Time to begin research...
The menu was extensive and the freshly made quiches on the counter nearly swayed me from my resolve to have only tea. It all looked so good. I decided on tea and a cheese scone and settled back to see what everyone else was having. There was quite a mix of people in, all local I would guess and not a word of Albanian spoken. The service was very efficient and the chips being eaten at the other side of the cafe looked very fine indeed. My tea came as a pot (two good cups worth) good and strong with plenty of milk. The scone also came with two pats of butter that weren't rock hard from the fridge, so bonus points all round so far.
This is definitely a local hub. People who must be 'regulars' were greeted by name, so the staff obviously make an effort to get to know their customers. It must be the area - I also received friendly service at the greengrocers next door. It's the kind of place that you could feel at home in. One day I might just have to go back to try out the mince and dumplings, or should it be the all-day breakfast ;-)
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