Mochachinos, Kings Lynn

Yes, Grace is on tour again!  It's a road trip to Essex via Kings Lynn! And so it was that I found myself in Kings Lynn bus station looking for a cup of tea.  A word of warning:  Kings Lynn closes at 4pm, most cafes I tried were about to close up but Mochachinos was resolute in opening well after the rest of the town had been abandoned.

The first hurdle, of course, is do you order at the counter or sit and wait to be served.  No helpful notices either.  I accosted a waitress and then sat down, later she came and took my order.  Even later another group came in and ordered directly at the counter - aaarrrggghh!!

That said, M's is all that a bus station cafe should be.  A glorious mix of quite contemporary furnishings, cheap food and a mixed clientele.  I felt quite nostalgic.  The tea and cinnamon bun were tasty and welcome and I went on my way rejoicing.

The rest of my journey led me down the A15 and I feel a whole mini series about truck stops along the A roads of East Anglia coming on!

The Wentworth Cafe, Hexham

This is an interesting one indeed!  Situated in a portakabin alongside the main car park in Hexham, by rights it should be a 'greasy spoon', but actually (I reflected on my last visit) it's exactly the kind of place my mother would have loved.  It's clean, reasonably priced, comfortable tables and chairs, and they bring the food to the table!  Nothing like a bit of old fashioned service in my mother's book.  Sadly, the newspapers available weren't up to date the day I visited, but that's just being picky - the cheese scone and the tea were fine.

I was there at a quiet time, no other customers and no intrusive music.  Now I have found over the course of my life that if you sit quietly and unobtrusively, people forget you are there and you get to hear some remarkable conversations and it was true of this visit.  The boys from the cafe and a friend sat in a corner and gossiped (so glad men gossip too) about the eating establishments of Hexham.  It was better than the soaps!  Will so and so ever get another job having walked out of two?  Will his old boss have him back?  Is that really all he was being paid?  And on and on, who said what, who owns what, and some heartfelt but very unPC remarks about Olympic football at Newcastle.  I said cheerio as I left and they sheepishly acknowledge that they had been talking as if no one had been there - what the heck? we all do it.  I dread to think what some of the punters where I work have heard over the years.

So it's another one I can recommend, and it can surely only be a matter of time before it has its own series.

Minchellas, the seafront, South Shields

It's been a lovely South Shields day today.  Sun, music in the park, washing drying on the line, and a sudden longing for a cafe bellisimo at Minchellas.  I haven't had one of those for ages, and the time was when Wombat and I used to drink them regularly...

To my shame, I haven't checked out the new, expanded Minchellas either.  It's now got toilets, far more inside seating (though today most people were outside on the patio area).  The entrance has moved from the side to the back as well.

I sat in the 'new bit' inside to enjoy my bellisimo.  I waited patiently for the icecream to melt into the coffee and carefully spooned the squirty cream off the top before slurping the rest through the straw provided.  It really doesn't get better than this.  Bellisimo all round, really.

Alas! Macaris! Allez Eastcliff!

I'm just here musing on a week's holiday in the West Country, cafes I have known and loved, and the price of a cheese toastie.  How things change.  Just as the 1950s themed icecream parlour takes off in all parts of the country, Macaris on Torquay seafront which was the archetypal 1950s themed etc etc has reinvented itself as a pizzeria cafe bar!  That covers all bases, except of course for people like me who want an evening stroll by the seafront rounded off with a lovely coffee maybe with cake but definitely not with pizza.  Though I have to admit that if Macaris was relying on my custom they would have been out of business years ago.  Wouldn't it be ironic if someone opened up an old-style Macaris right next door?

But out with the old, in with the new!  We have discovered a delightful seaside cafe at Teignmouth!  The Eastcliff cafe has a sheltered spot right near the lido where you can enjoy sea views and sea air and a cheese toastie that is half the price of some other establishments in the town.  The more expensive varieties seem to be distinguished only by a salad garnish but that is based on rumour not research - good reason to go back!  The Eastcliff's mugs are worth a look too  and I for one will keep calm and keep on coming back.

Fuchsia Restaurant, on the balcony, Market Square, Newton Abbot

I remember the Fuchsia Restaurant when it was at the indoor bowling centre and served a mean ham, egg and chips!  Free parking and you could watch the gee gees go by on race days.  For some years now, they've nestled above the market and I read in the MDA recently that a serving soldier requested a batch of their scones be sent to him in Afghanistan.  Scones that inspire such loyalty in our troops need investigating, and today a friend and I climbed the stairs from the market square to do just that!

Walking in, the Fuchsia struck me as clean, quiet and orderly.  All the tables were neatly laid with burgundy-coloured cloths and some were obviously set for lunch.  It was a little disconcerting to see that most of the tables were reserved, but the staff were very friendly and did point out where we could sit.  They also pointed out the special deals available and so it was that we settled down to enjoy a cheese scone and coffee for £1.95.  Can't go wrong.  Even lattes were only £1.65 which is as reasonably priced as I've seen anywhere.

The scones were very tasty - cheese and black pepper - served with two pats of butter.  I can see why they would be a tonic for the troops.  Could they bring about world peace, I wonder, if we were to offer them to our enemies? 

We sat long over the scones and coffee, putting our individual worlds to rights.  Just before 12, the cafe started to fill up.  We saw why all the tables were reserved.  Fuchsia obviously has a fan club who come every Wednesday (maybe every day!) for lunch.  And that to me is the best recommendation of all, regular customers who come back and back.  The Christmas Menu was on display (yes, really) and I would advise you to book now - I have a feeling that the Fuchsia will be busy.

Cafe Bar One, Harton, South Shields

While one part of my brain was well aware that Cafe Bar One was in Harton and was related to the lovely Cafe Bar One in Jesmond,  this information only clicked with the other part of my brain as I was slogging up Sunderland Road overdressed for the sunshine (for once!).  I called in.  There were tables outside but only the very hardy or ardent smokers will really want to sit at a road junction I guess.  Inside all is light and spacious with wooden floors, a couple of sofas in the window, modern dark wood tables and chairs elsewhere.  Yes,  they do have the same gorgeous chocolate cake that made my trip to CBO in Jesmond so memorable, but today I settled for a scone and tea.

Service was cheerful and prompt, some my-era music played in the background, there were a few people in mid morning, mid week.  An inspirational slogan on the wall advised me that retirement is only great big coffee break - can't wait!

I browsed the menu and there is certainly plenty of choice as well as special offers available.  And it's close to home!  Definitely be back!

The Diamond Jubilee Tea Parties

Now that the country has returned to work and Jubilee fever has subsided, it's time to reflect on the small part I played in helping the north east to celebrate, and on the place of the tea urn in my subconscious.  Here goes.

The first event was as Jubilee tea in the local library, free for all (in most senses).  I was here not to sample a service but to help provide it - Grace on the other side of the counter as it were.  We spent a happy morning arranging tables and other furniture, folding napkins, buying cake (my favourite), worrying whether or not we had enough cake, decorating, filling the tea urn. 

Ah, that was the moment!  Suddenly I was back at the chapel teas of my youth.  The religious services were simple and without ritual but the preparation and use of the tea urn was governed by complex rules and hierarchy that only the women of the tribe were initiated into.  The Baptist Women's League china was kept in a locked cupboard and only revealed on certain days to certain people.  Tea towels were treated with sanctity that other denominations reserve for altar cloths.  But they were happy times in general.  Food had a calming influence, no one argued at the tea table, perhaps our church meetings should have been conducted there.

So when the good folk of the district descended for tea later on, it felt quite natural to be out there passing plates around, offering tea or coffee (coffee was heresy at the chapel btw).  And the atmosphere was great.  When do we sit and eat together anymore, especially since the chapels are mostly gone now?

The second event was billed as a garden party, so naturally it rained incessantly and we had to put up the gazebo indoors and pretend.  No tea urn here but plenty of cakes to be passed round.  Her Majesty would have been proud of us.  Let's not wait another sixty years to have this much fun again.