Laynes Espresso

Laynes espresso is somewhere we visit anytime we go to Leeds. Situated just round the corner from the train station, it’s a great place to have coffee. Their regular espresso blend is Square Mile Red Brick and the coffee is always spot on. Usually we treat ourselves to one of their cakes too. We have been known to pop in our way back to the station and get cakes to take home!

Today, for the first time, we arrived at breakfast time and after one look at the menu decided it would be rude not to try some of the dishes.We decided to share two dishes. The first dish was Shakshuka (Arabiata, baked egg, dukkah and harissa buttered toast). This is the best Shakshuka I have had. The balance of spices was spot on, the homemade dukkah and the harissa butter were a real highlight.

We also ordered the buckwheat pancakes with fruit compote, vanilla mascarpone and crumble. This was another great dish. The balance was just right with not too much sweetness and the pancakes were lovely and light.

We will certainly plan timings of future visits to Leeds to include breakfast at Laynes.

Yay Coffee

If you are looking for great coffee in Scarborough then Yay Coffee on York Place is the place to go. It’s in a basement, it’s small, but it’s a great place to to hang out.

They have a great espresso (try Dr Strangelove) and filter coffee menu and a lovely selection of homemade cakes. The lunch menu also looked great though I’ve not yet tried. I don’t think I need to say anymore. Just go. (And if the rhubarb and custard cake or the brownie is available, eat it.)

Babushka

Babushka is exactly the sort of place you want to while away a few hours on a Saturday or on holiday. A wonderful host (George’s love of coffee and Babushka is infectious) Fantastic coffee, a small but perfectly formed menu and one of the best views you could ever wish for of the beach and the sea. Even on a bad day the view is wonderful. There isn’t really much else to say. This place is perfect. It’s why we keep coming back.

Haptik (again)

If you’ve read my previous blog about Haptik then you will know that I love this place. I really admire the commitment of Johnny and Rachel to bring quality coffee and a local art space to Newtownards. I love the feel of the place and I love the fact that lots of local people of all ages have embraced it and go regularly.

On previous visits, Haptik had not yet served a breakfast or lunch menu so our visit this time was a great excuse to try some food.

We had Mike’s fancy cheese on toast with mushrooms and spinach. Mike’s Fancy Cheese Co. is an artisan cheese maker local to Newtownards and the main reason for choosing the dish.

Oh my! It was delicious, the cheese was complimented by the mushrooms, onions and spinach in a creamy tarragon sauce and a sprinkling of nuts and seeds.

The menu at Haptik is small, creative and seasonal and as you already know the coffee is spot on.

We will keep going as often as we can!

Guest blog – Brew Lab training lab

For our anniversary the ever thoughtful Mrs Frivolitea bought a session at Brew Lab in Edinburgh on artisan coffee brewing. I’m not sure what this says about my coffee making skills but it was, nonetheless, most welcome. A nice surprise ahead of the day was a message that I was the only person booked in. Rather than cancel, we were offered free places for any friends who might care to join. Nice. So Mr and Mrs Frivolitea brewed some coffee together under the expert tutelage of the delightful Emiliya Yordanova. We were shown pour over technique (with the Kalita wave), immersion brewing (with clever dripper) and Aeropress.

In many ways we barely scratched the surface of this craft and I left with a renewed respect for the skill of someone who makes coffee with the level of attention to detail displayed at places like Brew Lab.

The class itself was a great mix of explaining concepts, such as over and under extraction, then demonstrating this and letting us taste the results. We played with how tiny variations of a recipe (changing the quantity of coffee by a few grams) dramatically affect the result of the brew and the different qualities extracted from the coffee at different points in the process.

We also tried the same coffee brewed with the different methods, again tasting the very different results. Artisan coffee is still a pretty small market, although rapidly growing, and often parodied as the domain of arrogant hipsters; attracting the man who perfects just the right bounce to his cappuccino and his beard but cares for little else.

I admit that I don’t know as much about the world of coffee as many and I was a little worried I might be looked down on, as if I might be someone who thinks Costa serve something worth drinking… None of that at Brew Lab. Emiliya was a great tutor. Clearly passionate about good coffee and wanting to share and encourage. She patiently handled our newbie questions and it was a pleasure to spend the morning with her.

My day to day, practical coffee brewing probably isn’t going to be dramatically changed as a result… In an office where Nescafé is the default option I’m already gently lampooned for my hand grinder and Aeropress. But we definitely learned some techniques and tips that will make a difference; a clever dripper is on our purchase list… And I am gaining more of a taste for the delicate flavours to be extracted from pour over brewing.

So that does sound like I’m taking away more than I suggested… Probably. The passion for all of this, demonstrated by folk at Brew Lab, is quite infectious.

Homeground

We stumbled across Homeground as we walked through Windermere and I am so glad we did. Homeground has been open 3 months and Windermere is definitely the richer for it. There is fantastic coffee for a start (we couldn’t visit without having 2 flat whites)..

Then there are the doughnuts… made by the Homeground team and wonderful. We had malteser cream and apple and cinnamon doughnuts.

Then there are the collection of homemade cakes.

And finally there is breakfast. Yep we went back. twice. It’s THAT good.
On our first breakfast trip Mr Frivolitea had eggs benedict – made with ham hock, a fantastically sharp and zesty hollandaise and sourdough ciabatta.

I had poached eggs, bacon and sour dough toast.

And a side of hash browns. Homemade hash browns. Go to Windermere and try them. You will not be disappointed. Go. Go now.

On our second visit, Mr Frivolitea had Huevos Racheros with smashed avocado that was beautifully garlicky.

And I had the breakfast burger: sausage pattie, bacon, mushroom and egg in sourdough ciabatta with Homeground burger sauce and hash browns. The burger was a thing of beauty and full of flavour. The sharp fruitiness of the burger sauce was a great addition.

This place is great. Truly great. Their passion for coffee and food shines through. I would encourage you all to go but then there’d be no room for me.

Lucia’s, Grasmere

if you’re looking for good coffee in Grasmere then Lucia’s takeaway is the place to go. We had great flat whites and I had a very tasty sausage roll too.

This place is tiny but they make their own scones and pastry goods. Definitely worth a visit.

Rattle Gill Cafe, Ambleside

This little cafe is the best yet that we’ve tried in this part of the Lakes. A bit of a search on twitter uncovered this place and I’m so glad we found it.

The flat white was really good, so much so we had a second. However even better – they serve a cake plate. Yep, a plate of cake. A selection of 5 of the cafe’s homemade cakes and at £6 to share between two it is somewhat of a bargain.

Our cake plate had lemon curd cake (my favourite), pear and almond cake (Mr Frivolitea’s favourite) banana and pecan flapjack, Borrowdale tealoaf and scone with raspberry jam and cream. What a treat and a great discovery. This will be a regular when we visit the Lakes.

Waterhead Cafe, Ambleside

This is a a great little cafe in a spectacular setting. There’s nothing nicer than enjoying good coffee overlooking the water.

Waterhead cafe is quaint and pretty and serves great blueberrry scones and cakes. When we went they also had some portugese custard tarts on offer (a Mr Frivolitea favourite). The custard tart was particularly good and the coffee wasn’t bad either.