The Friendly Farmer, Newark

Location: here
Date: 26th March 2014

The Friendly Farmer has become a favorite stop of mine, having stopped there largely on a whim some years ago. It's an interesting establishment which I really feel is an undiscovered gem - part farm shop, part services, it's handily placed at the junction of the A1, A17 and A46, an ideal place to stop for refreshment.

Run by the local farming community, the meat is all locally organically produced, with a fair profit going to the farmers who grow it. There is a farm shop and a butcher's counter selling food as well as a restaurant section. The "Farmer's Wife" breakfast set me back around seven pounds and came with two rashers of bacon, a delicious sausage, egg,  beans, grilled tomato and a hash brown. Also included were a cup of coffee and a slice of toast with marmalade. A larger breakfast was available along with sausage / bacon rolls.

To be blunt, I think these were quite probably the best sausages I've ever eaten - hearty and with a good seasoning of herbs. Plus they were well cooked, hot and crispy. Before I left I bought a coupe of pounds to take home from the butcher (of which more later). The bacon was thick and well cooked and the coffee was strong and hot. Downsides? Perhaps the toast could have been hotter, but that's a minor niggle. The importance of the ethics of food production vary hugely from person-to-person, but I am certainly drawn to the fact that the meat is well-treated and the farmers receive a fairer price for their work, it's a business model I'd like to see more widely in the UK, currently the only equivalent stop I'm aware of is Tebay services on the M6.

Before leaving I bought some sausages to take home, and also some food for the road. A scotch egg the size of a baby's head and a delicious pork and cranberry pie kept me going on my drive to Scotland and each were less than a tired pasty from a filling station.

Bare in mind that the full lunch menu is only served 12-3pm and the whole place closes at 5pm, so it's not a 24 hour convenience stop, but overall I wholeheartedly recommend a visit!

Overall: Excellent breakfast, and offering a far superior option to other service stations. Price would be a little high for the high street, but seems far better value than the equivalent roadside options. Great breakfast gives them the highest score so far! 9.75/10

Onboard cafe, Caledonian MacBrayne ferry

Date: 29th September 2012
Location: Between Stornoway and Ullapool

After an early start to check in for a pre-dawn ferry, it was a great start to the journey home to find a full Scottish breakfast available onboard. I will confess that there was some trepidation in sitting down for a meal considering the effect the weather looked to be going to have on the waters once we got into the open sea. Thankfully my fears were unfounded as there was little more than a good swell in the Minch. However you're not here to read about my crossing, you're here to read about my breakfast.

Six pounds each bought us a breakfast with our own selection of six items from the menu. While the food was undeniably cooked en-mass, it was still of a good standard. I chose egg, bacon, mushrooms, square sausage, potato scone and of course some fine Stornoway black pudding. A choice of white or brown toast was included as was a hot drink. Rather sneakily I noticed that HP sauce and ketchup were for sale at the checkout then available for free at the cutlery. Food was good, the extra filling nature of the brown toast was appreciated. The tea was not the largest and I felt the need for a second cup (60p) during the crossing, though at three hours, that's not unreasonable.

As in my previous review, the black pudding lived up to the reputation for this town's speciality. Egg was well cooked, far superior to those supplied in similar quantities from places like motorway services. Lorne sausage was a treat rarely found in England and the mushrooms were plentiful and well cooked without being overcooked,

Overall: What would be a good breakfast anywhere else is made all the more welcome (and an impressive work of logistics) considering that it's cooked and eaten at sea! 8.5/10

The Coffee Pot, Stornoway, Isle of Lewis

Location: Here
Date: 26th Sept 2012

It's been a while since I posted, I'm afraid that for a number of reasons this blog has been rather neglected. However, I think it's probably time to get a few more posts online. A recent holiday took me to the Western Isles, and I ventured into the only greasy spoon cafe I know of in the Hebrides.

Seven pounds seemed reasonably steep for what wasn't the largest fry up I've seen. However the food was good and well cooked. Potato scone / farl was a pleasant treat and the genuine Stornoway black pudding was simply outstanding rich, peppery and showing the towns famous delicacy off well. Toast was good, tea or coffee was included and the bacon also deserves mention being lean, tasty and cooked to the point of good crispyness. Sausages were plain but nice and well cooked nevertheless. My companion had sausage, egg, bacon and black pudding, which seemed a considerable reduction in price for not a huge reduction in quantity.

Overall: A good fryup, most welcome after a cold night of camping. Black pudding outstanding, price however knocks the score down a little. 8/10

Belly Buster

Location: Sandgate Road Market
Date: 4th August 2011

Feeling peckish and needing some hot food to cheer me up on a miserable day, I grabbed a sausage, bacon and egg stick from the Belly Buster, which appears along with the market in Folkestone. This cost me just three pounds. There didn't appear to be an option for more variety in the roll. The food was cooked fresh and was just what was I was after. Sausages weren't particularly inspiring, but were pleasant nonetheless. Bacon was possibly the saltiest I've ever eaten, which had there been more than one rasher would have been overwealming.

Overall: Cheap and cheerful. Not bad for food on the go, but I wouldn't go out of my way to go back. 6/10

Cafe Luca

Location: here
Date: 2nd March 2011

Feeling hungry at lunchtime, I ventured to this cafe in search of something filling. I wasn't disappointed by the breakfast special. At £5.95 this comes with beans, sausages, egg, bacon, mushrooms, grilled tomato, bubble and squeak and toast with either tea or coffee. Black pudding was an extra 50p. Tea even included a ginger biscuit. Service was good considering the lunchtime rush and the cafe is pleasant enough to enjoy the massive tea while relaxing on the sofa waiting for food.

Food was excellently cooked, with tasty herby sausages, a good fried egg and nice mushrooms. The single slice of toast was from fresh, soft bread but wasn't quite enough for full mopping up duties. With outdoor seating, this is a good choice for those wishing to relax with smokers or dogs in their group. My companion had the chicken and mushroom pie which was outstanding. It had lovely succulent chunks of chichen and was full of leeks and served with a good scoop of mashed potato, it was delicious.

Overall: A great choice of upmarket fry up. With a varied menu there's plenty of choice. Bubble and Squeak noses it ahead to be my favourite so far. 9.5 / 10

Googies Art Cafe

Location: here (Google maps is somewhat out of date)
Date: 19th February 2011

Right next door to the previously reviewed Django's Jazz Cafe, this reasonably new cafe offers a range of food, drinks and in the evenings, live music. Two members of our party selected the Big Breakfast. Note that this is only served until midday. Which led to a brief quibble with the waitress when she took over ten minutes to take our order, meaning that we were just past twelve o-clock when we ordered. At £6.95 the Big Breakfast had a lot to deliver, and with two sausages, bacon, black pudding, beans, egg, tomatoes, mushrooms and a mountain of toast plus a choice of tea or coffee and an orange juice we were looking forward to a feast. Boy did we get a lot of anticipating done! While I appreciate that busy kitchens take a while to prepare orders, I was ready to eat my own arm by the time food appeared.

Food was good, with nice, herby sausages. Mushrooms were particularly nice being large, flat mushrooms sliced. Grilled tomatoes were also a treat. Toast was plentiful and from particularly nice soft, crusty bread. Coffee was a little bitter, but quite drinkable with breakfast; tea brewed from loose leaves was outstanding. We had to chase the staff for the orange juice, but when it came it was welcome and refreshing. Our companion reported that her Eggs Benedict was served with rather vinegary Hollandaise sauce and drowned by toast, which distracted somewhat from the perfectly poached eggs.

Overall: Nice fry up, with high quality ingredients. Let down somewhat by details. High price would probably see me going next door 7.5 / 10.

Elinor Resteraunt

Location: here
Date: 30 December 2010

With a somewhat uninspiring exterior, the Elinor turns out to be a hidden gem. With a varied menu and a second menu  dedicated to breakfasts there's something to suit pretty much every hunger and wallet. I chose a breakfast to include their bubble and squeak, which has enough pepper to chase all but the most severe hangover IIRC it was the Set 4 breakfast. Seen above it included toast and a tea or coffee. Service is attentive without being intrusive.

The food was well cooked, the aforementioned bubble and squeak is outstanding. Sausages are of the plain meat variety. Mushrooms were particularly good too and overall the breakfast was satisfying and avoided being greasy. Regulars there refer to the toast as "the starter" due to the fact it tends to precede the rest of the meal somewhat.

Overall: A great fry up. With a huge choice of fry ups, there's something to suit every hunger at a good price. 8.5 / 10