Tag Archives: lifestyle

September 21, 2018 · 10:50 am

Dela, Easton, Bristol

Often the best lazy weekend brunches happen by accident. Following a lovely evening of comedy and beer gardens on a Friday night, we ambled inevitably to the chat about plans for the rest of the weekend. Ours was to be a decidedly, determinedly quiet one, with all alarm-capable technology banished to the no-man’s land beneath the bed for 48 hours.

Our friends, being the sort to arrange a dinner party, game of squash and macrame workshop on a ‘quiet’ Wednesday evening, were of the mind to fit in breakfast before they set off for a weekend in the country. Luckily for us, this didn’t require an early start, so a beer-soaked agreement was made to head east for brunch, sometime before 2pm.

Remarkably, and despite varied strengths of hangovers and navigation skills, we all found ourselves at Dela at the same time. As it was midday already there were tables to spare (with Easton a young family’s game, cafes are often quietest when those in the student-y north are just waking up) and we slid into a booth that gave us the best views of the light and plant-filled space. An open bar and kitchen was astir with activity, the spirits selection refracted sunlight from the huge windows and the decor was soothingly minimalist and calm – the perfect spot to clear the previous evening’s fog.

This being a Swedish-inspired eatery (‘dela’ means ‘share’ in Swedish) the menu offers some Scandi options such as a sharing board piled with smoked trout, boiled eggs and rye bread or a Danish Bloody Mary; there are also more familiar options like toast and jam, bacon sandwiches and granola. Starting with enormous fresh pastries (the cinnamon buns are a must) we moved on to our main brunch plates, adding extras such as goats curd and bacon to our already generous poached eggs and greens before rounding everything off with excellent fresh juices from the bar.

Duly stuffed, it was time to wend our way – our intrepid friends to their weekend full of activity; for us, a fearless journey back to bed. For those with less pressing deadlines, there’s always the option to segue straight into Dela’s evening menu and intruiging cocktail list – certainly one for another, less hungover time.

Price: from £3 (toasted sourdough & jam) to £8.90 (smoked mackerel Dela bowl).

Milk Teeth, Portland Square & Albatross Cafe, North Street

Though we’d purposefully made few plans this summer, it turned out to be just as busy as ever. With long weekends and trips to the seaside, the requisite hen dos, weddings, festivals and after parties, family to visit and friends to host, this year we fall into Autumn with a pleasantly knackered face plant.

So it’s in this sleepy frame of mind that we seek quiet shelters from the hubbub; places to linger and ponder life outside the windows. As luck would have it, two recent additions to our cafe rotation offer just that: the rather lovely Milk Teeth on Portland Square, and a rival in restfulness, Albatross Cafe on North Street.

Milk Teeth is a cafe-cum-store which prides itself in being part of the BS2 community. Great big windows let light stream in over well-worn wood and a hotch-potch of furniture; there are posies in recycled bottles and an old piano in the corner waiting for a tickle. The central bar boasts a beast of a coffee machine and a selection of cakes and biscuits, while elsewhere there are pickles, jams and juices to stock up on.

On each visit the baristas (spectacularly bearded or ‘fro’d) are unfailingly kind and relaxed. A smooth and funky soundtrack flows at just the right level, making you wish other cafes nearby would take note and stop trying to turn their early morning shift into a tribute to their former rave days. The coffee is delicious, and that’s really all there is to it: simple, satisfying, and really rather nice indeed.

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Albatross Cafe is a recent addition to the increasingly hip North Street, now peppered with independent studios, a plethora of coffee shops and all the vintage homewares one could need. Taking a sidestep from the usual stark black-white-and-exposed-lighting interiors, it instead opts for a 70s San Francisco feel, with cacti, Formica tables and wicker chairs all brought together with a pleasing spearmint and pink colour scheme.

A simple food menu offers sourdough toast with spreads or avocado, pomegranate and feta; buttermilk pancakes or toasties and some delicious vegan baking with the best no-butter icing around. Coffees and cakes are served on beautiful handmade pottery (also on sale) and there’s a grown-up menu of cocktails and bar snacks for those who linger long enough for a sundowner.

Ever the sign of a properly relaxed establishment, the friendly owners could be found enjoying their own spot in the afternoon rays when their customer were attended to. Though they’re very new to Bedminster (no sign of a website, yet) there’s no doubt they’ll fit in just fine here.

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Spoke & Stringer, Harbourside, Bristol

In a little corner of the ever-developing Harbourside there is a shop-cum-cafe that is the pantheon of all things trendy. The shop is artfully decorated with expensive jumpers, leather goods and a casually placed bicycles that are worth more than the rest of the gear combined. Their website is scattered with headlines like cryptic crossword clues: ‘Triumph Bonneville Bobber Unveiling Event’, ‘Wavelength 245’; messages clearly meant for those initiated only.

The cafe next door takes a similar approach, the subtle signage and roped-off outdoor area giving the impression of exclusivity that even stretched to a small queue of people waiting hopefully at the door. It being the first sunny Saturday of the spring, the tables inside and out were full, and creatively pierced staff did a fine job ferrying rounds of drinks to patient diners as the kitchen struggled to meet the demands of the well-scarfed hordes.

Finding ourselves perched on high stools in a much coveted sun trap we glanced through the menus and it was soon clear that the food matched the fashionable surrounds: avocado, samphire, harissa and chimichurri were all regulars, ingredients combined in interesting ways to complement the more standard offerings of poached eggs on toast, shakshuka or a full breakfast. It all sounded undeniably delicious, but, with half an eye on our bank accounts, it was a struggle to find anything for much less than a tenner.

Feeling a little like the poor cousins at the wedding we decided to go rogue, opting instead for food meant as sides or starters, hidden as they were under a section named ‘Custom Parts’. This caused a moment of confusion that led to the Egg Poacher’s fresh croissant arriving well before my sourdough toast, but the added touch of spiced plum jam and real butter rolled in salt flakes made for a delicious start to the day.

As tables emptied and quickly filled again around us, we were left to enjoy our coffees and the waterside view. It’s a fabulous spot for people watching, where boat folk, families and modish couples in matching sunglasses bring their variously pedigreed dogs to mingle. With summer fast approaching there’s no doubt Spoke & Stringer will continue to fill – if you save the pennies and make an early start, there won’t be many finer positions for a sunny brunch.

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Tag Archives: lifestyle

Dela, Easton, Bristol

Milk Teeth, Portland Square & Albatross Cafe, North Street

Spoke & Stringer, Harbourside, Bristol

Price: mains from £6.95 (banana panackes) – £9.50 (Full English). ‘Custom parts’ from £3.50 (toasted sourdough).

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