On the Broads at Flinders

Stopped for a bite to eat at lunchtime on Friday, you have to duck your head to get in this quaint tea room on the edge of Suffolk at Oulton Broad. Home made cakes are their speciality and their ginger and carrot cakes were especially good, but we had ordered a cheese and tomato quiche before we saw the board with home-made sausage and onion pie or pea and ham soup on it .  You will need to be friendly with your neighbours as these tables are close together but when your coke comes on a saucer with a doily you know you are in the right place and the whole meal with a pot of tea was only  £10!

Warm pizza bread and pasties but no time…

Often go to this bakers in Eye, just the thing to warm up after a cold morning out but would like to have more time to go to the cafe - how is the coffee? 

Hello Haverhill

Ladies and gentlemen and other people , this is about to become a website and so I  have been to a training course  (www.phoenixinternetconsultancy.co.uk ) in Haverhill to learn how to do it. The sandwiches and freshly made mini -quiches were so good I had to find out where they were from. Around the corner is a cafe where they do a dish of the week (madras beef curry when I went) and other lovely home-made food. Italian meatballs, mozarella and tomato sauce – all home-made, for £3.20 anyone?  

       

Cakes in the window

What we love to see… if only we had more time!

    

Harveys Garden Plants

 Lovely food. I had their version of Welsh Rarebit with salad and the most delicious piece of lemon cake filled with home made lemon curd with greek yoghurt on the side. Mum had a bacon sandwich in ciabatta-type bread and a piece of plum and orange cake. They say they use their own produce and it shows  in the moist yellow cake made with their own eggs. We both had their own fresh apple juice. And they  have some really nice plants too. Not your usual garden centre.   www.harveysgardenplants.co.uk is their web site but it doesn’t seem to want to connect on my computer… Harvey?

Needham tea room

Such a quaint little tea rooom of the kind you think have long gone. Full of teapots on display and a reasonable menu of snacks and main meals. I had a cheese and ham toastie which was two slices of toast full of nice home cooked ham. They have a couple of nice foodie shops here in Needham, a good butchers and one of the best charity shops ever.

Alder Carr Farm with the Telegraph air hair lair

My friend Joe and I are at Alder Carr drooling over the cheese counter when we hear that so is the food critic from the Telegraph. I am not quick enough to give her my suffolkfoodie card but I understand food critics don’t like food bloggers much so maybe it’s for the best. Great Ploughmans though – big chunk of Suffolk Gold and a home made scotch egg. And a special hello to the nice man buying  cheeses beginning with g for his dinner party - we want to come!

www.aldercarrfarm.co.uk

…and back to the Wyverstone community cafe on Saturday

A second visit here to buy cakes that I ended up giving to other people. It was closing time so got two chocolate banana muffins, a piece of carrot cake (not for me - I don’t like it much) and a piece of coffee and walnut. These cakes are the BEST for miles around but remember it’s only every other week.

Sausage Rolls – in Rickinghall or Botesdale – not sure which.

What a lovely pair of villages! Had to go to football so wander about looking for a home made food shop for a late breakfast snack. Found the Co Op. Then the blinds go up on the local deli so I buy two large sausage rolls at £1.20 each.  Nice pastry and local sausage meat and although my son thinks his are better, we think it’s worth recommending. There are quiches in the freezer and a couple of home made cakes but not sure why toilet rolls haven’t been hidden round the corner in this pretty cafe/deli/gift shop. And you could make the biscuits that are out on the tables too?

Welsh Rarebit in Elmswell

Here it is – my brunch from yesterday at that little cafe in Elmswell -where Goodfellows butchers used to be next to Mace.  Is it called Bumbles? I met my sister for a coffee.  They do good cappucino and my flat white (I have to tell them what to do – no one in Suffolk knows what that is yet …) was good too. I had this Welsh Rarebit which tasted much nicer than the picture looks, because the Worcester sauce has made it go a bit brown. My other sister once told me a fab recipe for Welsh Rarebit  -  grated cheddar and a large spoonful of mayo – under the grill. Browns and bubbles up really nicely. I think they do hot lunches here too because a very friendly couple were having casserole and mashed potatoes at another table.  Now I see the picture it reminds me – I wish they would get rid of that horrible plastic Christmas table cloth!