Cromwells Cafe - Northampton

51 The Drapery

Northampton

Northamptonshire

NN1 2EU

Bedlam Breakout psychobilly weekender - 10/10.

Not far from the Roadmender is Cromwells Cafe, buy a kebab there after your night out and kill the hangover with a fry up the next morning.

Plenty of breakfast options available and at a great price too.

Inside it is quite small but fear not the breakfast is big.

The ketchup was almost neon red once on the plate.

A proper nice coffee came with the full breakfast.

So did plenty of hot buttered toast.

The layout was amazing, impressive stuff!

Upon closer inspection I spotted economy sausages but everything else was looking good.

It was September and I was heading towards Northampton which could only mean one thing, Bedlam Breakout time again! My 12th Bedlam Breakout time again to be precise and this time I was not booked into the Aarandale Regent having opted for a cheaper Travelodge where breakfast was not included, so I was looking forward to trying out a cafe in the town centre. We arrived at the Roadmender on Friday night a bit later than we had hoped as it had been a nightmare getting to Northampton with both the A14 and A428 being blocked, as a result of this we missed a few bands. We did catch Graveyard Johnnys, Frantic Flintstones and Mad Sin though who all played amazing sets. On the way back home we stopped for a kebab at a place close by, I noticed this place also did breakfast and this thought entered my head when I woke up the next day. Feeling a bit rough from the excellent night before we got up and headed to the place we had bought our kebab from the night before..

Upon entering - It all seemed quite familiar having been there about 9 hours before, a small but long establishment with a few tables and a few spaces on stools by the window. You can't miss the counter in the corner with its large menu hanging above, there are also menus on each table keeping a neat cluster of condiments company and a menu in the window incase you want to decide before entering. 7/10

Service - With a hangover everything always seems more confusing and takes twice the time, luckily for me though the staff here made ordering a straight forward process. Place your order at the counter making the toast/bread and tea/coffee decision, pay and grab a table. Everything, including cutlery is bought over when it is ready. 7/10

Contents - 2 sausages, 2 bacon, 2 fried eggs, 1 hash brown, mushrooms, beans, tinned tomato, 2 slices of fried bread, toast & butter and a hot drink. 9/10

Presentation - Everything was holding together the sea of beans where the tinned tomato resided . Triangles don't mean a lot to me but if you are fond of them then you will love the way the fried bread and hash brown is placed on the opposite side of the plate to the perfectly round fried eggs. This plateful certainly looked the part when it arrived and was clearly plated up by somebody who gives a shit about presentation. 9/10

The food - I could tell straight away that the sausages were looking economy and was hoping they were not the awful mega cheap spongy type you get that almost deflate as you cut through them, luckily although nothing special they did taste ok and the texture was not too bad. The bacon was nice enough and cooked just right as were the fried eggs that had been cooked in rings. The fried bread was about as good as it gets, crunchy, golden and fried right through. A crispy hash brown and deep fried mushrooms were all good. Juicy beans and the tinned tomato went nicely with the toast & butter. 8/10

Value for money - £5.25 for the full breakfast and that includes toast and a hot drink, bargain! 8/10

Veggie option - No meat alternatives on menu but for £3.50 you could get 2 egg, mushrooms, tomatoes, beans and fried bread.

Overall - I could have tried many places in Northampton but I was glad to have come across this place. The only downside was that the sausages were no prize winning butchers variety but at this price I wasn't really expecting them to be. What you get is well worth the money, presented nicely and the fried bread is out of this world. 8/10