The Street Cafe - Norwich

147 Magdalen Street

Norwich

Norfolk

NR3 1NF

  
Opening hours

Monday to Saturday

7am till 3.30pm

Sunday

10am till 2.30pm

Breakfast menu served all day

Nearest parking - Botolph Street

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Not much has changed at The Street Cafe in Norwich since my first visit in 2010 and that is a good thing as they have a winning formula which makes it so popular.

 

One recent change though has taken their already excellent breakfast to a new level, they now serve Archers award winning sausages! The sausage that won this years Battle of the bangers at the Norfolk food and drink festival, read about it here.

Inside is traditional and clean.

Fresh flowers can be found on each table.

 

Meat eaters and vegetarians will be spoilt for choice with three different sizes of each breakfast and a good selection of extras.

 

 

There are plenty of drinks to choose from too.

 

This regular cappuccino cost £1.90 and was excellent. I was equally impressed with the Heinz ketchup and HP sauce, no economy sauces served here.

 

When the impressive looking bumper breakfast arrived I knew I was about to eat something special.

 

Toast was an option but I chose soft white buttered bread to wrap around some bacon.

 

The pair of Archers sausages proudly held back a sea of thick stodgy beans.

 

The black pudding I had ordered as an extra lay across a mountain of mushrooms.

 

The fried bread served here tastes quite light and seems a bit healthier as it isn't drenched in oil.

 

The bacon was excellent but it was the sausage I was eager to taste again!

 

 My favourite sausage ever, the taste and texture is spot on!

A great egg yolk on a great free range egg from Coltishall Dairy Farm.

 

 The sign of an excellent breakfast!

 

My wife went for the medium veggie  breakfast.

The buttered toast that came with it looked really nice.

Recommended and a five star food rating is well deserved!

Back in 2010 when I started this blog my first fry up inspection took place at The Street Cafe in Norwich. I was off to a good start with the impressive breakfast served there, the original review can be found here. I recently heard that the Archers winning sausage from the 2013 Battle of the bangers was now being served at The Street Cafe, I decided to revisit and re-write the breakfast experience at The Street Cafe..

Upon entering - As you walk through the door there is plenty of seating leading back to the counter at the rear. There is another dining area to the right with plenty more tables to choose from. Gingham table cloths, chunky wooden chairs and fresh flowers on each table make the traditional looking interior feel really welcoming. There is a full table service so just choose a table and you will be well looked after. Sugar, salt and pepper are already on the tables, menu's, sauces and cutlery will be brought over to you later. The bill is brought to the table at the end. 9/10

Service - The staff here are really friendly and incredibly efficient, everything you need will arrive at the table in good time. Our order was taken and toast/bread & butter options were given. First the drinks arrived followed by cutlery, sauces and finally the food, space was made for everything on the table whilst being served with a smile. We were asked if everything was ok shortly after the food arrived and bid goodbye as we left chewing on the complimentry mints left with the bill. Service at it's best! 10/10

Contents - The bumper breakfast consisted of: 2 sausages, 2 bacon, 1 fried egg, 1 hash brown, fried bread, mushrooms, tomatoes, beans and 2 slices of bread & butter (or toast) I also ordered black pudding as an extra. 9/10

Presentation - The colourful selection of items are placed neatly on the large oval plate. Everything looked incredible and the beans and eggs are seperated well for those that gasp in despair at the sight of them meeting on a plate. It almost seems a shame to disturb such a magnificent sight but you know it just has to be done. 10/10

The food - Ok lets start with the Archers sausages, when I was judging Battle of the Bangers back in September these immediately impressed me and all the other judges as well as the public making them a clear winner. As you cut through it the shape remains as it should with its perfect blend of spices and Blythburgh free range pork. The texture is just right and they taste so good! The bacon was excellent too and browned in all the right places, it went nicely between the fluffy white buttered bread. The mushrooms are fried well and taste great. The black pudding had a good texture and taste, the hash brown was crisp with a soft textured centre but not at all oily. The grilled tomatoes were full of flavour and the beans had the stodgy texture I am always looking for. The fried egg was lovely with all the white cooked properly and a nice runny yolk, it went well with the lightly fried bread. 9/10

Value for money - The bumper breakfast with extra black pudding and a regular cappuccino came to £10.30. There was so much delicious food that it kept me going all day, I struggled to finish everything on the plate but couldn't bare to leave anything. Definitely money well spent. 8/10

Veggie option - Yes, vegetarians are well looked after here and Quorn sausages are served.

Overall - The Street Cafe continues to serve excellent breakfasts as they have done for many years and now they are serving Archers sausages things just got even better! The excellent food, service and traditional environment make you feel really welcome which is why The Street Cafe is so popular and loved by so many. 9/10

 

* Update - June 2014 *

 It had been a while since I had last eaten breakfast at The Street Cafe and everytime I passed it I kept thinking that I must return again soon. It was my birthday so it seemed to be a good option for a birthday breakfast. When the breakfast arrived it was as impressive as ever and beautifully presented!

 Archers sausages remain my favourite sausage ever, they go so well with this breakfast.

Fried egg perfection!

This time I tried the homemade bubble and squeak, nice and crispy on the outside with a delicious creamy centre.


*Update - March 2015*

 The Old English Breakfast is a new addition to the breakfast menu.

 I usually have a cappuccino with my breakfast but couldn't resist a strawberry milkshake today, delicious!

The Old English Breakfast includes 2 Archers sausages, 2 bacon, a thick slice of black pudding, a slice of griddled bread, a large flat mushroom and a tomato. As always at The Street Cafe everything tasted excellent and was cooked to perfection by Andy, he certainly knows how to cook and present a breakfast to be proud of!

The Old English breakfast also comes with 2 slices of toasted farmhouse loaf (from Ketts Hill Bakery) served with real butter.

 My wife chose the small vegetarian breakfast and added a flat mushroom and bubble & squeak, she loved it!


*Update - October 2015*

Following a look around the annual Magdalen Street Celebrations I decided to call into my favourite Magdalen Street cafe. On this visit I spotted the cow milk jugs, we loved them!



 

As always the breakfast here was beautifully presented and a real pleasure to eat!



*Update - February 2016*

The Street Cafe was a great choice when decided to go out for a Valentines Day breakfast. Excellent service, great tea cosies and a breakfast that looked perfect and as always, tasted amazing!

*Update - October 2016*

I'd been craving a Street Cafe breakfast for a few weeks now and what a wonderful sight this was as it was placed in front of me, perfect!



 

Since our last visit a vegan breakfast had been added to the menu, my wife ordered it. A great breakfast with a really nice scrambled tofu to replace the eggs, delicious! 

*Update - June 2017*

 I'd woken up craving a really nice full English breakfast so decided to head for The Street Cafe. I ordered the bumper breakfast with a mug of  tea, the food and service as always was spot on. Just look at those perfect eggs!

- Update, October 2017 - 

An aerial shot of the bumper breakfast with black pudding and the vegan breakfast, both stunning! 

- Update, March 2018 - 

It was cold and icy outside so a visit to The Street Cafe seemed like the perfect plan.

Everything was cooked to perfection and the service was impeccable! 

- Update, April 2018 - 

On this visit I decided to check out the smoked bacon bubble and squeak, it's really delicious!



 

Street Cafe also serve white pudding now as well as black pudding so be sure to order some as an extra.