141 - 143 Ber Street
Norwich
Norfolk
NR1 3EY
Opening hours
Monday to Saturday - 8.00am till 6.00pm
Sunday - 9.00am till 3.00pm
Breakfast served all day
Getting a decent exterior shot was a bit tricky as I visited on the day the sign writers had their scaffolding up. Rest assured though that you'll easily spot The Ber Street Kitchen and the new signage looks excellent!
I was here to check out the breakfast but was seriously tempted by the delicious selection of cakes and sausage rolls displayed on the counter.
The dining area is spacious and beautifully designed.
The breakfast menu is served all day and offers a good selection of dishes made using locally sourced ingredients.
A large cappuccino cost £2.60.
I do love a quality ketchup and here they serve Channells. It really packs a punch with its high tomato content and was awarded a silver medal in the Great Tastes food Awards.
I ordered the Full English breakfast which cost £9.50.
It comes with your choice of brown or white toast and butter.
I loved the Swannington Farm to Fork sausages, really meaty and an excellent choice of breakfast sausage.
They were evenly browned on the outside and had a nice firm texture inside.
The Swannington Farm to Fork bacon was exceptional and the chestnut mushrooms tasted devine.
Swannington Farm to Fork also supply the black pudding used on this breakfast.
You have the option of fried, scrambled or poached free range eggs on the Full English breakfast.
I chose fried eggs which were served with nice runny yolks.
Tomatoes are my least favourite part of a Full English breakfast, these ones tasted good though.
Some say hash browns don't belong on a Full English breakfast, I disagree though and always welcome a hash brown on my plate. They go nicely with the beans or dipped in the egg yolk.
The beans are served in a ramekin, this made it nice and easy to pour them out where I wanted them on the plate.
I'd first noticed The Ber Street Kitchen back in July but decided to give them time to find their feet before I went along to review their breakfast. I had initially planned to visit The Ivy first which had recently opened. I decided to skip The Ivy though and go along to The Ber Street Kitchen instead as you really can't beat a good independent when it comes to enjoying a decent breakfast. I finish work early on a Friday so this was the ideal time to visit and as they serve their breakfasts all day I didn't have to rush to get there...
Upon entering - I couldn't for the life of me remember what business used to be here before The Ber Street Kitchen. One thing I was sure of though was how stunning it looks now. No expense has been spared in converting the exterior and interior into a great looking cafe. Wood panelled walls, exposed brickwork and vintage lighting gives it a traditional feel. The light colours used on the walls, plants on each tables and beautiful crockery make it also feel modern and fresh. It's spacious inside with plenty of tables to choose from, you can sit at the window if you want to watch the world go by or even outside in the courtyard if you prefer. Dining here was a pleasure as it looks so stunning and feels really relaxed. There's full table service so take a seat and somebody will soon be over to look after you. Everything you need will be brought over to the table, there's a quality selection of sauces available and you can settle your bill at the end. 9/10
Service - As soon as we walked through the door we were greeted with a smile and made to feel welcome. We ordered our food and payed at the counter when we arrived, it was mentioned that we could have placed our order once we were seated if we preffered. I was given the option of how I'd like my eggs cooked and white or brown toast. First to arrive was the drinks, then came the food with cutlery and the offer of any sauces. As we left we were asked if everything was OK and bid goodbye with a smile. The staff here seemed really relaxed but efficient and looked like they were enjoying their work. 9/10
Contents - 2 sausages, 2 bacon, black pudding, 2 eggs (fried, scrambled or poached), 1 hash brown, chestnut mushrooms, tomatoes, beans and 2 slices of toast served with butter. 8/10
Presentation - I loved the large blue plate this breakfast was served on, there was plenty of space for me to arrange the items over the toast. The beans were served in a ramekin in the centre of the plate with the other items surrounding it. The toast was served separately on a shallow bowl with a small glass containing the butter sachets. The food arrived piping hot and everything was looking nicely cooked. As soon as the breakfast arrived I could see some quality ingredients had been used here. 8/10
The food - As far as I'm concerned a good full English breakfast definitely needs decent quality meats on the plate and this is certainly what you'll find here. The meats are all supplied by Swannington Farm to Fork and you can really taste the difference. The sausages are a perfect choice on a full English breakfast and they were beautifully cooked with an even browning all over. The texture is nice and firm and the flavour is excellent, an incredible banger! The bacon was really delicious too with a distinct rich flavour, certainly the best bacon I'd eaten in a long time. The black pudding was smaller than standard slices but cut quite thick, it tasted superb. The hash brown, beans and tomatoes all seemed fairly standard but the mushrooms were the chestnut variety which is a personal favourite of mine. Finally a pair of fried free range eggs with heaps of flavour and runny yolks, I enjoyed them over the hot buttered toast. Some excellent flavours and textures to be found on this breakfast, I thoroughly enjoyed it! 9/10
Value for money - I'd always expect to pay around the £10 mark for a decent full English these days and here it cost £9.50. It definitely seemed worth the money as it featured some excellent ingredients. It did seem odd to get just one hash brown on a large breakfast but that's no big deal really. 8/10
Veggie option - No veggie full English but there are other veggie options on the menu.
Overall - With so many great places to eat breakfast in the NR3 area of Norwich it's nice to see an impressive new independent open in NR1. This place really ticked all the boxes of things I look for when going out for breakfast, excellent food, stunning environment and great service. Their breakfast feels different enough to others being served in the city due to their choice of suppliers, I'm now a huge fan of Swannington Farm to Fork meats. I was a bit surprised to not see a vegan or vegetarian full English on the breakfast menu, there is however a selection of hash's available. I'll definitely be returning to The Ber Street Kitchen again in the future and strongly recommend you go check them out too. 8.5/10 11 months since my first visit and the breakfast is now even better! It now includes black pudding bon bons, fried bread and beans served directly onto the plate, a stunning Full English Breakfast.
Update - September 2019
