Sable and flea ... worth it, if you can find it.

Stirling has no shortage of places to get coffee and cake. If you add in the surrounding towns and villages within a few minutes drive, the number of places to take yer Maw for a 'fine piece' is probably enough to ensure that you could go to a different one every week and not have to make a repeat visit before old age has ensured you have forgotten how good/bad/indifferent your first visit was.

Even this coffee drinker's rule of (mostly) avoiding the big chains - Starbucks, Costa, Nero and the increasingly ubiquitous Patisserie Valerie (use of the abbreviation Pat-Val will not be tolerated) can be adhered to without too much of a problem. Full endorsements of the town's top venues - Ciscos and the Port Street deli will appear elsewhere, but we are nothing if not thorough in our quest to unearth every secret corner wherein lovers of the bean might hide themselves.

So to Sable and Flea - at once in the centre of town and also tucked away out of sight. It's on Friar's Street, Stirling's answer to the Strip. By day, a pleasant enough pedestrianised town centre street, it changes after darkness and alcohol consumption to become a noisy and threatening pathway between pub and nightclub.

S + F is immune from this, in an odd corner between a music shop and a buffet diner. It sells itself as a genteel and comfy coffee and cafe shop, with antiquey bits and pieces to buy. They are particular about the blend and the bean and cakes are lovingly laid out on the counter in neat rows.

The sticky-toffee cake (warmed) had the authentic flavour and the coffee was smooth and full flavoured. Throw in the broadsheets laid out for patrons' amusement and your retreat is complete. Seating includes a comfy sofa through the back. That's the kind of place you could have a serious conversation with your partner. The front shop is more functional, but comfy enough and you are surrounded by curios for sale, including 60s tea/coffee sets. All very diverting.

We were £11 for two coffees and two bits of cake. Pricey, worthy of a more lengthy stay to get your money's worth. Fortunately, that's no hardship.

And the name? No, me neither. I assume there is some deep significance to it, but I am not sure what its historical or literary origins are, other than the fact that sables were often flea ridden. So here's a picture of one of them ..

*Sable Antelope (Bull) *Photo taken and submitted by Paul Maritz. Photo taken near Kafue River in Zambia, 2004

Different islands, more cafes - September 2016

The Scottish Government have marked 2016 as the Year of Architecture and Design. I’ve declared it the year of the island café. Another month, another visit to the islands, this time the Hebrides.

Lews Castle Museum Stornoway

The capital of the Outer Hebrides has been a frequently visited place over the last few years, with work taking me there on an annual basis. These trips usually involve a pre-5 am departure from home, followed by an intense working day so a restoring cuppa and cake in the later afternoon are considered essential requirements. For a small town Stornoway packs in the cafes and over the years I think I have tried them all: The Woodlands Centre, The Library, An Lanntair, the Crown Hotel and the Delights Deli would figure on the tourist trail and have provided many fine examples of cake excellence. The canteen at the Western Isles Hospital and Stornoway Airport café are less mainstream, but have been visited over the years and provided welcome nourishment after an early morning start, or when faced with a delayed return flight.

The newly opened Lews Castle Museum is definitely worth a visit if you are in the islands. It’s packed full of exhibits about life in the islands, and the fantastic audio visual experience was a real highlight. However, this is not a blog about culture or museums, it’s about cake – down to the serious business.

The café serves Starbucks coffee – surely a first for the Hebrides? The cakes however were locally made, and mighty fine. I’ve recently discovered a passion for paradise slice, and now once that is spotted on a menu I go no further. The café was pleasingly full at 4:30 pm on a fairly windy Thursday afternoon in late September, surely a sign that locals have embraced the addition to the Stornoway café options. The views are pleasing, there’s culture on tap and the menu for meals was imaginative and full of locally sourced options – a good find all round.

Callanish Visitor’s Centre

An incredibly wet and windy Saturday found me at the Callanish Visitor’s Centre on Lewis. After filling my brain with displays about the history of the site and braving the elements for a quick look at the stones, it was time to fill up with a scone. What a nice scone it was too. The setting is spectacular and the wild weather added to the atmosphere. The café was full of a mix of locals and tourists and the arts works on sale were a nice addition.

A selection of Shetland cafes - June 2016

Victoria’s Vintage Tearooms – Isle of Unst, Shetland Islands

A diversion from tearooms in Central Scotland saw one of the bloggers make a trip to the most northerly tearoom in Britain. The journey involved a car, a plane, another car and two ferries, but the tearooms and views made the effort more than worthwhile. What a truly spectacular setting.

Victoria’s Vintage Tearooms opens on a Sunday just for tea and cakes, which after a generous Shetland B and B breakfast, suited me fine. The choice was impressive: scones, traybakes and either Victoria sponge or vanilla fudge cake. Large portions of cake, a tea pot with a cosy and charming vintage crockery, all served up with that view equalled café paradise. It’s such a shame it’s a bit too far to return next Sunday.

In the vicinity are the Unst Boat Haven and Unst Heritage Centre. Both are worth a visit, but make sure you schedule time on Unst to savour the cakes at Victoria’s.

Bonhoga Gallery and tearoom

The mid-west of Shetland mainland is an area almost devoid of cafes, according to the Tourist Information Centre in Lerwick, with the exception being the Bonhoga Gallery in Weisdale.  This café was a great find, and home to possibly the best cheese scone in Scotland.

I know my fellow blogger does not approve of cheese in the vicinity of scones, but for me a what could be better? Scone plus cheese, the perfect combination of sweet and savoury. Not all cheese scones are created equal however, the cheese scones at Bonhoga are something special.

Another generous B and B breakfast meant that as temping as the café’s intriguing advertised “Motzarella and tomato toasty” sounded, a full-on lunch wasn’t really required. Once I’d spotted cheese scones on the menu I was going no further. Imagine my delight when the cheese scone was served warm with a generous slice of actual cheese on top, and onion chutney to accompany this gastronomic find. Amazing views from the café, lovely art to browse after the food and friendly locals. Like Victoria’s Vintage Tearooms I just wish the Bonhoga Gallery was a bit closer to home.

Coffee Bothy # 3

So we have a blog about scones in Central Scotland containing an entry about Portuguese cakes in London, hmm, how can I redress this? No scones at the weekend, but a new café visited.

Coffee Bothy # 3 - Callander

The town was Callander, the café was the latest branch of The Coffee Bothy. This is the third Coffee Bothy in the area, the original is in Blairlogie alongside a farm shop, the second is in Deanston in a distillery visitor centre and this latest branch is upstairs in the Caledonian Country Wear shop. The town of Callander used to be full of Scottish woollen shops, but these have recently reduced in number, and the clothes shop which contains the café is certainly catering for a more discerning market. Callander has a great location at the edge of the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, it’s surrounded by stunning scenery and has ample opportunities for pre or post-cake eating walking or cycling.

I’d not really planned on anything other than a coffee, but once I’d looked at the extensive breakfast menu I knew resistance was futile. It was a close call between the croissants or the pancakes, with the latter being the winner. No photos I’m afraid, you’ll have to trust me that the three homemade pancakes with raspberry jam were delicious as was the accompanying latte. Signs at the counter informed me that the café has recently introduced table service; the couple at the next table seemed delighted to learn this news, ordering at the counter clearly not the done thing in the Trossachs. Their breakfast menu is extensive, better than their website menu suggests. The savoury version of the pancakes with bacon and maple syrup is my list for another time as is sampling one of their many cakes.

Three branches of a coffee shop surely means that the owners are onto something good, it makes me wonder when I’ll start to think of them as a chain? Their choice of shops to locate with is rather intriguing, I wonder where’s next, a café in a dry cleaners? A coffee shop co-located with a bank?