To be overly impressed with nice simple old fashioned cafes/restaurants

There's a fab one in Ludlow.

There’s one near me that does spuds, pies and a full English as well as deli sandwiches. They’re always full!

I went to the cafe on the market with my mum today - big mug of tea and a bacon sandwich on thin plastic white bread. Bloody lovely!

if it’s the one I remember they used to do those great schnitzel sandwiches

My favourite is a down at heel Italian run cafe that serves the best coffee in South London in my opinion. And in a cup and saucer.

@LittleArithmetics yep , you are right - I think it has the vibe people were talking about , guess it’s that an Italian /greek cafe often has in my opinion an understanding of hospitality!! Actually we struggle in Bath in centre at all for an old school greasy spoon!!

Rosario's isn't exactly unfancy. It certainly does a range of fancy matcha lattes and the like. I guess the food is fairly traditional, but traditional Sicilian stuff which is much more appealing than a basic cheese sandwich or whatever. I think in my book there's a big difference between an old-school Italian/Greek/Turkish etc cafe, which are likely to be good, and an old-school British place, where I'll be expecting bad coffee and boring sandwiches.

Thanks for the clarification on the cheese and pickle. To me it sounds like an odd mix, but hey ho, I can try new things. I've never seen such a sandwich on offer here, nor have I ever tried Branston pickle. The relish here is green, so not sure if it would go with cheese!

If you are ever on the East Kent coast you may like to visit this place. Not my "ahem" cup of tea but very popular

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g186314-d12646396-Reviews-The_Home_Front_Tea_Room-Ramsgate_Isle_of_Thanet_Kent_England.html

If anyone is in Sheffield, I thoroughly recommend Sarnis on the High Street. Not quite greasy spoon, not a tea room, just a nice friendly cafe with sandwiches, jacket potatoes, breakfasts etc. It's lovely. (I do not work for them!)

There are still women here who do catering to raise funds who provide food like this, and it's always lovely. If there was a cafe which provided the same sort of food I would patronize it more than those which serve massive cakes, muffins, scones and overfilled sandwiches.

Do any Londoners remember Bonbonniere at the top of Carnaby Street? I miss that place so much!

I think it’s just a nostalgia for when things were decent quality, salt of the earth and good value. Very little is good value nowadays and everything feels luxury. Back in the day a £1 coffee and a £2.50 sandwich felt easy to afford. Now even Pret is like £8 for a sarnie and £4 for a coffee.

We have a lovely old fashioned cafe where I live that sounds like your sort of place OP. It's cosy in the winter and in the summer you can sit outside in their sun trap of a walled garden.

There used to be another one on the high street that was very good, but it didn't have a garden. Sadly, it closed down after branches of Gail's and the Cornish Bakery opened and took all their trade.

Ooh interesting! We are going to take a trip out to Lydford Gorge and Dartmeet next month (in memory of our courting days 🤣) and can stop halfway in Princetown.

@plominoagainAlpino’s the original cappucino (frothy coffee). Great fry ups, their sausages were different, not greasy. Great place.

Used to live above a lovely Italian restaurant that was open in the morning for coffees, mostly takeaway. Espresso, cappuccino and lattes, no syrups. Really good beans, very impressive Italian machine that looked amazing. A few baked things available, including the dessert they sold with meals. Some papers and magazines on a side table.

They weren’t ever busy, it was just that the staff were already there to prep for lunch/dinner service.

I would go in and usually get the place to myself with a seat in the window and the paper. Steady trickle of usually older workmen etc coming in to get takeaway because it was £1 cheaper than the fancy cafes on the rest of the street.

Fox Tor cafe in Princetown is another. Just the place to go when you've had a damp, foggy hike!

Oh my god - spent many a night in there with H when I first moved to London - west end kitchen too -

I hate the smell of strong coffee. We have so many 'artisan' style ones ugh and a very rare few tea rooms where you get tea in a teapot, home made cake and chips and beans

Ooh I think I know this one - yep very old school and decent quality , quite cheap too

I took two non local based work contacts out to lunch recently in a local pub that does simple homecooked meals. Everything made in house. They were amazed at the fact that places like that still exist. They both have asked that we go there again. They told me that they much rather going there again over the expensive restaurant I took them to the time before.

I have been going to Rafina's in Reading since i was a baby in a pram, Mid 40's now and still go when i go into Reading Shopping. It is exactly the same and still get Double egg and Chips :)

Yup. Filter coffee.

Course I can work the coffee menu to get something approximating what I want. But I don't like the taste as much as filter and it takes several minutes to prepare where as if they have a jug of filter on the go they can just pour it out. Job done