Favourite lunch option on cafe menu?

[foxrobin]

As the title says really! Trying to get an idea of favourite lunch options on a cafe menu. My sister is opening a cafe in a popular market town and wants to offer a traditional but beautifully done menu so I'd love to know your favourite lunch options and anything you'd like to see more or less of. Thank you! X

Toasties ,All day breakfasts and Avocado on toast for me. Also plenty of milk with the teas as well (Do NOT like bloody builders tea)!

Dairy free options. It makes me sad to always have the vegan option when in reality it’s easy to make stuff dairy free with just an olive oil spread instead of butter and not having cheese as the default on everything!

Welsh Rarebit for me please. Nice bread, a bit fancy looking.

Good coffee. Some sandwich options without mayo. Good scrambled egg. Decent cake (I don’t like chocolate but that’s just me!), toasted tea cakes.

Interesting hot sandwiches or wraps, maybe on a rotation of specials. E.g

Felafel and hummus
Fish finger, tartar sauce and iceberg
Pulled ham hock
Grilled halloumi
Saltbeef, emmenthal snd pickle
Roast romanesco cauliflower in spicy Romano sauce in ciabatta

Club sandwich consisting of
toast
layer of sliced roast chicken & leaves with a bit of mayo
toast
grilled hot back bacon & sliced tomato
toast
sliced hard boiled egg & leaves with mayo
toast
serve with chips and chutney. Used to make dozens of these when I worked in a hotel. Food of the gods

cheese scones with cream cheese and chilli jelly, onion relish and a wedge of cheddar

cream cheese sandwiches on granary bread with sprouty seeds, grated carrot & radish and thinly sliced celery

@BoudiccaOfSuburbia superb sandwiches there... 🤤

And some biscuits and traybakes that aren't covered in icing. Eg date slice, cherry cake, Parkin, lemon drizzle, light fruit cake, sticky ginger loaf (Phil vickery recipe from a Good Morning show is the best ever, available here https://www.itv.com/thismorning/articles/phil-vickerys-makes-her-majestys-favourite-cake-the-ginger-cake, I make it loads)

These are unbelievably helpful - thank you to you all for taking the time to do this 🙏

@ÚlldemoShúl On the dog friendly thing, would a designated area for dogs help that was in a clearly signposted area on the opposite side of the kitchen help?

Jacket potato or panini

Our local cafe does brilliant milkshakes and pancake stacks with bacon and syrup, they are very popular!

I love a jacket potato as they always seem nicer in a cafe than at home but I do resent that some places charge £7.50/ £8 for one !

Toasted panini or jacket potato and salad, chocolate cake.

@foxrobin not for me personally, though it sounds like a good compromise for others. It’s just something that gives me the ick. I’ve a couple of friends who are scared of dogs too so it would put them off also. I guess it’s a matter of finding your demographic- if it’s a place with lots of country walks etc then you probably have more dog lovers than not so that’s the best group to cater for.

Decaf tea is a must for me. Not just herbal but a decaf English breakfast tea. Nearly every woman I know (40s) has switched to decaf now they're in peri menopause to help with sleep and they all spend loads in cafes.

Cheeseboard. It's so hard these days to get plain food that isn't mucked up with sauces and condiments and exotic ingredients.

Cheese, mustard, some kind of bread, pickle.

Or a nice plain ham and cheese on a croissant. Not cooked, not sauced.

I'm agree about the dog thing. I like dogs but don't really want ill-trained dogs slobbering around me and stuffing their noses in my lap when I'm eating. Happy to share a cafe with them if there's a separate doggy area. But appreciate that the owner has to cater to their customer base and this may not make financial sense.

My favourite cafe started off just doing things on toast, toasties, Welsh rarebit, a couple of specials, drinks and cakes.
As much as possible is locally sourced and seasonal. The seasonal side salads they do an amazing.
Then as they've become popular they've added other things to the menu like soup, jacket potatoes and macaroni cheese.
All their ingredients are really high quality and delicious.

Lasagne or shepherd's pie with salad and chips
Paninis - ham and cheese, bacon and brie, cheese and onion, just cheese
Cheese on toast
All day breakfast
Bacon and avocado on toast with peri peri sauce and mayonnaise
Small fish and chips
Jacket potato or nice bread or bread roll with cheese savoury or tuna mayo or coronation chicken topping or filling
And, as I get older, the option for smaller portions please!!

Best of luck with the venture!

Might be a bit too pricey but this place near me is always busy especially for brunch

www.thepantryatmaxyfarm.co.uk/menus/

As a PP said, identifying the demographic being aimed at is probably one of the first things to do as they won't be able to please everybody.

One thing I like about a local cafe is the "cake tapas" that they do. You can choose 3 or 4 different cakes/tarts/macarons etc (all 1 or 2 bite-size) from a selection. Excellent for someone who wants to try everything and has food FOMO like me.

• Smoked salmon slices with fresh lemon and fresh black pepper, with small brown prawns OR
• steamed/grilled baby asparagus with flaked, toasted skinless almonds and vinaigrette added whilst still warm

• Roasted chicken leg quarter with crunchy sautéed potatoes, properly fried chestnut mushrooms with garlic and a little balsamic vinegar and lightly steamed broccoli

• Fresh fruit salad including fresh mango, papaya, pineapple, blueberries marinated in a little fresh pressed apple juice (not the brown stuff..) plus a generous dollop of plain live yoghurt.

Mmmm 😋 I think I'm going to make as much of that happen this weekend as possible. 🌹

Salad / sandwich build your own options (with more than just boring cheddar)
Decent wedges
Pick plates for younger kids
Decent cakes that are properly homemade and not overly sweet mass produced stuff
Crispy jacket potatoes with choice from sandwich / salad section of fillings
All day breakfast / veggie breakfast
Really good macaroni cheese
Decent deep filled quiche and salad

Your sister really needs to define her target market / local demographic first.

As they will want different things