Bonningtons Eaterie has been on my radar for a while. I've wanted to visit for about two weeks, but have always missed the opportunity. My habit for leaving the house ten minutes late never helps.
The cafe has a very inviting shabby chic quality about it. It's stylish enough to make you want to go in, but still very down to earth. Inside is a Smorgasbord of different furniture and a miss-mash of styles. A black leather sofa lines the window. A large solid wood communal table occupies the left side of the shop with Fringe posters decorating the wall unobtrusively behind it. The counter takes the form of a delicious looking deli and as I walk up one of the baristas is freshly preparing a potato salad. I order my coffee, chat to the baristas about the fortunate weather we having and admire the tasty looking sandwiches laid out in front of me. This place feels very homely. It's got the type of atmosphere the bigger chains try to achieve with generic leather sofas and potted plants. But whereas in bigger chains you feel like an endless number in a queue (writing my name incorrectly on a cup does not change this) in Bonningtons you feel like you are being talked to as a person and with genuine interest.
I got my coffee, turned to the jam jar full of sugars and opened it up. My coffee was a little low on milk so I asked for a top up. Not only did I get a top up I got it in the shape of a smiley face drawn with milk into the top of my coffee. I know they were quiet, but that is a sweet touch. Just as it was getting my sugar from a jam jar as I said hello to the little Jack Russell sat on a cushion on the end of the bench next to me. According to his owner he's got so many girlfriends on the go always popping in. I said
"Well he shouldn't sit so close to the sugar then."
From the way his owner spoke and from the dog's obvious comfort on his spot, I'd guess they were regulars here. As I was talking to the woman and her dog (yes I spoke to the dog too) a man came out from behind the counter and introduced himself as the owner. Two owners in two days lucky me! What a nice man and perfectly suited to the coffee shop he owes, friendly, laid back and artisan. And before you say anything I can use this word now as I've found out what it means.
"A skilled worker who practises some trade or handicraft."
So not poncy after all. I would gladly call this place artisan. And as I sipped my coffee and left the shop that hug I wanted the week before seemed to envelop me. Not only from the coffee but from the people who made it. People like this are what independent coffee shops are or should be all about. No. Scratch that. They are what coffee shops should be about. Full stop. Starbucks bring a pen and paper and take note.
Frothy Fun Fact of the Day: In Italian "latte" actually just means milk and the word "barista" literally translates as bartender. So if you ordered a latte in Italy you'd get a bartender serving you a glass of milk. Rock on!
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