Tea for you and me

Join me on my epic quest to find the best tea ever

Tag Archives: Newbury


by Leave a comment

The Hatchet Inn

12 Market Place, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5BD.   (View on map)

Leather armchair, tea and a log fire at The Hatchet Inn.

A Wetherspoon pub is not somewhere to go for a great cup of tea, but it will do a passable cup of tea and it will do it cheaply. Every Wetherspoon’s I’ve ever been in will serve a cup of tea in the same way: the teabag in the mug, a saucer on top of the mug and a milk jug on top of the saucer. This does allow you to carry it all with one hand (handy) but does mean that drinking the tea leaves you with a dilemma. Is the saucer for the teabag? For the mug? For the mug and the teabag? I tend to use the saucer for the teabag and milk jug and let the mug sit straight on the table as it’s quite a small saucer and things don’t balance properly if you try to put the teabag and the mug on the saucer.

Anyway, the tea at The Hatchet Inn was hot and strong and only cost 79p, but the best thing about this place is the log fire. The pub opens at 7am and though I’ve never made it there quite that early, I have made it in before 8am and the log fire is lit if it’s cold outside. A leather armchair, a book, a cup of tea and a log fire. Lovely.

Teapot? No.
Leaf tea? No, a Tetley drawstring teabag.
Milk jug? Yes, a tiny one.
Price? 79p for tea, though the menu says it’s £1.19 I have never been charged that much. Sometimes I am charged 99p though, must remember to ask why the price changes when that next happens. They also do a loyalty card with a free tea after five hot drinks are purchased. Bargin.
Cake? No, but muffins, biscuits, breakfasts (including hot drink and a breakfast item – such as a a bacon roll – for £1.89).
Go again? Yes, there’s a log fire!

 


by Leave a comment

Waitrose Cafe, Newbury

Oxford Road, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 1NB   (View on map)

Bear claw, pot of Earl Grey tea and Waitrose chocolate at Waitrose Cafe in Newbury

This Waitrose has a cafe and it serves proper pots of tea and some scrummy cake. I had a pot of Earl Grey tea and a Danish Fruit Bear Claw. All hot drinks come with a little Waitrose chocolate as well. I chose the Bear Claw as I’d heard it mentioned on American TV sitcoms and drama and wasn’t sure what it was. It appears to be named after the shape of the pastry, which sort of looks like a bear’s claw. If only they sold Twinkies and had Chinese takeaway in the little white cardboard pots, then my American food curiosity would be satisfied. It stays open almost as late as the store so can be a good place to go for a pot of tea with free parking and toilets when the other cafes in Newbury are closed.

Teapot? Yes.
Leaf tea? No, Waitrose Earl Grey.
Milk jug? Little one.
Price? £1.45 for tea and £1.30 for the bear claw.
Cake? Yes – danish pastries, cakes, cupcakes, muffins, chocolates and more.
Go again? Yes.


by Leave a comment

Happy Birthday Tea for you and me!

The range of cakes at Angel food bakery

Ah, it was two years ago that I sat in Cafe Nero and thought, ‘This is rubbish, something must be done’ and the idea for this blog was born.

In that time I’ve clocked up over 100 reviews and sampled tea in five different countries. It’s had over 4,000 visits and the most read review has been Angel food bakery.

I’d love to mark the occasion by finding some new gem of a tea provider, anyone got any suggestions?

Happy Birthday Tea for you and me!


by Leave a comment

Document House

7-9 Wharf Street, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5AN

Tea with artful custard creams at Document House

Document House is a ‘lounge bar’ in Newbury that has a board outside saying it also does coffee and tea (which is why we went in). It’s a comfortable bar with sofas and tables and does very good food. We went in around 6pm and it was quiet enough for us to relax and have a proper chat.

The tea came in a latte glass with a long spoon but we were most impressed with the artfully arranged custard creams. C’s drink also came with the artistic biscuits so we were confident it was a deliberate choice.

Teapot? No.
Leaf tea? No
Milk jug? Yes, mini china one.
Price? Around £1.60.
Cake? No, but expertly balanced custard creams.
Go again? Yes, when needing tea in the evening in Newbury this seems a good place to go.


by Leave a comment

Teashop by the canal – festive update!

The festive setting at The teashop by the canal

I’ve already sung the praises of The teashop by the canal but I thought I’d share with you a festive photo of my most recent visit. It was cold and raining but there was an armchair and a log fire, along with hot tea and sprigs of seasonal greenery on the tables. Heaven.


by 3 Comments

The teashop by the canal

The Stone Building, The Wharf, Newbury, Berkshire.   01635 522609

An array of teapots in The teashop by the canal

An array of teapots in The teashop by the canal

The Stone Building is next to the Kennet and Avon canal and is owned by the Kennet and Avon Canal Trust. There used to be a cafe and shop selling canal related things in there but then it closed down. Just recently it reopened as ‘The teashop by the canal’. It was recommended to me as somewhere I needed to visit in order to put it on here, so I dutifully went to check it out.

Inside the teashop is filled with mismatched tables and chairs and pretty objects everywhere. It’s a family run business and there are handwritten messages on the walls from one member of the family to another. One I particularly liked was the message above the door reminding someone not to forget things. There’s also chairs and tables outside next to the canal so you can watch the ducks and narrowboats as you enjoy your tea. A sideboard held the cake selection and there was a cake stand with a variety of cupcakes on the windowsill. The dresser with the large selection of proper cups and saucers made me cross my fingers that this would be a good place for tea. The menu telling me that all their tea was loose leaf and from Taylors of Harrogate proved me right.

Perfect tea at The teashop by the canal

Perfect tea at The teashop by the canal

I chose chocolate cake and China Rose tea and V picked a different one. When our tea was served it came in a little pot each with a separate tea strainer each. The tea was delicate and light and smelled wonderfully of roses and summer afternoons. The cake was good and the location is good too. I love going to Delicious… and the chocolate brownies there are still the best I’ve ever tasted, but the loose leaf tea here knocks it off the number one spot on my top five places to enjoy tea.

Teapot? Yes and pretty china tea cup and saucer.
Leaf tea? Yes, Taylors of Harrogate.
Milk jug? Yes.
Price? £1.95 a pot.
Cake? Yes and cupcakes. And main meals and sandwiches and ice cream and coffee.
Go again? Without a doubt.


by Leave a comment

Shoemakers

The Arcade, Market Place, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5AD.

Tea, bread and soup at Shoemakers Cafe

Tea, bread and soup at Shoemakers Cafe

I’ve walked past this cafe many many times and never seen a spare table, so never had a chance to try it. This time it was raining and I was cold and someone left the cafe just as I walked past, I quickly doubled back and dived in. Shoemakers is a small but perfectly formed cafe in a Christian bookshop, tucked away in a tiny arcade in Newbury. It’s the only cafe I’ve ever been in that had a prayer box on the table, with a note inviting me to suggest a topic to be prayed for.

I ordered mushroom and thyme soup which came with homemade bread and of course a pot of tea. This cafe gets extra bonus points for being tiny and yet still providing me with a teapot, milk jug and a jug of hot water, without me having to ask for any of it. And the soup! Very good soup.

Teapot? Yes.
Leaf tea? No.
Milk jug? Yes.
Price? £1.30 for pot of tea, £2.95 for soup and bread.
Cake? Small amount.
Go again? Yes.


by Leave a comment

Joesph’s Restaurant, Camp Hopson

Northbrook Street, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 1DN

Tea and cake at Joesph's Restaurant

Tea and cake at Joesph's Restaurant

Joesph’s Restaurant is inside Camp Hopson Department Store, an independant department store in Newbury. The restaurant serves main meals as well as sandwiches, tea and cake. They have a terrace that overlooks Newbury towards the canal which is a gorgeous place to sit in sunny weather. It wasn’t sunny when we went, so we stayed inside.

I had a pot of tea, panini and piece of plum cake and D had a cafe latte and a smoked salmon and prawn sandwich. All the food was very good. The plum cake was nice, a cross between a German yeast plum tart and a bakewell tart.

Teapot? Yes.
Leaf tea? Teabag.
Milk jug? Yes.
Price?£1.40.
Cake? Tarts and gateux as well as the more traditional versions and pastries.
Go again? Yes.


by Leave a comment

Corn Exchange

Market Place, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5BD

Tea and cake at the Corn Exchange

Tea and cake at the Corn Exchange

I’ve been for tea at the Corn Exchange before but this is the first time I could take a picture. S and I had chocolate cake and tea and L had a tuna sandwich. There was a special offer on: buy a hot drink and get a toasted hot cross bun free. That’s what I call a good offer. The hot cross buns were nice, too.

There are seats downstairs and upstairs and outside when the weather is warmer. It has a wide range of cake and is friendly.

Teapot? Yes, big one between two.
Leaf tea? Teabag.
Milk jug? Yes.
Price? £1.50.
Cake? Yes.
Go again? Yes.


by Leave a comment

Boswells Cafe

This morning I went to Boswells. It’s in the Kennet Centre and is usually pretty busy, but I went first thing in the morning and it was just right. It’s had a refurb since the last time I went in and now has armchairs and sofas as well as tables and chairs. The refurb is a bit generic, I could have been in Nero or Starbucks or Costa, but perhaps that’s what they’re aiming for and they are a chain after all.

I had the pot of tea (which is bizarrely cheaper than the mug of tea) and it was good. Just what was needed at 8am. This is a great place to go for a standard pot of tea and has the added bonus of having a loyalty card and selling toast and marmalade.

Teapot? Yes, little metal one that I can’t pour properly.
Leaf tea? No.
Milk jug? Yes, with a generous helping of milk inside.
Price? £1.20 for a pot.
Cake? Danish pastries and breakfasts, not sure if they have cake later on.
Go again? Yes, this is set to be my regular morning cafe.