The Coffee Society

I really appreciate those cafes which offer a bit of a deal - such as drinks accompanying snacks at a reduced price.  It can make a significant difference to the cost of light lunches, afternoon teas or any other treat that takes your fancy, otherwise the costs of 'stopping for a coffee' can add up to silly amounts if it's a regular occurrence, particularly if you want something to accompany it. The cost of coffee alone is getting disproportionate - maybe even exploitative in some establishments. Take my last visit the Mill, in Sudbury. Two of us arrived before the others and ordered a cup of coffee and a 'mint tea' while we waited.  The cost of these were £4.80. Were they served on a silver platter or in any other way elaborate? No, they looked like this:

...... with the addition of a teapot and an unwashed (for sometime it seemed) milk jug. How can a place of this calibre ignore such basic hygiene?  That spoilt for me the meal that followed (not that a 'meal' as such did follow in the end, as the service was erratic and I wasn't going to wait any longer for a meal. I had a £5 bowl of soup instead).  In fairness to the Mill, the restaurant manager did take off the cost of the coffees - and also the cost of what one of my friend's ate (because it was in her words 'quite unpalatable').

This is a de-caff capuccino from a newcomer to Bury - Patisserie Valerie - or Val's Cake Shop.  This cost £2.70 if I remember correctly. I guess in the price of this you are paying for the decor of the place, but still, a decent cup (with decent coffee in it). To weigh up the experience of visiting there today I tried their Croque 'Italian style' which was tasty, but along with the vast array of cakes, not the healthiest of options.  Snacks here look good but many are carbohydrate and fat based (cheese or cream).  This is obviously a chain/franchise establishment so I doubt the menu will be modified much to suit the Bury St Edmunds tastes. Nevertheless the public will probably flood there as they do to other franchises because they    'generally like the look of the place' and in this case may be lured by the pastries.  Personally I prefer traditional cakes. Franchises can afford more outlay initially then and expect their customers to subsidise ongoing costs. The smaller (or more cosy) and cheaper independents often lose out to the rest. I noticed after leaving Val's today that the usually crowded RRGCH on Angel Hill was nearly empty. Hopefully their custom will be restored once the novelty of Val's wears off for the Bury population. I also noticed the Really Rather Good.... is applying for a drinks licence. I trust their wine will not be too expensive because I  want better value for my money than a cup of pot-luck coffee ( although I rather think the equivalent cup of coffee at RRGCH would cost around 30p less than the above).  Still, it's little wonder that people wanting to economise these days, cut back on drinking 'fancy coffees'.