Posted on March 2nd, 2017
The city of Newcastle is known for many things. (The sparkling SAGE, the incredible art in the BALTIC, St James’ Stadium and the 7 famous Quayside bridges, to name a few). Today, I’d like to highlight another great attraction of our city. The breakfast scene in Heaton.
While the restaurants on the Quayside and the centre of the city are the ones which are often praised, go a little further out, and you’ll discover a myriad of hidden gems. Nestled between Heaton and Chillingham Road lie a selection of Newcastle’s lesser known eateries, all serving delicious, affordable breakfast. Being a Heaton resident myself, I felt it was my duty to try and test all the best ones to see what the hype was about. Tough job, obviously. I’ve listed the best of the bunch below, according to price and given them a rating out of ten. Go forth and enjoy!
The décor of this quirky café is out of this world. The red velvet curtains, walls adorned with paintings and the resident Dalmatian (Loki, to you and me) are enough to fall in love. Without delicious food, however, a café would not be a café, and thankfully at The Wild Trapeze – there’s lots of it. The menu spans from a traditional fry up or veggie breakfast to pancakes and waffles. A table of four of us (two meat-eaters and two veggies) were all full to burst at our lovely Sunday brunch session. 9/10 ££
The famous Butterfly Cabinet is known across the North East for it’s uh-mazing breakfasts, and for good reason. The portions are huge, the choice even huger, and the atmosphere cosy and inviting. My favourite here is the USA: 3 buttermilk pancakes, 2 bacon, 2 pork sausages, 2 hash browns, maple syrup and butter. Completely delicious and only £7.50. Word to the wise though, queuing times on a weekend morning are likely to be long – this place’s breakfasts are seriously in demand. Try a week day before lectures if you’re an impatient foodie like me. 8/10 £
BaoBab is a bakery based towards the end of Chillingham Road, a little out of the way (but so worth the trip). The bakery opens at 9am, and everyday has a selection of delicious freshly baked artisan breads. If you enjoy the thought of sitting down with a good coffee and a great croissant, this is the place for you. Just imagine you’re sat on a Parisian terrace, rather than the edge of Chilli Road, and the dream is complete. 7/10 £
Probably Newcastle’s best known vegetarian café, Sky Apple Café is also a great spot for those that have to eat gluten-free. The café itself is akin to The Butterfly Cabinet, but a tad less busy and packed. The selection at this place is so interesting, with the option available to stack breakfast items on top of ‘hash brown pancakes’ for only £3.60. My menu item of choice is the Breakfast Burrito, which makes a nice change from the traditional full English. 7/10 £
Admittedly, Starks is somewhere I haven’t myself ventured into. I have however, got it on good authority (my flatmate, Abbey), that it’s worthy of a spot in this list. Not somewhere I’d recommend for a hangover breakfast, Starks is more the kind of place you’d take a date. Or your Mum. Or the Queen. With salted cod omelettes, sourdough aplenty and breakfast bagels with ‘mushroom ketchup,’ Starks is somewhere to go for a completely new culinary experience.
8/10 *Abbey ££
Where ever you choose to go this weekend, happy breakfasting…love Sara x
