Eatery Hopping: Kafeneion, York

HELLO AND HAPPY EASTER. I come to you today from a break in my essay-writing-filled life, with a review. This may end up being a slightly extended study break, but I care not a jot because I started working on today's essay at 7.45am which, since the clocks went forward in the night (this is your reminder in case you forgot), feels like 6.45am. Joy of joys. (It's actually so I can justify a trip to the local market later today..)

On with the review.

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My visit to this café was actually a little while ago, since I have been very much enjoying the home (read: Edinburgh) life for the past few weeks. Kafeneion wasn't actually the original destination - we had planned to brunch at a different café that, despite maps telling us exactly where it ought to be, was nowhere to be found. I have since learned that it does actually still exist, but has moved elsewhere. And is still on the bucket list.


Which is just as well, because I'm sorry to say that this place was underwhelming.

My co-bruncher ordered a fruit scone with hot chocolate, and I went for eggs florentine with green tea. People rave about eggs benedict all the time, and I've never tried it, so I went for the veggie version to see if I could figure out what all the hype is about.

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The scone and hot chocolate arrived pretty promptly, looking just as enticing as scones always do (very), and both received a wholly positive reception, all whilst wafting fruity, doughy, chocolatey whiffs in my direction. The bar had been set.

Meanwhile, my green tea had arrived but the eggs florentine were still awaiting any reception at all, positive or otherwise. Several decades later, they finally made their appearance. Hurrah! (Okay, several decades may be an exaggeration but it did take a very long time and I would have thought it would make more sense to wait with the scone and bring it out at the same time as the eggs, no?..) By this point I was decidedly ravenous, and looking forward to diving into some brunchy goodness.

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And so I did. Unfortunately, though, I could not quite discern what the aforementioned hype is all about, but I don't think that was the fault of the dish itself. I'm sure eggs florentine/benedict/royale can be truly delicious in loads of cases, but this was just not one of them.

Having since had a look on TripAdvisor (the bae of websites) to see if a similar fate had befallen other people's meals, it seems that the formerly fantastic Kafeneion has recently changed ownership, and gone a tad downhill. This is a real shame, because the stuff on the menu does sound good, and the place itself is welcoming and nicely laid out, but the execution of it all is just a weeeeee bit below par.

My recommendation would be to go here anyway, but avoid the lukewarm and slightly bland metallic-tasting eggs florentine, the jaw-workout chewy English muffin, and the I-need-a-steak-knife tough spinach, and opt instead for one of the yummy looking cakes, scones or traybakes in the display cabinet. They look altogether much more tasty than my not-so-great eggs, and as a bonus, you won't have to wait ten thousand years for your food to arrive.

Alternatively, Coffee Culture is just next door (good TripAdvisor reviews but am yet to visit), and Goji Vegetarian Café is directly opposite - there's a review of the truly exquisite Goji in the pipeline... enter your email address in the box to the right to ensure you don't miss it!

*All photos in this post are mine. If you wish to use any, please ask my permission and credit me.*

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