Cordial & Grace is Clifton’s newest tea rooms…with a difference. You’ll still be able to get your tea and cake, or even enjoy a meal from their small brunch venue…but owner Maria Whiteman’s big selling point is her downstairs room, featuring sewing machines available to hire by the hour.
It’s a beautifully decorated place – brightly coloured paper lanterns, bunting around the walls, colour co-ordinated flowers, pink and orange bottles adorning the cafe and walls decorated in a variety of ways give the place a quirky yet comfortable feel.
Various cakes are displayed on the counter, available by the slice, and a more substantial menu is also available. I’m keen to go back and try their afternoon teas, but late on a Saturday morning, we decided to give their brunch menu a go.
First, a pot of jasmine pearl tea (£2.00) – wonderfully fragrant, and with the nice touch of an egg timer to let you know when it’s ready to drink.
For me, the leek, cheese and bacon tart (£6.95). Light, fluffy pastry, and the potentially-otherwise-overpowering saltiness of the cheese and bacon balanced out by a delicious homemade tomato confit. Definitely hit the spot.
For my friend, the all day breakfast frittata (£6.95), a satisfying, perfectly cooked wedge served with a side salad and ketchup. Happy tummies all round.
After our meal, we asked if we could be shown the downstairs sewing room. Owner Maria has carried the colour theme from upstairs through to the downstairs room: beautiful coloured glass bottles adorn the back wall, and tables are set up with sewing machines that are available to hire for just £5 per hour – including a hot drink. With six machines available, there’s plenty of space, and they’ll even take group bookings for a social occasion with a difference.
Cordial & Grace will have fabric available to buy, or you can bring your own and work away. They’ll also be running sewing workshops for those wanting to learn how to use the machines, and plan to invite others in to run workshops in other crafts.
It’s a beautiful venue – and a far cry from Indian restaurant Posh Spice, the previous inhabitants of the building. The atmosphere, service, food and choice of drinks are spot on, and the sewing element adds a quirky yet inspired touch that makes Cordial & Grace stand out from the multitude of cafes that now inhabit Clifton Village. Recommended.
Find Cordial & Grace on the Bristol Bites Directory…
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