EDitorial ± 10-Jun-2009

Ipswich Lunches: Enjoy!

Congrats to our Grenvyle for defying medical opinion and reaching three-score years earlier this week. He celebrated by catching a Luxton & District omnibus, flashing his grundy pass and doing his best Jack Harper impression all the way to Tower Ramparts. Meantime us whippersnappers were high-tailing it down to The Swich in the Cassymobile and bagging a lucky space on Fonnereau Road. One hour will do us nicely.

My 1947 Kelly's Directory of Ipswich states that 42 Lloyds Avenue was home to "Andy's Cafe": come on Mr C, get that post-Canadian idea off the ground! Some 60+ years later finds us at number 38 in premises which wouldn't look out of place in Westward Ho! Shielding our eyes from that exclamation mark, we have reached Enjoy! Confession: I've been coming here for bloomin' years, often as not with the family. It's great. Isn't much to say beyond my original review from March 2001:

"... it seems to be modelled on Pret-A-Manger, which is no bad thing. Good variety of coffee and a good selection of freshly made sandwiches, plus hot paninis. Friendly service, and child-friendly too."

All of those comments hold water two World Cups later. There's a range of grab-and-go sarnies in the chiller, all made on the premises. Raising the temperature, after a brief flirtation with crepes, they've now moved on to omelettes. Still good and hot are the paninis, my choice today. I like the fact that when you order one with bacon & egg, they offer to add red or brown sauce. Plus you know that, unlike certain other establishments, it will turn up in good time, an advantage if you've got a fixed slot for lunch.

Other pros: for grown-ups -- today's newspapers, window seats to sit and watch the world go past, boxed salads, good coffee and cake; for kids -- Walkers crisps, lots of flavoured syrups for cream-topped milkshakes, downstairs loo. I don't get the Parisian scenes on the wall, straight outta Montmartre. I do get everything else. And I've realised that it's exactly the right size for what it does. So next time you're in town, go.

If it was a car -- BMW 318d.
If they were passing by -- David Lodge.