Review of Downham Café in Downham Market: Café offers a huge menu which proves to be excellent value for money

Next time you’re in Downham and fancy something nice to eat at a very decent price, get yourself down to Downham Café.

Situated in the heart of the town and overlooking the clock, it is a great place to pop in and get yourself an affordable, yet delicious meal.

While my friend Liv and I were in town, we decided to pop in for some lunch on Saturday and left feeling full and very impressed with what we had to eat.

In fact, I wasn’t expecting Downham Café to deliver such high-quality food and drink and was anticipating it to offer typical café grub, such as sandwiches and jacket potatoes.

Stepping inside from the bitterly cold weather, we were greeted by a very friendly member of staff who told us we were welcome to sit at any free table.

The menu at Downham Café is huge and has so many different cuisine options, including breakfasts, burgers, omelettes, salads, seafood, pasta and a lot more.

We were also impressed with the drinks menu, which offered a range of hot and cold beverages, including milkshakes and smoothies, as well as alcoholic options.

They also offer a wide range of discounted OAP dishes, which is brilliant for an older person who wants to pop in for a hot drink and a bite to eat.

I decided to go for the pineapple surprise smoothie (£4.20) which of course consisted of pineapple as well as mango and pear.

This was really refreshing and delicious and well-presented in a cocktail-style glass.

Liv, more sensibly with the freezing temperatures outside, went for a nice hot mocha (£2.70) which came with cream and chocolate shavings on top. She said this was absolutely delicious.

Moving onto food, we started off feeling quite overwhelmed with options, but we both eventually made a decision on what to have to eat.

Liv went for a beautifully presented chicken kebab (£9.20) which came with rice, salad and pitta bread.

Not only did this look impressive, but Liv reported that it tasted just as good as it looked. She said that the chicken was tasty and she particularly enjoyed the salad dressing which came on hers.

One of the several breakfast options caught my eye and I went for the vegetable breakfast (£6) which came with a vegetable sausage, two hash browns, baked beans, tomatoes and sautéd potatoes.

This deal also came with a tea or coffee too which I though was very generous. I decided to go for a tea.

I was amazed with how much food I got for £6. The potatoes were crispy and delicious and went down a treat. It was warming, comforting and really tasty.

Somehow, with the huge portions, we managed to find some room for dessert.

Again, there were lots of options for sweet treats, including pies, crumbles and chocolatey goodies.

I decided to have cherry pie (£2.80) which was served with cream, custard or ice cream.

Liv went for the baklava, which was also served with ice cream. She said this was sweet and tasty too.

Our total, for two mains, desserts and three drinks, came to £31.80, which we both agreed was extremely reasonable for all the food we had.

The staff there were so friendly too and very welcoming. We were in the cafe for a while chatting and although it was fairly busy, we didn’t feel rushed.

It looked like there were a few regulars who were chatting away to staff too, which was lovely to see.

Ratings out of five:

Food: So many options and our food was delicious and tasty. *****

Drink: Lots of choice and nice to see smoothies and milkshakes on offer. ****

Price: £6 for a breakfast and hot drink is such good value for money. *****

Staff: Super friendly and helpful staff. *****

Decor: Nice cafe feel, the exterior could do with a bit of work. ***