Vegantastic (Salthouse Stores, Salthouse)

Salthouse Stores,

Salthouse,

Mon-Sat 08:30-4:00, Sun 8:30-1.00

Highly Recommended

I'm not sure if I mentioned it in previous posts but I got a knee injury last Autumn which needed an operation and I was on crutches for 7 weeks (oh apparently I have mentioned it).

But this week I was back on the bike for the first cafe review since last October! And as it turned out it was a cracker.

After all the warm weather of a few weeks ago then, as soon as I was ready to join in again it got distinctly colder and windier, but I wasn't to be put off and met up with Andrew (who is still notoriously hard to please) at Hard to Please House in Aylsham. Andrew was in charge of the route and I had chosen Salthouse Stores as our destination.

It was a tough 20 odd mile ride up to the North Norfolk coast into the wind. Fortunately I had been able to keep up some semblance of fitness by using my indoor bike and plenty of crutch based walking. As usual we attempted to solve the worlds problems as we cycled along but they seem to have got a deal trickier since our last ride.

Despite the strong headwind it was so nice being on a cafe cycle review ride that for once I didn't whinge about how windy Norfolk was, so before I knew it we had pulled up outside the Salthouse stores.

Outside the lovely Salthouse Stores

Andrew had been rather hard to please in persuading him that this was a good destination as he thought it was mainly a shop and had very low expectations of the quality of the refreshments.

However once inside we found a very good selection of cakes and a good range of coffee. They even had his favourite, a cortado. I was also super pleased to be offered a milk or dark hot chocolate and went for dark, obvs.

As I'm in touch with environmental issues I know Veganism is a good thing so I have decided to highlight if the cafe has any vegan offerings or not and from now on will indicate if a cafe is Vegantastic.

Well as a first one then the Salthouse stores is defiantly vegantastic, with knobs on, as all its cakes range was vegan. 

All the cakes were Vegan and there was a Vegan sausage roll too

I went for a black cherry slice and Andrew banana and cherry loaf.

We decide to sit inside in the smallest indoor seating area I've so far come across. It had a couple of stools at a window style breakfast bar and not even room for any cat swinging (I'm note sure if cat swinging is a thing anymore or even if I'm allowed to mention it). It was a great space with views over the marshes only spoilt with a big red van in the way.

The smallest indoor seating area to date

Our refreshments soon arrived and both the cakes and drinks were excellent . Andrew even said his banana and cherry loaf was the best (if only) one he had ever had.

Excellent Cakes and drinks

Andrew had to admit he was wrong about the Salthouse Stores as it was a real find and he is already planning a return trip so I highly recommend a visit.

Andrews route now headed up the big hill from Salthouse which he recons has the steepest section of road in all of Norfolk (based on his own unscientific research). Possibly not the start to the return ride required straight after cake and hot chocolate.

Top of big hill up from Salthouse

As always in Norfolk the tail wind we were expecting on the way home never materialised but I didn't care as it had been a very successful trip and cafe cycle reviewing was back underway 

I have a very long list of cafes needing checkout but as Desmond Tutu replied, when asked how do you eat a giant cream Victoria sponge, one bite at a time (or was that elephants?)

Scores

Hot Choc Quality	Guest Hot Drink Quality	Effective Cake Selection	Cake Quality	Ambiance and Atmosphere	Café Rating
7.4	8	7.4	8	8.2	7.80

Route 


Click here to download 40 mile Alysham Cley loop GPX file to your GPS