Cafe Express — Restaurant in Ashford

This is one of Ashford’s special little gems. You would not really notice it and when you do, you might overlook it.

Firstly, don’t be fooled by the smallish street facing front, it is really spacious and goes back for miles and widens out. So, in case you glance and think it’s full, they most likely have space for you.

Secondly, the staff are second to none. They don’t have a slow or bad one amongst them. Of particular note is the young lady who seems to run the show (sorry I don’t know names) who literally knows everyone and their name. There is a real community feel to the place with obviously regulars who are often somewhat older locals. That said, it does not feel like you’re an unwelcome or ignored stranger at a private party and tolerated, it’s all round welcoming and warm. Table service is friendly, polite, fast and efficient.

Food options are wide. The omelettes are good, the lasagne is substantial and of course the fried breakfasts are a speciality. They don’t use cheap sausages or beans and everything comes (quickly) cooked to perfection without half a pint of oil on the plate. Greasy spoon yes, greasy no… They also excel with their coffee from a proper coffee machine, no nasty instant here. They make coffee that equals the Costa’s of the world and you get one free with the big breakfasts. So if you think a Costa is £3.90 and you get one free with a big £12.99 breakfast, it’s all actually very good value for how much many eateries cost today….

They do a lot of vegetarian options even with the breakfasts and have non cow milk options for those who avoid cow milk. I’m not saying it’s vegan heaven, but I’ve heard them be very accommodating to non-animal product requests rather than the blank stares you might get elsewhere.

All in all, this is a bona fide café which makes you feel welcome, serves food in good portions with speed and warmth and had a local community feeling to it that is welcoming and not exclusive. If you wanted to experience the ‘greasy spoon’ experience as a newbie, this would be the first place I’d recommend locally no doubt!

Give it a go, you won’t regret it and, most likely, you’ll keep...

One of my favourite places to eat in Ashford. Don’t be fooled by initial appearances. The decor isn’t fancy or over the top, but the place is clean and tidy. Rather than fancy mirrors, fake palm trees and steam punk lamps this place delivers great food, great service and a lovely atmosphere. It reminds me of the honest decent “greasy spoon” cafes of the 1980s - but the food here certainly isn’t greasy! Much prefer places like this where the money is invested in the service and food rather than somewhere else that charges £9.99 for a poached egg on sourdough toast for the privilege of sitting on a futon and eating it off a plank of varnished wood.

I never leave here hungry. Can’t fault the food and the prices are competitive and value for the food you get. Everything is hot and cooked fresh. When it’s quiet I’ve had my meal served in well under ten minutes. The first time I didn’t believe it could be cooked fresh - but it was; every mouthful was tasty and hot, even half way through I was still burning my tongue!

The staff here are all friendly and helpful. I’ve seen cafes with more staff than this run less efficiently, but here even when busy just one or two lovely ladies are rushing around delivering and taking orders so fast they just don’t seem to stop. And despite this I’ve never had a wrong order or been forgotten.

The only downside is I don’t live close enough to visit daily. But then if I did I’d probably be 5 stone...

I called in here with my friend for a late breakfast. Admittedly I've not been here for a while but I was surprised to see that the cafe no longer has its lovely 1950s feel about it. It has half of the old, red booths and half have been replaced by modern, grey tables & chairs. The lovely old looking coffee machines and cabinets etc have been removed and replaced with modern, grey counters etc. Someone also thought it would be a great idea to remove some of the tables and build a toilet, in the dining room!! Needless to say that the atmosphere of this cafe has completely disappeared. You used to be able to call in for a coffee or a reasonably priced meal and the room would be full of people chattering & laughing. Not any more. There was hardly a soul in there and it was almost lunchtime. The food was bland & cold. They obviously use cheap, frozen ingredients. My panini was only half filled with cheap nasty ham and tasteless cheese. My friend had a full English which she said, was also tasteless. A lady opposite us had a plate of 'chicken casserole ' with veg. It was so dry and the veg hardly had any colour and that cost £9.99! It reminded me of really bad school dinners. It's sad to see. The only good thing was the girls that served us. They were friendly. I used to love this place but not anymore. I won't be going back. Whoever took this cafe over has made a really...