Pericles Café — Restaurant in Mid Sussex

Just returned from our 2nd visit in 3 days! We first had breakfast here on our way to the Bluebell Railway. The freshly cooked food was lovely & the service really good.

Today we’ve just returned from a ‘Mad Hatter’s Tea Party’ themed afternoon tea party which was excellent. It was very evident that the lovely manager Rachel had put so much time, energy & hard work into making it such a success.

In addition to the delicious food that we were served with (variety of sandwiches that were so fresh, some lovely gf quiche, a selection of wonderful homemade cakes & scones, accompanied by as much tea to drink as we wanted plus a delicious fizzy raspberry drink), the whole place had been beautifully decorated with such attention to detail on each table & around the cafe, relating to the theme of the afternoon, in addition to the wearing of themed clothes.

This cafe was a recent find for us & we’re so glad to have discovered it - it’s extra special too because it’s owned by Pericles which as their website says “ is a pioneering training-and- work project for young people & adults with special learning needs and/or mental health problems”, so as customers, it’s great to know it’s also helping to support this work in the local community, so a huge thank you & well done to everyone involved (bakers, ‘waitresses’ etc) especially Rachel, we’ll...

I love this place! I go there when I'm 'working from home', so take my lap top and set myself up for a couple of hours. Free Wifi and a relaxed, chilled vibe that is very conducive to a productive work session. It's become my weekly go-to place to work. Sweet little outside area at the back - fresh air and surrounded by pretty hanging baskets, but a covered roof so can still see my laptop screen. Coffee is delicious - apparently the owner is a coffee snob and it's clear he takes making an excellent cup of coffee very seriously! Gorgeous cakes and pastries, lovely fresh, interesting salads - and sandwiches and sausage rolls that are next-level delicious - it's always a tough call between Ross' sausage rolls and the homemade vegan sausage rolls. Staff are all really friendly and helpful and I love that the special needs adults that Pericles supports are involved in the cooking and making all the bits and pieces that adorn the cafe. Such a gem of a place. ...

I’m a nightmare customer when it comes to coffee – never quite satisfied and unapologetically fussy. To give you an idea, I traveled from Australia with my own coffee-making equipment and single origin beans from roasters I trust. I mention this so you’ll appreciate just how pleasantly surprised – and genuinely impressed – I was by the long black I had today, made with beans from Tigermoth Coffee Roasters and served here at Pericles Cafe in Sharpthorne (formerly the Sharp-Thorne Organic Cafe.). Truly excellent.

The added bonus? Learning that the café is not only ‘part of’ but also helps fund dedicated support for adults with complex needs – helping them to live more independently and build confidence, through a wide range of hands-on day services across East and West Sussex, Kent, Surrey and Brighton.

If you’ve not tried it, I’d...