Caffé Nero — Restaurant in Wakefield

The core staff held over from Caffe Nero are what makes the store such a lovely place to have a coffee in, but the new staff are settling in nicely and as well as remembering my name and order, are very efficient.

It could be a bit cleaner, but it isn't bad at all and it's a great place to watch the world go by.

The coffee beans aren't as good as Caffe Nero's, and neither are the French breads and croissants, but they're very close to the real French deal. The company does contribute a portion of their profits each year to worthy causes (a not inconsiderable sum) and as of June 2022, you can now save stamps for a free coffee.

The huge TV advertising screen outside is the only fly in the ointment. It gives both me and my wife splitting headaches. It's hard to relax when your chair is facing it because the screen is so massive and bright the light hurts your eyes. Not Noor's fault, but something to be aware of when looking for a seat. The front facing window seats and those near the door catch the sunlight in the Summer, and can become hot and the light painfully glaring. The varnish on the bench for the seats near the door has also recently gone off and become tacky. Putting my cardigan down on top to save my arms from sticking to it invariably leaves fluffy patches when I leave.

Choosing a table seat facing away from the screen helps, but the old chairs have been replaced by those a little too small to sit comfortably on for long, but perhaps that's to encourage customers not to overstay their welcome.

The Costa in the same shopping center is bigger, but more plastic, with much less character, and plays it's music so loud it's like being in a nightclub. Noor's staff are much more attentive and helpful than any other cafe I've been in anywhere in the country, including multiple outlets of the big company branches and independents, and it's a much quieter, more relaxing place to go for what should be a quiet cup of coffee when you're in Wakefield. Costa's desire to be an all day discothèque does it no favours in comparison.

At peak times the place can fill up very quickly but there is outdoor seating if you don't mind smokers. The toilet facilities are big and very clean, with room for baby changing. I only wish they'd stay open later,...

TERRIBLE SERVICE! In line with most of the recent reviews I've read, the service is shocking and the coffee isn't much better. I walked into the store and stood in front of the till, knowing I wanted a takeaway flat white. Two girls (one leaning on the till, one leaning against the bar) were stood chatting to each other with their back to me. I stood for about a minute, before a third girl walked around the bar and asked what I wanted. Whilst she made my coffee, the girl leaning on the till tapped my order on the till and held the card reader out to me, without breaking conversation with her friend, or even turning to look in my general direction. I reluctantly tapped my card and paid £3.15 for a very underwhelming coffee (more of a cappuccino with burnt over-foamed milk). Whilst it was being made, the other girl took a pause from her conversation, to put some clean mugs on the shelf, but picked them up by putting her fingers in the mug rather than using the handle. I used to get takeaway coffees from here a lot, but I won't be going back. The prices on the website also don't match what they are in store. My review is in line with the most recent reviews of this coffee shop, I would avoid until the staff receive some general...

There were 2 young ladies on when I arrived at the shop at around 11.30am.

They informed me they were only serving in grow away cups, I enquired why that was and they said they were short staffed and no one to wash up.

The shop was not busy and for the 15 mins I was there no other customers come in and the 2 girls stood chatting I informed them it was not unuals for Costa and Starbucks to have just 2 staff and they are generally much busier. That is didn't go down well.

The previous time I visited there was 3 staff stood in the kitchen chatting, I waited acouple of mins at the counter and left.

Can't see this place lasting long when there is Starbucks and Costa in walking distance.

It offers nothing special and is overpriced. The prices in the shop are significantly more than advertised on their website.

Hopefully we don't end up with one of these...