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[personal profile] absolutedestiny
I hope you all enjoyed the tantalising look at Fish and Chips yesterday. Today's installment of "teaching the merkins" (jk) will focus on the dining experience loved by construction workers, truckers and hungover students alike - an English cooked breakfast at a "greasy spoon".

To record this delight, I went to one of the best examples of a "greasy spoon" in Oxford - Micks Cafe.

Yes, it's a hut. Located beyond the bridge near the railway station, this is a regular stop-off place for many a nightshift worker. As you can't see from the picture, it opens at 6 in the morning on weekdays. They dont bother removing the closed sign - when it's open they just open the door :)

It doesn't have the widest menu in the world - it's basically any combination of bacon, egg, sausage, beans, tomato, mushrooms, chips, toast and fried bread you can think of. It unfortunately doesn't have the awe inspiring substance known as black pudding. (not that I eat it much, it can be a little rich at times).

However, it makes up for the lack of congealed pig's blood by having bags upon bags of character.

Just check out the decor

...and the rest [The farthest two speech bubbles say "Once I've served these I'll have a fag." and "I'm Johnny, working here brings music to my ears."]

It's tacky as anything, but it's an honest and friendly working class greasy spoon. You get all sorts in here, from unemployed alcoholics to aging professors - it's mainly frequented by the locals, rarely by tourists.


So, what was the breakfast like? Well, for a fiver ($8 usd) I got the basic All-Day Breakfast which includes Bacon, sausage, fried egg, mushrooms, beans, fried bread, two slices of bread and butter and a large mug of tea. Extras cost not much and you can have tomato instead of beans. Yes, that is brown sauce on my bacon.

I've seen cheaper, but not this close to the centre of town and it's a very fine breakfast indeed. The sausages are excellent and everything is cooked the way you ask for it. It isn't really all that greasy either, even the fried bread. (Not that it's exactly what I'd call healthy eating, of course). It's just right. It may not have a huge choice but what it does it does very well.


EDIT: I forgot to mention - the baked beans are not the sweet kind you get in the states. They are just in a tomatoey sauce.

Date: 2003-08-16 10:09 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] doki.livejournal.com
> any combination of bacon, egg, sausage, beans, tomato,
> mushrooms, chips, toast and fried bread you can think of.

And spam?

Sorry.

Date: 2003-08-16 10:24 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] absolutedestiny.livejournal.com
:D

Some greasy spoons will serve spam, but usually in the form of spam fritters... which are a fine invention imo :)

St Gile's Cafe is a similar greasy spoon that does spam in that classic python-esque way. We used to lovingly call the place Café Saint-giles (in a french accent) - it's the least classy place you can imagine :)

Date: 2003-08-16 11:23 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] trythil.livejournal.com
Just curious, but did people start looking at you funny when you started taking pictures of the interior and your food? :P

Date: 2003-08-16 11:32 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] absolutedestiny.livejournal.com
They just figured I was a tourist, there's enough of them in this town that we just ignore people who are taking at pictures of things nobody would usually take pictures of :)

O.O

Date: 2003-08-16 03:13 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] synthestatic.livejournal.com
:::drool:::

that looks freaking wonderfully delicious.... now if only someone would open an english restauraunt here in town, and not just a pub...

Date: 2003-08-16 03:41 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ersatzinsomnia.livejournal.com
Whaaaaaaa! Pictures won't load for me and I'm freaking STARVING. Beh.

Date: 2003-08-17 05:46 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] rozard.livejournal.com
"Pack of fags."
"You're a fag."
"A fag is a cigarette, mate."
"I ain't your mate, fag!"

What would you compare the black pudding to?

Date: 2003-08-17 11:57 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] dwchang.livejournal.com
"What do you mean bleh? I don't like SPAM"

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