Description: The Haberdashery is brand new to Crouch End as of 25th November, 2009. In what some would say is a brave move opening a new business in an area already full of good eateries, The Haberdashery is dressed to impress. Painted in gentle eggshell blue and lime white, the simplicity of design at this café ensures that all eyes are drawn towards the baked masterpieces on display in the window and beside the counter.
Bread, muffins and cakes are all baked in store and set out in pretty terracotta flowerpots and on delicate china plates. The menu is also thankfully simple. On a cold and wet November day, the specials board consisted of four hot soups: pumpkin and nutmeg, spicy tomato, sweet potato and parsley and Chinese leaf and haricot beans. I ordered the pumpkin soup, a deep Fortnum and Mason bowlful that comes with a pot of their bread of the day, which for me was olive. The bread was quite doughy with a hint of salt and a strong yeasty flavour. With the dots of olive and white complexion it had the appearance of a fruit scone. The soup followed shortly, tasting and looking more like a carrot based stock than pumpkin. They could have been a little more liberal with the nutmeg too but overall it was delicious and absolutely perfect for a wild winter’s day. Overhead warm orange lights added further cosiness to the café’s busy ambience.
For drinks we ordered a caffe latte and my husband tried the Pitfield Bitter. The owners have obviously made an effort to connect with local businesses and markets. Pitfield is an Essex based brewery and they regularly attend the nearby Alexandra Palace Sunday farmers market, which is where the owner came across them. In addition, their teas are sourced from Muswell Hill purveyor W. Martyn.
Other dishes on the lunch menu included Swedish meatballs and a pumpkin gnocchi. It is nice to see attention to detail not only in their décor but also in creating such a winsome, seasonal menu. The sandwich list included rare beef, ham and brie, chicken and a vegetarian option. My husband ordered the mustardy ham and brie in a baguette, which came with a side clump of bull’s blood leaves. The sandwich was fresh and tasty but for £5 should have been larger and the salad was very dry and sadly lacking any dressing.
I sipped on my bowl of coffee as we contemplated the cake line up in the shopfront. The coffee and thick hot chocolate are served in wide breakfast bowls, perfect for French-style pain au chocolate dunking if you stop in for breakfast. We zoned in on the handsome Victoria sponge, as did several other people as by the time we got our order in, only one slice remained. The homemade cake was very sugary and along with the rest of the café, reminiscent of times gone by when individual ingredients were less blended and could actually be identified.
By the cash register they have created a sweet shop counter, complete with American bonbons, lollipops, marshmallows and Christmas candy canes. If they ever put in a fireplace and a sofa I might go in and never leave.
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