On this small strip of Ritherdon Road, there’s already a proper bakery (Dee Light) and a brunch-cum-pizza place (The Dynamo). Foxcroft & Ginger’s offering falls somewhere in between.
A small space with only a few inside tables, but just as many on a suntrap of a front terrace, it has a counter piled high with cakes, plus a to-the-point brunch menu that sticks to the simple stuff.
The sweeter dishes were the best, even those that were technically savoury. Like the golden-edged sweet potato fritters, studded with black beans and lying under a couple of runny-middled poached eggs, plus two of those fat little baby chorizo sausages, halved and grilled. That’s about as adventurous as the cooked food gets. There was a not-bad version of an eggs royale served on pieces of crusty roll instead of English muffin, though the addition of smashed avocado did nothing to compensate for the stingy amount of hollandaise or the fattiness of the salmon. But the no-fuss banana bread was very good, and the home-made preserves were excellent.
If it’s not sunny, head inside: it’s cramped but cute, all whimsical music and exposed bricks (oh, and the loo is in a back ‘outhouse’). The service is pretty sweet, too.