Chilled, charming and delightfully domestic in scale, this café-gallery is made up of a series of small rooms papered with old maps and pages from cookbooks, and filled with junk shop furniture and finds (some of it for sale) – well-worn chairs tucked under the staircase, a cast-iron fireplace with a clock on the mantelpiece, an old door nailed on to some legs as a table. At the back, down a rickety staircase, is a makeshift conservatory and a small, secluded garden.
The Montage doubles as an art gallery, so the walls are also crammed with work by local artists and the first floor, by contrast, is a cool white exhibition space. In this curious environment, an arty crowd sup mochas and mull over how to fill their weekend, while the friendly owners serve freshly baked cakes (victoria sponge with real strawberries, scones, brownies, and a cheese and onion cake) and talk art. You’re likely to leave relaxed, recharged and humming the soundtrack of ragtime tunes.