Winner
Chosen by our judges:
The Deli at 58, Loughborough, Leicestershire
Shortlist
The top public vote-winners:
The Deli at 58, Loughborough, Leicestershire
Lil Bo’s, Ashby de la Zouch, Leicestershire
Lamberts of Stamford, Lincolnshire
Bob’s, Corby, Northamptonshire
The winner is The Deli at 58 in Loughborough – a café with an extremely talented kitchen and a passion for top-quality local producers.
The moment you arrive outside The Deli at 58, you get the feeling you are in for a treat. The window display shows an inviting tower of loaves, pasties, scones, tarts and more – much of it from the region’s top suppliers such Hambleton Bakery and Welbeck Bakehouse.
Breakfast and brunch are the big draw here – from high quality viennoiserie to creative takes on classic brunch dishes. These might include eggs benedict, Turkish eggs or vegan options such as smashed chickpeas, sumac, tomato salsa, spinach and vegan feta on sourdough.
It’s a compact space – though there is a pleasant outdoor area – which gives you a chance to have a good look at what other people are having. We saw lovely-looking sandwiches made with sourdough and immediately picked a croque monsieur. This was excellent – excellent bread packed with melting gruyere, Dijon mustard, bechamel and given an Italian twist with piles of prosciutto.
Bubble and squeak was even better, a humble dish done with real flair, the cabbage and potato mixture complemented with crisp, pan-fried chorizo, top-notch poached eggs that oozed beautifully and a hollandaise plus a dill emulsion. We also took home some delectable cakes: a tangy lemon and raspberry tart and a hefty slice of raspberry Bakewell.
The menu details many suppliers, with those eggs coming from just down the road in Sileby and also available to purchase on site.
With charming young staff, a kitchen that knows what it is doing and through-going commitment to quality, Deli at 58 is a real boost for Loughborough.
The other finalists
Lil Bo’s, Ashby de la Zouch, Leicestershire
It’s many people’s dream to open a cafe and deli selling fine local foods and providing people with a lovely space to meet up for good times. Deborah and Steve Evans are living the dream and the people Ashby de la Zouch appear most grateful.
Sited in a mews alley off the Market Street, Lil Bo’s (which opened its doors in late 2023) has character and charm by the bucketload. On entry you first see the deli area, well-stocked shelves and display cabinets packed with local cheeses, cricket ball-sized scotch eggs, bulging pasties and tempting cakes. Moving through the cafe there are a range of spaces including comfy sofas for lounging and an upstairs full of beams and cottage charm. There’s an even a fine-wine store tucked away at one end.
The café boasts a wide menu of breakfasts, brunches and lunches, many dishes taking their inspiration from the fine products in the deli – ploughman’s, charcuterie platters, a meze colllection and so on. On our visit we had a colourful and tasty salad combining melting Ticklemore goats’ cheese – a gold award winner at Melton’s Artisan Cheese Awards – with beetroot, apple, candied walnuts, leaves and a tangy dressing. It was well-balanced in terms of sweet and bitter, soft and crunchy, and it looked pretty. A lemon and lime drizzle cake was delightfully soft and citrussy.
Lil Bo’s is a great place to pick up lunch or to linger with friends.
Lamberts of Stamford, Lincolnshire
Inspired by the legendary 18th century plus-size gaol keeper Daniel Lambert, Lamberts seeks to inspire with high-quality brunches, lunches, afternoon teas and the occasional gourmet evening event. Tucked way down a narrow alley just off Stamford’s handsome High Street, it’s a characterful space, with beams, subtle lighting and some quirky furniture.
On our visit, a friendly and attentive service ethos was immediately revealed. All the staff were smiling, busy and extremely helpful. They responded with a minimum of fuss and a great deal of flexibility and understanding to the gluten-free requirement of one of us.
Arriving mid-morning, we tucked into the pre-12pm brunch menu. Our choices included a well-made croque monsieur with good quality ham, bechamel and grilled emmental and parmesan cheeses. Also the vegetarian breakfast – a generous selection of spinach, poached egg, sweet potato roasted with thyme, avocado, field mushroom, grilled tomato and, subbing for hash browns in our case, some crisp sauted potatoes. It was all tasty food, with good quality ingredients cooked with care.
If it’s lunch you are after, you’ll find a selection mussels, burgers, sandwiches and grazing boards, or as we did, come back after a good stroll around lovely Stamford and pick from a decent selection of cakes and scones – including gluten-free.
Owners Steve and Sally opened Lamberts in 2016 after 30 years in hospitality, and their experience shows in this classy operation. And the fact their café has been a finalist in these awards multiple times reflects their café’s quality and consistency.
Bob’s, Corby, Northamptonshire
A great café fits into its location, understands its customer base, meets their expectations but is also prepared to intrigue them and offer them something they maybe didn’t know they wanted. Bob’s is a great café.
You wouldn’t really call it picturesque. Set in a small shopping precinct on a modern housing estate on the edge of Corby, you could be forgiven for not setting your expectations too high. But inside it surprises somewhat with its lightly-worn industrial chic, local craft works on display and signage pointing out its network of local suppliers. Most importantly, its menu is hearty, appealing and contemporary without ever approaching poncey.
There’s a big breakfast menu offering almost infinite build-your-own takes on the full English, plus alternatives such as guacamole with poached eggs, French toast or American pancakes. We went after the switch to the lunchtime menu featuring cold and hot deli sandwiches and toasties. We tried the Socrates – a Mediterranean-influenced combination of marinated chicken with olives, crisp salad, house-made chilli sauce and garlic mayo. It came with a beautifully rich and creamy homemade coleslaw. Then there was the Silly Chilli Cheesesteak wrap, a kind of Philly/Mex crossover with Bob’s own deeply tasty pulled brisket rolled up with melted nacho cheese, jalapenos and crispy onions.
It seemed significant that during our visit, Bob’s was serving young families, hefty builders and ladies having salads. The business was launched during the tail-end of the lockdown and earned its reputation doing deliveries. Good to see that this friendly, down-to-Earth but quality-driven business seems to be thriving.
