The Orchard Cafe, Worcester countryside Centre, Worcester

9:29am Friday 8th February 2008

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IT was shortly after 10am on a bright Sunday afternoon when we headed off to the Orchard Cafe at Worcester Countryside Centre for breakfast.

Armed with the Sunday papers, we'd heard that the food was good so we were looking forward to a hearty breakfast.

When we arrived, a good number of people were already there - many families were making full use of the unusually mild January weather and had chosen to sit outside, packed around wooden picnic tables.

It was mild, but not mild enough for me to enjoy al fresco dining, so we chose a table inside and looked at the menu.

The breakfast menu offers a very good choice of food - from muesli and yoghurt and bacon butties to full breakfasts and beans on toast.

Whenever possible all the food at the Orchard Cafe is ethical and eco-friendly. This means there is a wide choice of locally-produced and organic foods. Most dishes come in cheaper children's size portions.

To order you must queue at the counter. The lady serving was polite and efficient, but not particularly friendly.

For breakfast I chose the sausage and onion sarnie (£2.75), a breakfast banofee smoothie (£2.15), and a FairTrade caffe latte (£1.70).

My guest chose the big breakfast at £4.95 and a pot of FairTrade tea (£1.35).

It was a good job we'd brought our papers, because the cafe was busy and it took a full 30 minutes for our food to arrive, by which time we had both developed quite an appetite.

But I'm pleased to say my sandwich was worth the wait. The menu promised a locally-produced sausage and caramelised red onion sandwich on freshly-baked white or harvester bread - which was indeed fresh - and the three juicy sausages hot and tasty, but what lifted this sandwich above others was the layer of onion which melted in the mouth.

The banofee smoothie came in a much larger glass than I'd imagined and proved very filling. A combination of bananas, yoghurt, maple syrup, oatmeal and milk, it was a delicious thick mixture.

My guest's big breakfast consisted of two free-range fried eggs (he could have chosen scrambled), a rasher of locally-produced thick cut bacon, a locally-sourced sausage, a very large roasted tomato and an equally as large field mushroom all served with toast. The plate of food was well-presented and hot and he said it was delicious. The ingredients were obviously fresh, the sausage was particularly tasty and the eggs yolks a rich orangey yellow.

The Orchard Cafe on a Sunday morning is obviously very popular with families and not the place for a relaxing breakfast if you're not so keen on being surrounded by children, but otherwise it offers a good choice of honest local food at a surprisingly reasonable price.

Breakfast is served daily from 9am to noon.

The Orchard Cafe is not open in the evenings, but serves a wide variety of lunches including sandwiches, salads and many home-made dishes as well as delicious looking home-made cakes.

THE ORCHARD CAFE, WORCESTER COUNTRYSIDE CENTRE, WILDWOOD DRIVE, WORCESTER Tel: 01905 766492SERVICE: ** FOOD: **** VALUE: **** AMBIENCE: ***