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The Food Programme

Conversations in cafes: all hail the greasy spoon

The Food Programme

BBC

Arts, Food

4.4943 Ratings

🗓️ 30 April 2023

⏱️ 30 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Traditional cafes, greasy spoon cafes - have been a fixture of our highstreets for at least a century, providing sustenance for those looking for something cheap and cheerful.

But for a long time, they have been in decline for a number of reasons, tough competition from chains, our changing tastes and work patterns. From the early 2000s people have been calling curtains for the cafe, but, with inflation, the cost of energy and a crisis in hospitality staffing, things are looking as bad as ever.

In three meals in three different locations across the country Leyla Kazim celebrates the greasy spoon.

She start with breakfast with Guardian columnist, author and fry up expert Felicity Cloake in Bournville Cafe, Birmingham. In her book "Red Sauce Brown Sauce" Felicity explores why the fry up is so important to the British psyche by traveling the country.

For lunch, she chats to her dad who owned caffs when she was growing up in Kaz's Kitchen in Woowhich. They talk about how owning a cafe has changed over time.

She’s in Liverpool for dinner meeting Isaac Rangaswami who runs the caffs_not_cafes instagram page in Chinese caff San's Cafe. Isaac celebrates classic cafes and inexpensive restaurants, mostly in London.

There is also thoughts on the possible decline of tradespeople eating in cafes from Nick Knowles and some familiar voices tell us their all time favourite places to get a fry up:

Krishnan Guru-Murthy, Angela Hui, William Sitwell, Paula Mcintyre and Henry Jeffreys

Presenter: Leyla Kazim Producer: Sam Grist

Transcript

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0:00.0

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0:16.8

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0:19.5

we'll untangle the stories that matter to you.

0:23.0

Join me, Laura Kunsberg, Adam Fleming, Chris Mason and Patty O'Connell for our daily

0:28.4

podcast.

0:29.4

Newscast, listen on BBC Sounds. BBC Sounds. BBC Sounds, music radio podcasts.

0:38.0

Hello, you're listening to the food program.

0:40.0

I'm Loele Kacim and my first ever job was in a calf. I actually grew up in

0:47.2

calves because my dad owned a couple since I was a young teen and I would work

0:52.0

with him on weekends.

0:53.5

So, CAFs have been a big part of my life for as long as I can remember

0:58.5

and I think they're a big part of a lot of people's lives.

1:02.0

I recall fondly from my time spent in my dad's

1:06.7

calves realizing just how opinionated we all are about what should appear in a fry-up. Are you okay with beans? Should there be any potato?

1:18.0

So in this episode we are going to be celebrating these cultural gems but also touching on their struggles

1:27.1

in the question of class and of course the ultimate debate of will it be Red Source or Brown. I hope you enjoy it

1:37.9

chefs congregate at midnight. We sort of discuss the ins and outs of what's happened on the day.

1:44.1

Full English, no one beans.

1:47.8

I'm going to call English.

...

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