The best of Canterbury

And here we are, back on home turf. Canterbury is my university city, and where I will be moving back to in a few short weeks to pursue my MA. Now, when I say the best of Canterbury, I am mostly referring to the food and beverages the city has to offer; there are of course very many places to visit where one can appreciate its history, architecture, etc., but by now we are all very much aware of my priorities in life.

A Canterbury street - slightly outdated, Ripples is now Canterbury Wholefoods.

Cafés

Canterbury is a city with more independent cafés than you can shake a cinnamon stick at. Some hidden away, some in plain sight, some vegan-friendly and some with enough gooey cheese to send someone to a dairy-based paradise. Out of these, Kitch is perhaps the most well-known. Located on the high street and kitted out with little metal tables and chairs spilling onto the path, it is hard to miss. To drink, there is a range of hot beverages (including painfully trendy lattes made with turmeric or matcha and a choice of vegan - or even normal - milks), juices, iced teas and freshly made smoothies. Food can take the form of homemade cakes presented prettily on the bar, energy balls, breakfast or lunch dishes. My personal favourite has to be the full veggie breakfast, which includes avocado, homemade baked beans, eggs and more for a properly substantial meal - it also introduced me to the beauty of sweet potato falafel, and for that I will always appreciate this café, whose aesthetic does rather live up to its name.

Refectory Kitchen, another independent café in the heart of Canterbury, is conveniently close to the Canterbury West train station. The theme is very similar to that of Kitch: a variety of yummy staple breakfast and brunch options, locally-sourced ingredients, etc. The flat white is good and a generous portion of the lemon drizzle cake particularly is lovely as a pick-me-up on a slate-grey, rainy morning.

If you’re a hard-core cheese lover like myself, I would refer you to Willow’s Secret Kitchen. The name doesn’t mess around – this café isn’t as easy to find as Kitch or the Refectory Kitchen, but it is worth the effort. It serves good coffee and a range of smoothies (and cake, I believe), but the shining star of this place is the cheese toastie collection. In fact, all the sandwiches sound delicious, but the cheese toasties really steal my heart – crispy on the outside, hot and molten and gooey on the inside, the rich saltiness foiled by the gherkin served on the side. Be still my beating heart (in fact, after too many of these toasties, it probably will). Plonk yourself down facing the window and apply this carb-y, salty, fat-laden delight directly to face.

Pubs

Canterbury is chock full of pubs, and being close to the countryside, many of these pubs have gardens. During my time in Barcelona, I revelled in being able to sit in a square with a cold beer – this is a well-known fact by now. However, there were occasions when my heart missed a garden, a bench and a packet of salt-and-vinegar crisps to go with the beer instead. The Dolphin and the Monument both have especially nice, spacious gardens, the first of which also has a singularly sassy cat (although maybe it was just a cat which happened to be there a couple of the same times as me).

A couple of photos from the Monument - they don't show off the nice garden very well, but you can see smiles and drinks, which are equally as important.

The Dolphin also has the benefit of serving (admittedly slightly more expensive) 35 ml of spirits, so a double gin and tonic is 70 ml, almost akin to the triple gin and tonics I tend to serve at home. Although it would be falsely modest to pretend that a bar could serve a G+T as good as the ones I make – it is a recipe and ratio perfected in my kitchen after years of experimentation. But the Dolphin is always there, and I am not, so stick to the Dolphin. The Canterbury Tales also boast larger spirit measurements, and although it is right outside the Marlowe theatre and thus has no garden, it makes up for that with a very cosy atmosphere (complete with a fire in the winter).

The Butter Market can be found in the city centre, directly outside Canterbury Cathedral. The food can be a bit hit-and-miss, except for the pies – I was a big fan of the chicken and mushroom pie, topped with a puff pastry lid and accompanied by vegetables and creamy mash. Even if you aren’t much of a pie-lover, this bar is ideal in the summer for its outdoor seating, sprawling partway across the square; from here, you have the perfect viewpoint to watch the buskers, tourists and bohemian students pass by whilst sipping a cold Peroni (or whatever takes your fancy).

Food

Here we reach a slight overlap of genres: where the pub recommendations meet the food recommendations. I can’t avoid mentioning The Shakespeare; conveniently situated right next to the Shakespeare, with its own little courtyard through the bar, this is the place I always bring my Dad when he comes to visit. The logic behind this decision is that the food is always top-notch and the service is super friendly. I have worked my way through most of the menu by now, which means I have devoured the steak (medium-rare, for preference), a prawn and crayfish open sandwich (although I think that has now been discontinued), the classic burger, and a mezze platter, in addition to copious amounts of white wine over my visits. I have never been disappointed. It’s family-friendly, too, offering traditional meat and potato options (perfect if your parents’ eating habits are anything like my dad’s), as well as vegetarian dishes, fish and slightly experimental tweaks to pub food.

I am a big fan of Café des Amis du Méxique; don’t let its French-language name fool you, it is a Mexican restaurant and cocktail bar (hence the ‘du Méxique’). The cocktails are punchy and all-too-drinkable, especially the raspberry daiquiri and passion fruit margaritas. But moving from the drinks to the food, the duck breast is my stand-out meal here; smothered with a rich, dark mole sauce and served with mash (yes, I like mash), it is comfort food which still feels grown up and date-worthy. The Antojito Board is definitely worth a try, especially if you are dining with a friend. It allows you a little taste of a lot of things, including the ceviche (‘We know you love ceviche’ I hear you all groan) and guacamole and duck tacos. So if you don’t know quite what you fancy, satisfy all your cravings at once with the board.

Enjoying a piña colada outside Café des Amis.

If you like Japanese food but don’t feel like going to a chain like Wagamama (although there is also a Wagamama), the ramen at Tamago is definitely recommendable. The restaurant has several flavours, including a spicy version (which is the one I went for, of course). I also remember eating a portion of pumpkin fritters washed down by an Asahi, and it is a good memory indeed.

Yes, Canterbury does have its fair share of chain restaurants (Pizza Express, Carluccio’s, Zizzi, etc. ), but there are so many independent places serving satisfying, high-quality and ethical food scattered throughout the city; go off the beaten track and try a new one each time!

Photo gallery