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It’s always been a STAMP tradition, once a week we unite for a breakfast meeting and one of us treats everyone.
This week Laura did the honours and hosted an early brunch at the Hockley Café. Set just off Goose Gate in Hockley, The Hockley Cafe sports a prime position for people watching and noise. The combination of builders nattering away outside the entrance, guys in suits rushing from one end of the street to the other and tramps leaving their night spot of the benches in an attempt to get a cup of tea all adds to the excitement of breakfast at the Hockley Café.
We pile in to what seems like a rather compact cafe, a friendly smile welcoming us, and are presented with a wooden spoon to differentiate ourselves from the other breakfasters. There is an array of bacon butties, beans on toast, beans on toast with cheese, and flapjacks on offer. One Hot Chocolate and three teas is the order of the day. On that note Laura waves the spoon indicating we manoeuvre somehow towards a table. It’s then that I realise the stairs leading to a room full of window seats and tables for two and four, where tabloid newspapers take a stand on each table and half-full ashtrays mimic a centre piece. This minor detail encourages wide grins from the STAMP girls as a meeting without a cigarette is often a bleak experience. As the food arrives the noise levels have already peaked, the atmosphere is great, the food hot, the portions generous, and the staff friendly. We clear our plates and continue the meeting, a successful morning’s work. Thanks Hockley Café.