Author: Sylvia

Vincent’s : Ramsgate

Latest visit (October 2025) :-

An Instagram post for a black pudding & omelette roll called ‘Vincent’s black & gold roll’ drew my attention back to Vincent’s, it’s somewhere I usually just pop in for mint tea & cake if I’m passing by on a sunny afternoon. However now they’re doing breakfasts from 8:30am Wednesday to Saturday and from 9:00am on Sundays.

The black & gold roll was really good, cheesy egg omelette and a large slice of black pudding, served on a surprisingly large roll (I’m keen to return to see if they’re as generous with their bacon rolls). Their Coffee was excellent too, so Vincent’s is now firmly on my list as a regular breakfast venue. The café is located in a really attractive, charming decorated hut overlooking the local Tennis Courts in Spencer Square. They have several tables inside and plenty of outside seating available when the weather permits.

First visit  (May 2023) :-

Vincent’s is a gem of a cafe in Ramsgate, one you would struggle to find without local knowledge. It’s located in Spencer Square in the little hut overlooking the Tennis Courts, I didn’t even realize that it had inside seating, but it does and it’s surprisingly spacious. It’s a friendly place serving good Coffee and homemade Cakes. The outside seating is on both sides of the hut, so you can also sit overlooking the rather stunning Vincent van Gogh sculpture.

Spencer Square leads into Addington Street where you will find some interesting independent shops, see the Addington Street section of the Ramsgate Shopping Guide for details.

Vincent’s is also located at the start point for the Vincent van Gogh self guided walking trail.

 

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Giant Coffee : Ramsgate

Wow, yet another new Coffee Shop/Café has opened in Ramsgate. This new coffee shop Giant Coffee is located on the ground floor of the old wine warehouse in Charlotte Court not far from Staple. This almost hidden area is also home to the Ramsgate Arts Club in the old wine warehouse basement and to the very attractive Saltworks shop next door.

There is plenty of space for outside seating in Charlotte Court too,  it will be a lovely spot in the summer.

The Giant Café itself is quite small and cosy with friendly staff, excellent coffee and delicious plant based cakes (amazing what a good baker can do without dairy). We had a piece of ‘Chocolatey’ banana cake with a hint of coconut and a very refreshing and tasty pineapple cake. We’re looking forward to returning to try more of their cakes. They also have Coffee Shops in Margate and Broadstairs.

Update : We’ve been back a few times now, their coffee is that good. They have some excellent savoury pastries too.

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Quince : Westgate-on-sea

We have been making good use of the seasonal 69 Open Top bus to go to less familiar parts of Thanet. Westgate-on-Sea and Westbrook are an easy reach (Norman Road bus stop).  You can get there quickly by train too. Highlights are the beach cafes at St Mildred’s Bay and West Bay, the Sunken Garden, the Carlton Cinema, the Brocante in Ethelbert Street, Staple cafe (hidden away in a back street) and Quince. This local restaurant is well worth a visit, reservations are required so plan ahead. We had a lovely lunch there with excellent service. They have set and a la carte menus and a decent wine list.

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Njord – Scandi Style : Cliffsend Pegwell

Latest visit (September 2025) :-

Njord had to close for several months this Summer due to flooding, but thankfully it’s now open again, completely renovated and with a new chef and new menus. We popped in for breakfast, ordered a Full English and Chef’s Toast (almost a Full English on toast – it didn’t exactly match the menu description as it included Chefs rosti rather than pickled red onion, but I was fine with that). I also couldn’t resist some post breakfast Apple pie. It’s great to see this excellent cafe back on its feet.

The (seasonal) 69 Open-Top bus can be used to get here from Ramsgate, the Viking Ship bus stop is only a few minutes walk from Njord.  

First visit (May 2024) :-

I’ve wanted to try out Njord for a while now, I mean a Scandi style place overlooking Pegwell Bay is so intriguing. So we headed out on a lovely sunny day (it’s only a few minutes away from Ramsgate by car or bus) and about a 40 mins walk if you’re feeling energetic!

Njord is in a great location on the edge off the Pegwell Bay nature reserve, it’s rather lovely inside, with a mix of comfy lounge style seating & coffee tables, dining tables with bench seating and bar stools at the window overlooking the bay. There is also some outside seating and lots of bike racks for cyclists.

The breakfast/brunch menu is mainly muffin, sourdough & croissant based dishes. We rather fancied the less conventional breakfast of Cochon Pulled Pork with Sundried Tomato & Chorizo Tapanata and Poached Kentish Free Range Eggs on a toasted English Muffin with Hollandaise sauce & chilli flakes. However they’d ran out of pork and were doing a pulled Chicken recipe instead, so we ordered that and Americano Coffees. The Coffees were served quickly and were excellent, I even had some left when the breakfast muffins arrived, the pulled chicken muffins tasted as good as they looked too, nicely spiced from the Tapanata and very filling.

Njord is also a Bar with an excellent drinks menu, lots of different brands of rum and gin is always a good sign. They also serve a few cocktails to enhance your breakfast/brunch experience.

The cakes at the Bar looked really good as well, they’re from the Beardy Baker in Canterbury, so I’ll certainly be back to try those.

Attractions in the area include the aforementioned Pegwell Bay nature reserve and the Viking Ship Hugin, which is a great photo opportunity and I guess sort of in keeping with the Scandi style at Njord.

 

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Sargasso : Margate

Sargasso is located out on the Harbour Arm in Margate. It’s been on my wishlist for ages, so we booked a table on a hot summer evening. It’s stools rather than chairs and benches for outside dining, so not really somewhere to linger. We sat at the bar with a good view of the open kitchen and ordered a few dishes from the tapas menu. The food was good, especially the tomato salad and sourdough bread but pricey (3 dishes, bread & wine £160).

You also need to be aware that there is no toilet in the restaurant itself, only some porta loos next door.

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Staple : Ramsgate

So nice to see a business like Staple Stores commit to Ramsgate. Moving from thier tiny shop at the bottom of York Street (which they have  converted in to a soft serve ice-cream shop called Scoop), they’ve taken over and revamped the former Corby’s Tea Rooms at 18-20 York Street. Which means they are now a proper café with plenty of tables inside and outside in the courtyard.

On our visit we had some of thier excellent coffee and shared a pastry for breakfast, you pick the pastries yourself and pay at the till. We bought two different pastries, a coffee yum yum and a filled cruffin, planning to share them, but we were so full from just one pastry, we had a takeaway as well. Staple are very much geared up for takeaway, with lots of pre wrapped items.

The Ramsgate café is open every day from 8:00 am to 3:00 pm.

On subsequent ‘takeaway’ visits we’ve tried lots of different cookies (all good) and  a lovely mango custard & strawberry tart.

They also moved their bakery operations to nearby Manston Business Park in March this year and have another café and shop there.

Staple : Westgate-on-Sea

If you’re in the area, the original Staple in Westgate-on-Sea is worth a visit. You won’t find it in passing as it’s well hidden down an alleyway (St Mildred’s Walk) off St Mildred’s Road. Friendly efficient service and the usual selection of Staple treats.

 

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