M & S Cafe

Recently refurbished but still really busy and hard to get a seat at, coffee loyalty scheme and a lot cleaner than sainsburys café. The staff are friendly and there’s a good atmosphere, staff seam happy and relaxed which is one of the main things I like when I’m shopping anywhere. They could be doing with more buggy space for parents but that’s all

Goldfish bowl. That’s what it’s like. It’s like sitting in an overcrowded, uncomfortable, overpriced goldfish bowl.
After queuing up for 10 minutes, even through I arrived early at 1pm on a Sunday I was eventually served. I purchased a slice of carrot cake and a large filter coffee which cost me £5.10. It was nice, as Marks & Spencer (M&S) food often is, but grossly overpriced. Most of the food on offer is boring, prepackaged M&S items such as sandwiches and toasties. However there’s a good range of croissants, scones, pastries and cakes on display.
The seating in this M&S ‘café’ is uncomfortably cluttered because the tables are far too close together. It feels overpacked and exposed as it’s located right in the centre of Forestside Shopping Centre and is completely open plan.
I can’t understand why this M&S café’s always so busy. You’ll find better quality, tastier and less extortionate food at Sainsbury’s Café which is also just inside Forestside…

If you think that Mark and Spencer’s food isn’t expensive enough as it is, roll on up to the M and S Café where they will gladly increase the prices of the stuff that they are trying to dispense to you!
Fortunately the stuff they are making is of a fairly good quality, as you would expect from any M&S products, but unfortunately you are not going to get anything that is homemade and generously portioned like you would get in a real café. And I use the term real intentionally, as I consider this nothing more than a glorified sitting area outside the store for them to force their wares onto you whilst they make you some coffees.
You can get all your favourite Mark and Spencer’s sandwiches, wraps and Panini’s from here and they can be heated up for your pleasure. They also sell the delicious baked goods from the main store here which is good. Not so good is the fact you have to queue up rather than be looked at for the higher prices that you are paying.
My main gripe is the open plan nature of the café, right in the middle of the entrance to the Forestside shopping centre. Whilst it may be a good position for the people watchers/​stalkers out there, it is not what you want when you are trying to shovel food into your face with half the country being able to look at you!