FOOD REVIEW: Josie's, Bishop's Waltham

Cool, cosy cafes on a quaint high street are just the ticket and Josie’s in Bishop’s Waltham fits the bill.

Its vibe is bang on-trend with mason jars, mismatched tea sets and edgy triangular plates.

The staff are young, enthusiastic and wear a punny uniform – since avocado is a permanent fixture in a considerable amount of menu items, staff T-shirts implore you to ‘avo great day.’

If you hadn’t already guessed from the interior description and the devotion both on and off the menu to the great avocado, this is an establishment targeted at millennials (a person reaching young adulthood in the early 21st century) complete with free WiFi so they may share their food choice on social media.

Every corner of Josie’s is packed with couples, families and groups of friends gathered round tables, creating a comforting hubbub of chatter mixed with sounds from the radio.

Al fresco dining is available for those who like to watch the world go by, paper and coffee in hand, on the main high street of the village on which Josie’s can be found.

Menu-wise, it is an absolute carb-fest, which is no bad thing.

There is a mixture of breakfast dishes served all day varying from the original full English (£8.95) to a more modern plate of crushed avocado salsa on toasted sourdough with poached eggs and green chilli sauce (£7.95).

Add to that several twists on the classic eggs Benedict, including one with crab cakes and lemon hollandaise (£7.95), sweet and savoury pancake stacks, toasties and some delicious-sounding salad combinations.

You would be forgiven for spending the whole day attempting to decide which triangular platter of goodness to punt for.

The choice of beverages are somewhat more upmarket and artisan, not just lemonade, but Sicilian lemonade.

The team also take great pride in the Monmouth Coffee they use, which is also available to buy should you find the smooth notes of the bean to your taste.

Fresh, homemade smoothies or herbal fruit teas could quench your thirst but if you are looking for a bit more sparkle in your morning meal then there is a selection of wines and beers.

After some to and fro, the Dish Detective went for a two stack of banoffee pancakes with caramelised bananas, caramel sauce, whipped cream and crushed shortbread (£6.95) and a red berry smoothie (£4).

Dish Detective’s mother had a latte and a breakfast taco which had a corn tortilla base topped with fried chicken, homemade beans, crushed avocado, fried egg and a mango and coriander salsa (£7.95).

The food did not disappoint.

My two stack of big, fluffy pancakes were nicely sweet with just the right balance of banana-to-cream ratio.

However, I’m ashamed to say I am weak and couldn’t manage the whole dish.

But for those who throw caution to the wind for an extra one pound you can tackle a three stack – good luck.

An improvement perhaps would be an extra pot of caramel sauce.

Mother enjoyed her breakfast taco and described the avocado salsa-covered Mexican dish as a yummy green monster (each to their own, but what she meant was, she enjoyed it).

So whether it’s a classic breakfast choice for you or something a little different, Josie’s seems to be the place.

Dare I say it, brunch is my new favourite meal of the day.