I ate at the Nut Cafe in Portsmouth to see why it is firm favourite with many of the locals

This family-run cafe has been a mainstay in North End’s high street for almost a decade, and has become a firm favourite among locals for its large menu, generous portions and upbeat atmosphere.

Any time we ask readers for their favourite place for breakfast, we know that Nut Cafe is going to be towards the top of their list. But it’s one of the places we’ve never actually reviewed – until now.

Deciding not to shop on an empty stomach (as this cafe is a literal stone’s throw away from Lidl) I popped into the London Road eatery for a late breakfast.

Walking in, I was immediately struck by the size of the cafe; there was so much seating, but each table had plenty of room. The decor, with coffee-themed wallpaper on the walls, felt welcoming – as did the staff. Less than 20 seconds after I had sat down, one member of staff came over to greet me, and shortly after that my order was placed.

I opted for the full English breakfast (£10) with a bottle of Coca-Cola (£1.70), which all seemed rather reasonable. Many places are hiking up the prices of drinks so it was refreshing to go somewhere that bucked the trend.

Fewer than 10 minutes had gone by when my breakfast arrived. Two rashers of bacon, two eggs, two slices of tomato, two pieces of black pudding, two hash browns, a sausage, beans and enough mushrooms to sink HMS Queen Elizabeth – plus four slices of toast.

The slices of tomato were enormously thick, a generous serving by any restaurant’s standards. It was good to see they had actually been grilled, rather than just slapped onto the plate raw like some places seem to do. They were still juicy and were an excellent palette cleanser throughout the meal.

I delightfully tucked into the mushrooms next, as there were so many of them on the plate. All in all they made up roughly a fifth of the plate, and were piled up high. They were nicely cooked, but as there were so many of them I knew I’d have to keep coming back to them as I went on.

When eating a full English, there’s nothing more satisfying than dipping some toast into an egg. The toast that was served came pre-buttered, which allowed me to dodge that awkward buttering with the little packets, where more inevitably ends up on your fingers than on the bread. Sadly, the egg yolks themselves were, while runny, not large enough for all the toast that was served with it.

Moving on to the black pudding and the bacon – as this food reviewer absolutely adores meat. The bacon was crisp without being too crispy, cooked to absolute perfection, and was packed with flavour. The black pudding slices were a bit on the thin side, but still very tasty and again, not overcooked.

The sausage was a bit of a let down, unfortunately; while other cafes are using locally-sourced, meaty sausages, this was the same sort of sausage you would get if you were served sausages and chips at school.

The hash browns, however, were perfect.

Crispy on the outside, light and fluffy inside, they put a huge smile on my face.

But when the plate was almost empty, just one thing remained – more mushrooms. It felt like they were multiplying as I was eating, and with eyes bigger than my stomach, I’m ashamed to say I was unable to eat them all.

All things considered, I understand why our readers are such big fans of Nut Cafe. The staff are really friendly, the atmosphere is brilliant and the food is very reasonably priced – especially for the portions you’re given. But for the very best breakfast Portsmouth has to offer, you’re better off looking elsewhere.

Nut Cafe, London Road, North End, 023 9279 6320

Food: 3

Value: 5

Ambience: 4

Kid-Friendly: 4