11a Cafe

With the pants-​wettingly exciting name, based on its physical address along Allerton Road and nothing more, 11a Café won’t be poaching many customers from the Ivy anytime soon. Despite that, I liked the place. Monumentally fine, it’s a decent enough place to duck out of the rain/​sun/​flying ants on a lazy afternoon and grab a sandwich.
My life is laughably unhectic but I still find dining in anywhere even slightly restaurant-​esque to be a chore. Not here though. This pleasant little eatery is basically a vending machine with chairs, and about as pretentious.

There is little to write home about this place, it’s about as standard as a coffee shop can get. Bland and beige, 11a hardly has the surroundings to whet the appetite or stir your senses.
I came in one sunny afternoon to get some shade and a coffee but not long after sitting amidst the cramped space staring at the beige walls I was ready to leave. This used to be called Yaffee’s Café and was known for the friendly staff here who took time to get to know their customers within inviting surrounds. Sadly it feels like the owners have tried to modernise the place and in so doing have lost much of what made it a favourite coffee shop along what is a stretch of road saturated with similar outlets.