This very peculiarly named cafe is definitely an unusual one to stop off at on the way to the…read moreLickeys, and I couldn't walk past without looking in the window. The back of the coffee shop has flashing (almost Christmas-like) lights, which enticed me further to go inside, just to understand why they were there! I'm still not exactly sure why they are there, (maybe to attract simple minded folk like me who are mesmerised by bright things!) The front of the cafe is very sleek, modern, cool and cosy, while the back and one-side isn't actually a cafe at all, but a slot machine arcade! (Maybe this why the place is called Coffee & Confusion!) I bought a cup of tea and a muffin, which came to £5, I guess that's a little more expensive than usual, but you are paying for the beautiful Lickey location, so that's understandable.

Every Wednesday lunchtime I like to pop into the Clock Cafe in Northfield as it's right next to my…read moreWeight Watchers meeting and is perfect for my after weigh-in treat. It's been here quite a few years now, but I've never really spent much time in here until recently. I like the selection of people in here, it's a very popular cafe and is always really busy. Sometimes I'll have to wait a few minutes for a table, but it's worth the weight and I think this shows how good the cafe is that people are actually prepared to wait to be seated rather than heading to one of the other numerous eateries in Northfield. I generally have a jacket potato with cheese because the spuds here are absolutely delicious, plus I can carry on feeling righteous about my diet! There are loads of different toppings for the jacket potatoes including tuna mayo, beans and coronation chicken - my favourite though has to be the cheese because they absolutely pile it on the spud which is how cheese should be really! As well as jacket potatoes you can choose to have a good old English breakfast, I've had this on occasion and it really is a wonderful fry up. There are a choice of sizes of breakfast including a mini one for those with modest appetites and a huge gigantic meal that includes what looks like dozens of pieces of bacon and sausages, I've seen a few workmen eating this and always wonder where they put it all! You can also choose a sandwich or hot meal with chips, if I bring my children to the Clock Cafe they will usually have sausage, chips and beans and they always say how nice the sausages are. Prices are very reasonable in the Clock Cafe, when I visit with the kids three meals will cost around £10 including a drink each. There are some more expensive options on the menu such as curry or a 'proper' dinner but I haven't tried these so can't comment on the food. I like their bacon and egg sandwiches as they are not too greasy, you do have to mention if you don't want butter though as they tend to butter all the sandwiches and I personally don't think hot sandwiches need it. The bread is always very fresh, as are the fillings, and I think the best cold sandwich is the tuna mayo which is rich and creamy. You have a good choice of drinks in the Clock Cafe including coffee, tea and a very nice hot chocolate plus a selection of cold drinks in cans or bottles. I ALWAYS, repeat ALWAYS have the hot chocolate because it's creamy and delicious - and perfect for a cold day after shopping. The staff in the Clock Cafe are great, they are chatty but not over friendly like some cafes I've been in. I find they are always polite when taking your order and delivering your food, but don't hang around talking as you're trying to eat which I always find very annoying. The only issue with the Clock Cafe is the parking. My mum is disabled so can use her blue badge to park just down the road, but this part of Northfield is covered in double yellow lines and is notorious for traffic warden patrols so do beware if you do a bit of naughty parking to grab a bacon butty!

The Clock Café on the edge of Northfield's high street is a relatively good café to pop into in the…read moremornings for a spot of light breakfast or for an early morning hot beverage. The prices aren't too expensive nor inexpensive, I guess it's what you would expect at any café. I have only ever been here once as the atmosphere and lack of natural lighting, no, lack of any lighting wasn't what I was looking for. I guess maybe if you're into a shady café like this then you should check it out. Perhaps they were going to the 'too-early-for-light' kind of scenery, whereas when I wake up and need to actually be fully awake I need a lot of light to brighten up my eyes and mind. The only way to know is by checking out the café and seeing what you think of it. My opinions are so-and-so.

I had my lunch in the newish Subway in Rednal yesterday and really enjoyed it. It's a corner shop…read moreso is quite large with massive windows both at the front and on the side of the shop, this is great because the Subway felt so light and airy. There is more seating than in other Subway branches and tables are nicely placed underneath the windows with plenty of room to move around in the store. There are also high chairs provided which meant I could sit my daughter in one of these while I enjoyed my sandwich. This branch has the standard Subway choices of what to eat, I find all Subways to be virtually identical with only really the seating arrangements and staff making one stand out from another. I had a Meatball Marinara on Hearty Italian Bread and it was absolutely delicious. The meatballs were piping hot and the sauce rich and tomatoey, the salad ingredients were all perfectly fresh and crunchy - I even enjoyed the olives which she put on by accident and I'm not usually a fan of olives! Of course I could also have chosen a Subway Melt, Tuna Mayo or any one of a multitude of fresh and delicious Subway options. This branch has the Sub Of The Day offer which means that certain fillings are available for just £1.99 on specific days of the week, I never quite manage to get there on the day that my favourite Sub is on offer so usually end up paying the full price. This offer is ideal when we all want a sandwich though because providing we all like the offer of the day I can get myself, my fella and the two big kids a Sub each for less than £8. The staff in this Rednal branch are lovely, they were all quite young and are cheerful and friendly. I also noticed they made my Sub up EXACTLY the way I wanted it, when I say Just a sprinkling of lettuce I mean just that and she literally sprinkled it on - unlike the one in Northfield which seems to absolutely cover my Sub in lettuce so I have to pick it out before I start eating. You can also buy cookies, crisps, bottles or cups of pop or a combination of these as a Meal Deal. Great if you're hungry! Parking is a bit of a problem at this branch as there are very few spaces outside, but if you drive up the side of the shop you'll see a large council car park where you can leave your car for free.

Subway is a nice place to go and eat. The staff are really…read morefriendly and the food is delicious! But it is abit overpriced:/

I used to go into Jimmy's about 10 - 12 years ago with my mum and remember the food and service…read morebeing absolutely wonderful. For the sake of nostalgia I decided to pop in with two of my daughters' last week for a spot of lunch after hitting the sales in Northfield. The thing that sets Jimmy's apart from other cafes in Northfield is the fact that it's run by Chinese people and you can order either from the English or Chinese menus. This was about 1pm so way too early for Chinese food, so I chose scampi and chips while my daughter went for sausage and chips from the childrens menu. We reckoned the baby could share a few of our chips as there was nothing really suitable for her on any of the menus. I sat back and waited for our drinks and food to be bought to the table, expecting a delicious treat based on my memories of Jimmy's from years ago. I was disappointed, and so was my daughter. My scampi was overcooked to the point of being rock hard and a dark brown colour and the portion of chips was very small and not well cooked at all. My daughter's meal was a disgrace and it's only really my fond rememberances of this place which stopped me complaining - it was cooked OK but on her tiny plate there was just one small sausage and perhaps twelve chips, bad luck for baby as there just wasn't enough chips to share! The beans on my daughters meal were disgusting and had obviously been boiled to death, being served in a revolting looking thick, sticky sauce. Our drinks were OK, my daughter had a free Coke with her meal (in a small glass) and I had coffee, but even this annoyed me as it automatically came with milk in it which is irritating as I like to add my own! I was chatting with a lady on the next table and she agreed that Jimmy's has gone downhill compared to years ago, she was only in there for a cup of tea and she told me she used to eat in here several times a week but doesn't think the quality of the food is worth the money now. For our two tiny, badly cooked meals and drinks I paid almost £9 which is an absolute rip off. I will never go to Jimmy's again, it's the perfect example of how not to run a cafe which is a shame considering how wonderful it used to be.