Without a doubt, one of the best cups of coffee I've had since arriving in Reading (other than my…read moreown at home, of course), Workhorse is truly all about the coffee. Technically a chain (because there are now two of them), this is a very small independent player, competing on Reading's "coffee corner" with six other shops within 100 yards (Starbucks, Costa, Coffee Republic, West Cornwall Pasty, Pret and the one-off independent Picnic). This location of Workhorse (the other is in West Reading) is in the historic King George Hotel, believed to be one of the very oldest buildings in Reading and dates back to 1423. The shop is a completely unique split-level and since they only opened recently, is still quaintly hand finished. Certainly a nicer character than the cookie cutter Starbucks. If the competition is only about the coffee and the service, Workhorse wins hands down. Choosing my beans (eight little tubs of Guatemalan, Ethiopian, Kenyan and more I can't recall), they were ground right then and there, put into a one-off drip filter and hand watered into my coffee cup. Talk about fresh! And the food choices are all local, which made my ham, chorizo and cheese ciabatta completely guilt-free. The guy serving me was happy to talk coffee. He was particularly engaging regarding their style of coffee making as well as my thoughts on french press. He didn't get drawn into comparisons with "the other guys" across the street. (Literally, across the street - you can see their bright green banner in the window in my picture!) All of that would be worth five stars, but I have to take one back because sadly, there is no free wireless available in the shop. As I read online, that's not the demographic of customer they want to reach. That's okay. Since that's the market I'm in, I'll pop in for great coffee but it won't be my hangout.

Sunday morning find here in Reading in a quaint spot located at The George Hotel. Ordered an…read moreAmericano with cream. Wow, flush with flavour and taste, just the right amount of bitterness. The coffee bean selection looks exceptional and looking forward to repeated visits.

Comfortable coffee and pastry shop located inside Broad Street Mall. It's a great location where…read moreyou can grab a comfortable seat, hook in to the wi-fi, and quietly slurp away at your latte while watching the mall shoppers go past.

Passwordless free wi-fi and coffee strong enough to stop you blinking. This is what Boswell's Café…read morehas. And I could probably end my review there. But surely you want to know more! Okay, it's located within a shopping centre which is often enough to put people off but bear with us. This is a spacious café which actually serves some darn good-looking food (we were caffeinating, not eating, so more's the pity) and voluptuous cakes, but it was the Americanos that summoned us that day. Feeling the pinch after a tad too much white wine the night before, I'd dragged Alexa G all over TK Maxx and Wilkinson and as enthusiastic as she was about my new homeware ideas, she suffers hangovers much worse than I do. (I'm annoyingly chirpy. In fact I'll go as far as to say I don't get them at all.) So when the coffee came a' callin' I suggested Boswell's as its advertisement of free wi-fi meant we could 'nob about on Facebook' as I put it, plus I was going to force her to watch some of Pretty in Pink. The service was smiley, everything was clean and that coffee was something else. Seriously, we were so much more prepared for the science that awaited us that evening because of the serious jitters Boswell's gave us. And what is with Reading being so cheap? I'm impressed. I'll definitely seek this place out when I'm visiting my auntie and uncle down in Berkshire.

We came here for brekky and it was delicious! And the ladies who run the place are great. They made…read morean oopsie--my partner's food was accidentally delivered to the wrong table while I already had mine and so I was waiting and mine got cold yadda yadda. The owners were apologetic and offered to comp the meal, even though they didn't need to. Am definitely impressed and will be back if I'm ever in that part of town again!

Good hearty breakfast, with options for all. Outdoor…read moreseating available. Clean and spacious.

Great place and the staff is heavenly and beautiful!! Service is happy and prompt. Who could ask…read morefor more???

Lovely, well run family type business Like eating here sometimes, you get plenty to eat and prices…read moreare reasonable :-)

On the same corner, this Costa competes with a Starbucks (that has much better seating) and a…read moreCoffee Connection (that also has good seating and better nibbles). I figured I had to try all three, so I did. The store is very small with the tables very closely pushed together and some bar stools and a counter in the window that are just barely enough for coffee, but no laptop. And speaking of laptop, I didn't notice if they had their own wifi as I was drawn into the Starbucks BT Openspot across the way. The coffee certainly tastes better than the Starbucks, but only because the latte seems to be all milk with just a little bit of coffee. I've never had a coffee that made me sleepy, but this was it. I'll stick to Starbucks.

Great coffee house, they serve very good drinks (I'd say better than the Starbucks who is opposite…read morethem), has a great window for people watching, very nice and cosy inside. Very friendly staff.

Amazing salad & stew. Small cozy place to be seated and…read moretakeaways also available. Good experience with my daughter.

Stopped in here today for a snack on my first day in Reading. Ordered the goat cheese, honey and…read morepine nut toast - so delicious! But beware, it arrives at the table HOT!! Staff were so chipper and helpful. Small cage with a great spread of homemade treats, sandwiches and salads. Lovely lattes, coffees and teas - support the little guy instead of heading next door to the Starbucks.

Friendly servers, delicious espresso drinks. Banana dark chocolate bread was simply amazing. Their…read moresandwich and salads menu looks very creative (and tasty).