My mother and sister are both big coffee shop fans. Both live in Ayrshire and have been coming to Small Talk together for years. With the demise of places such as Kilmarnock's Coffee Club, Small Talk is their favourite day time venue.
When mother had more appetite, it would have been soup & scone, but now soup is all she needs. We visited on a wet Thursday in summer and although not rammed, the tables were in use again as soon as vacated.
Although not fine dining, there is integrity in the cooking here that would put a lot of posher and more expensive venues to shame. The down-to-earth hospitality of the female staff is second to none. The menu is the usual tearoom fare - soups, sandwiches, baked potatoes, home baking. I can see a lot of effort goes into the home baking, which is quite extensive and even ambitious (e.g. homemade pecan pie). Soup is obviously a big seller, as they have three soups of the day. I had the spicy sweet potato & carrot, mother had some kind of tomato soup, and the third was a turkey broth. Both our soups were well made and attractively served with a small swirl of cream on top. The bread is only OK - we both ate our half slice of seeded and left the white. Pricing is at the going rate, I think £3.50 or per soup.
Customers all tend to be very civilised, I would guess a mix of locals and tourists - middle aged couples, girlfriends, and the odd young family or grandmother, daughter and child. With a pushchair in there, it can start to feel a bit claustrophobic but not excessively so, and obviously making the bairns welcome just adds to the homely charm of the place!
I think "well-worn tartan carpet, but with a fresh lick of paint on the walls" sums it up! You owe it to yourself to try this place if you are in the area. read more