(Invited) Yolk, the best part of an egg in my opinion, is also the name of a breakfast cafe located in Nottingham. Yolk is situated on the corner of Goose Gate and Brightmore street in Hockley and is run by the same people as Bar 31K next door. If you like 31K, you’ll love Yolk.

The Cafe

Bringing a new meaning to BYOB, the ‘build your own breakfast’ cafe features a host of local suppliers, with bread from Hambletons Bakery, fresh meat from Owen Taylors and tea from independent Bird & Blend.

Having opened in August last year, hundreds of customers have already walked through the doors for breakfast or a coffee from Leeds based roasters North Star Coffee. With plant based milks aplenty, everyone can enjoy a steaming cup of Joe to get them through the day.

You can also grab a freshly made sandwich or panini to take away for lunch.

With limited seating, I would recommend getting down early to grab a table and watch the world go by through the floor to ceiling windows. The cafe is so light and welcoming and the staff always have a smile on their faces.

The Menu

Focusing as the name suggests around eggs, you first pick the style of egg you want (fried, hard boiled, scrambled, poached, soft boiled or omelette), then add your carb (bagel, rye, sourdough, wholemeal, crumpet or English muffin) and then add a topping (spinach, avocado, cured ham, salmon, maple bacon, garlic mushrooms, cowboy beans) and then finish it with Hollandaise.

There are vegan options too with scrambled egg or omelette made from tofu, loads of vegan carb and topping options and a vegan Hollandaise sauce option.

My Choices

It is said that free food always tastes better than paid for food, so when I was asked to review I obviously jumped at the chance.
I was booked in for 11.30am and missed a trick here. I had viewed the menu and had my heart set on the maple bacon but it had sold out by the time I arrived! Instead I opted for the poached egg with smoked salmon atop an English muffin. This was delicious, the smoked salmon was delicately smoked and the poached egg deliciously runny. The English muffin was nice and crisp, definitely not soggy as some can be (I am looking at you McDonalds) coming from a busy kitchen. I asked to try both Hollandaise sauces as I was intrigued to find out what vegan Hollandaise tasted like. The normal Hollandaise was exactly as you would expect, creamy, buttery, lemony, delicious. The vegan one was a good contender, but slightly too acidic for me, a little too vinegary. However, for a vegan alternative, in my opinion it is perfectly adequate.
My free breakfast was certainly delightful. So how did it fare when I paid for it?

The second time I visited (last weekend) I made sure to arrive early enough to try the maple bacon! This time I chose an English muffin, topped with maple bacon and garlic shrooms. A strange combo you may think, but definitely one to try. The maple bacon was just about the best bacon I have ever had! Sweet yet smokey, thick cut and piled onto the muffin, this is a firm favourite menu choice. My egg wasn’t as runny as the previous visit, but with the amount of poached eggs leaving the kitchen there are bound to be a couple that aren’t as free flowing as others. Nevertheless I very much enjoyed the egg. The garlic mushrooms would keep Dracula away, just how I like them, and again it was such a generous portion. I opted for the non vegan Hollandaise and it was again very tasty.

Verdict

There are apparently over 300 combos available, egg-citing right! (Sorry I couldn’t resist!) Yolk have ensured that there is something for everyone. Both times breakfast was consistently tasty with large portions offered. The venue is super cute and tables do fill up fast so get down early. It is now one of my favourite spots in the city for brunch, so much so that I have already planned my next visit for more brunchy goodness. I highly recommend a wander to Yolk.

Breakfast is served 8am until noon Monday to Saturday and all day Sunday. You can find Yolk on Instagram HERE.