Columnists / Meg Houghton-Gilmour
‘The brunchification of Stokes Croft continues’
I had to wait until bang on 9am to be let into the gated community that is the home of the new Hotplate Diner. Left Handed Giant opening a brunch place was not on my 2024 bingo card, but I have to say the bacon-loaded waffles are a very satisfying start to the day indeed.
I suspect Hotplate’s neighbours, The Crafty Egg, may be a little less impressed with the new arrival. The Crafty Egg has been the reigning brunch spot of Stokes Croft since 2019 when the much-loved Ceres closed, and they are renowned for the queue that forms outside their doors every weekend.
Perhaps they’ll be glad for a bit of healthy competition. Perhaps their customers will be glad there’s somewhere else to go when that queue gets a bit too long. Perhaps they’ll start pelting eggs across the road at each other before the week is out.
is needed now More than ever
Where’s the haggis? – photo: Meg Houghton-Gilmour
One thing is for certain. A ‘Scottish-Aussie’ inspired (you wouldn’t know it from the menu) brunch restaurant from a local brewery opening in the Carriageworks screams gentrification so loud you could hear it from Easton, where the mustard beanie-wearing brigade would answer the battle cry by storming over en masse to order their oat flat whites.
But given that the path to the brunchification of Stokes Croft was already well laid, perhaps it is not a bad thing that Hotplate has arrived to add their melba toast to the mix. After all, their cheapest menu item, a bacon bap, at £4.95 is a lot more accessible than Crafty Egg’s granola at £7.95.
Aside from the fact that they are literally behind a lockable gate, that is – though I don’t believe that is something the business has much control over. And they don’t take cash, which will exclude a fair few of Bristol’s most vulnerable communities, many of whom are often concentrated in areas like Stokes Croft.
The view from inside the gated community is quite different to the view out – photo: Meg Houghton-Gilmour
A new food and drink business is almost always good news, particularly when it is one that started out in Bristol and has grown into a multi-site business here, feeding money back into our local economy and providing employment for hundreds of our residents. We should be proud that our city is fiercely loyal to such brands and that said brands feel there is sufficient support to branch out into brunch.
There needs to be a nod to the area they are in though. Start taking cash, introduce a pay it forward scheme and make sure there’s a good window cleaner on hand in case those eggs start flying.
This is an opinion piece by Meg Houghton-Gilmour, Bristol24/7’s Head of Audience. Subscribe here to her weekly food & drink newsletter.
Main photo: Martin Booth
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