Bailey's Breakfast Brunch and Lunch in Staffordshire Moorlands

We were doing the Chrome Hill walk and called in for a drink before setting off. The ladies in the cafe were so welcoming, giving advice on the walk and even lending me a walking pole. This is a quaint, traditional tearoom with homemade cakes, quiches etc. Everything coming out of the kitchen was fresh and delicious. As a community hub there was also local produce to buy, including items to raise money for mountain rescue. Charming little place, well worth a visit, and even better when we bought cakes to bring home too - lip smackingly good!

We were staying over in Leek on a Sunday evening, wanting to sample some Staffordshire oatcakes the following morning, but the oatcake shop we wanted was closed on Monday! Poor planning. But luckily this place was open at 7.30 am and we found what we wanted here: oatcakes with various fillings such as bacon or tomato; all with cheese. If you've not tried them, Staffordshire oatcakes are very different to the Scottish biscuit that most people associate with 'oatcakes'. Here, they are a soft, flexible wrapper like a pancake, or perhaps a chapatti, made from a thin layer of a yeasted oatmeal/wheat batter griddled until it sets, then wrapped around your chosen filling. We took a pair of oatcakes with cheese and bacon, and a full English of 2 eggs, 2-3 bacon, 2 sausages, 2 toast, beans and tomatoes, plus extra hash browns. This was all in a takeaway tray - there is no table service here. It took about 10 minutes, which is fair enough as everything is cooked to order; but we were the only customers at that time. I imagine at busy times there could be quite a wait. The food was excellent, piping hot as you'd expect with it being cooked to order; and good value too, under £10 for the 2 breakfasts described above, though coffees added a bit more. Highly recommended.

Both the steak and chicken dishes were delicious and cooked to perfection. Though they didn’t look like large portions, they were surprisingly satisfying. The candied carrot cheesecake was absolutely lovely, while the banoffee pie didn’t quite meet my wife’s expectations—perfect excuse for a swap! In the end, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

A proper pub. Really friendly welcoming pub, big portions, food is exceptional. Especially nice at Christmas.

Nice country inn with a great selection of ales. What more can you ask for!