Harpers Caffe in Colchester

Absolutely brilliant place to go for a yummy everyday breakfast and today a fabulous afternoon tea for mothers birthday. Happy, friendly staff, thank you very much xx

Convenient place to stop, plenty of parking outside, lots of room inside, a great team and nice coffee/drinks and snacks

Convenient place to stop, plenty of parking outside, lots of room inside, a great team and nice coffee/drinks and snacks

Situated in Boxted at the playing field Harpers offers breakfasts, light lunches plus a couple of 'specials' and cakes. It is also Licensed. Food is always good and quickly delivered. There is always a friendly, happy atmosphere.

Situated in Boxted at the playing field Harpers offers breakfasts, light lunches plus a couple of 'specials' and cakes. It is also Licensed. Food is always good and quickly delivered. There is always a friendly, happy atmosphere.

Always great, wonderful staff, spotlessly clean, happy, community, village atmosphere 😀.

Amazing place great food exceptional & friendly staff

Best cafe for pre golf weekend sustenance. Free breakfast if you can run quickly

Easy to find new meeting place for a Club I belong to.Welcoming Staff and a friendly atmosphere .Food available if required and good clean facilities .Haven't rated the food because I did not eat there on this first visiting occasion.For a Village Based Premises Harper's provides an excellent Community Hub

Breakfast at harpers again even ate the crust ( the bread was that good ) which I never do I always say you can tell a good breakfast by the sausage That was a good breakfast To top it all a park with everything including trampoline and zip wire

Harper’s Caffe combines the taste and menu of a bigger cafe with the heart and community feel of a smaller one, to form a welcoming environment from the moment you walk through the door, in which you can choose from many delicious options! The passion for the cafe from owner, Doug, can be found in the service, which has never been anything short of personal and excellent, and staff member Alice is particularly great at maintaining these high standards through her welcoming smile, friendly conversation and ability to make you laugh! Pricing can be a worry regarding independent cafes but the food is priced well, tastes amazing and can be accompanied by a range of drinks. The outdoor seating area provides a good option for the hotter weather, alongside the inside seating, all of which is kept clean and tidy. Would definitely recommend visiting, especially for the breakfasts as they’re always superlative!

First day open here in Boxted. Absolutely exceeded expectations, and so pleased to have this super cafe on our doorstep.

The staff are amazing and so friendly. Best cafe in Colchester.

Very Good, staff were pleasent and helpful.

Visited for lunch today. Lovely staff, very friendly. My son had the most delicious chicken, bacon & salad toasted sandwich. He wants to return again for this as it was exceptional (he is a fussy eater normally!). I enjoyed my jacket potato too. Plenty of topping & lovely side salad. Good value too. We will be visiting again soon. Yummy.

Nice little café, slightly off the beaten track. Good food, friendly service. All-day brekkie, ciabatta, sandwiches, baked potatoes etc. Nice range of fillings

I go to Harpers once a week, where the staff are friendly and welcoming, Doug knows my order by heart now and will always ask about my day. It's nice to feel like a name and not a number, as can be the way with some places, with bonuses of quick service, cheap (and good) food. The recent renovations include the new colour and paintings on the walls, as well as comfy chairs with higher tables, which is important to those of us that need the leg room! Overall, nothing of note to complain about, just a nice place to go and eat, and would certainly recommend.

Doughlas, the owner approaches each client with respect, very good food, highly recommended

Lovely place to stop for a coffee and cake, with exceptional customer service, plenty of room upstairs, so what are you waiting for? Use independents please as it helps them far more than the massive chains

Food is alway amazing here, staff a very friendly.

This is an independent cafe without the pretentiousness that is so popular nowadays. Good coffee and breakfast and you can ask for amendments without an issue. Fair price

Delightful vegetarian options! Lovely staff and fresh food!

Lovely food and staff as always. best place to eat in colchester good size portions for the price never dissapoints and covid precautions are bang on

I must say that the owner is really amazing, when I was moving to the flat really next is coffe shop he let me keep some orders there till I got the key and understood really well the situation. I order an espresso and a "Pastel de Nata" and it was the same as in a portuguese coffe. Really nice environment as well, hope to come back more now that I have more time and is not job home job.

Nice to see this lovely cafe reopen..felt nice and safe..as always very friendly atmosphere..all food of a very high standard..best coffee in Colchester

Very friendly staff with an excellent gluten free cake. A great place to pop in for a coffee. I would definitely go again

Fab food great menu Great staff best coffee ive had in ages All at a fantastic price Well done you ******

Very good, delicious, home-cooked food at very reasonable prices. Top class friendly service. The caffe is spotlessly clean. The service is prompt and the staff make you feel very welcome.

Lovely, fresh food, including slimming style options. Excellent customer service from a small team. Great prices. Highly recommended

Shopping in Colchester yesterday we were nervous about stopping for lunch (given that people around us seemed to think the danger of covid 19 has passed!). Harpers Cafe seemed to be less 'bustly' than the chain coffee shops so we decided to give it a go - and we were glad we did! There was appropriate distancing between tables and when customers left the tables and chairs were wiped down thoroughly before the next customers. We were very impressed and would recommend Harpers Cafe to other people who are trying to be careful. Additionally we very much enjoyed our lunch and the staff were very friendly.

Clean and always good food and service friendly and welcoming

What a find! Food was lovely as well as the staff and a good price. Highly recommend

Delicious coffee and the best bacon sandwich in town. The service is friendly and quick. One of the best cafes in Colchester

Nice independently run cafe. Staff always oleasant, good food and variety of drinks available.

Fantastic very friendly staff. Awesome food and by far the best decaf coffee in Colchester. Sandwiches made to order with child portions available. Gluten free food available.

This is a lovely little cafe really friendly not expensive and they cater for wheat and dairy free diets

Mid-afternoon snack and coffee needed after long walk. Harper’s offered an independent option so gave it a go. Warm welcome. Order at bar from huge menu. All day breakfasts, sandwiches and cakes aplenty. Went for a triple decker on granary bloomer. Packed with filling but held itself together whilst I tucked in. Good tasty ingredients. Strong Italian coffee. A bit of a throw-back as a cafe; a traditional cafe with the focus on good quality grub! Well worth dropping in to. Help keep local independent eateries on our streets.!

Good food and friendly service in the centre of Colchester

Go in there for a bacon sandwich and apple juice multiple times a week, always greeted by Doug with a smile, warm welcome and a question on how my day has been. The staff are excellent (Only know of Alice), always happy to help, and always quick to deliver my order to me. Cannot say how much of a nice little café it is, will always be going back now!

This Lovely little Caffe was a joy to visit. The staff were extremely friendly, hard working, polite and helpful. They even catered for my partner who has coeliac and needed a gluten free meal. The food was delicious and prepared fresh as you ordered. There were 2 floors and although there was several students in having food, the place was still not overly bearing with loud noise or shouting. 100% very satisfied, we will definately be visiting Harpers Caffe again.

The most lovely caffe so welcoming every time we go in. Douglas is always there with a smile behind the counter no matter how bad your day is turning out to be, thank you for making my day a little bit better ☕😍 I highly recommend as one of the best independent cafe's in Colchester.

I visited her with my in-laws (one is in a wheelchair), the staff were very helpful and the food was OK standard but good value. Recommend for a friendly atmosphere and home food.

Delicious food with a varied menu offering lots of healthy dishes. Very accommodating, with a warm welcome from a very pleasant team. Highly recommend - always nip in here when in town.

What a lovely surprise!! Really delicious lunch of chicken pasta and salad. Nice big portion and just perfect. Will definitely be back

Lovely cafe in a really handy location. Good food, very friendly and warm staff. Will come again.

Cracking little cafe. Piping hot food great service and very reasonable. Will definitely come again.

Very friendly place, food amazing. I had scrambled eggs and salmon - yum yum! My husband had the breakfast and thoroughly enjoyed it. Thank you for your hospitality 😃

Doug and the girls always smile and make you feel so welcome..even if it is only for a coffee and sandwich..the food is always freshly cooked.the best coffee in Colchester..Great value for money..always a pleasure to visit

Great warm and friendly welcome followed by excellent service.Really nice coffee and good fresh food at reasonable prices.

Lovely. Excellent food and drink, nice coffee, friendly boss, bloody good Portuguese tart. Freshly made sandwiches are fabulous and the breakfasts are super good too. Go here. Support your independent businesses, especially when they are miles ahead of the chain competition.

Best salmon and scrambled eggs in Colchester - not many places get this right but Harper’s do: good size portion of quality salmon served cold next to scrambled eggs cooked just right (too many places overcook their eggs) - choice of bread, white/granary, both fresh - and the coffee is good.

Lovely place. So amenable. Great food. Great service

Food was okay. We expected a higher standard of food considering everything was made fresh and is a independent business. The panini’s we ordered were nice, but could have come with a side salad for the price. The biggest disappointment and terrible value for money were the milkshakes. £3 for milk and some powder, not impressed and will definitely not be returning because of this

Great food and drink. Friendly staff. Prices ok and don't have to queue like you do at Costa!

In town for the day and had the craving for a full English, and this did not disappoint. Great bacon and sausage both perfectly cooked. One very satisfied customer!

Dropped by Harper's the other day for a delicious bacon sandwich (best in Colchester) and a giant lemon muffin (fresh and flavoursome). The coffee is delicious too. Well worth a visit at reasonable prices - give it a go

Nice to see a place that values their customers and their food.. niceee

Always a very friendly welcome..excellent food at very reasonable prices..best coffee in the town..great staff..Doug is brilliant with customers

Small and friendly with good food.

Always pleased with the food and friendly service at Harper's. The ingredients are always fresh and the drinks made well. Have eaten in and taken out.

Best salmon and scrambled eggs in Colchester - not many places get this right but Harper’s do: good size portion of quality salmon served cold next to scrambled eggs cooked just right (too many places overcook their eggs) - choice of bread, white/granary, both fresh - and the coffee is good.

Always amazing service and food. Can’t wait to come back. Hopefullly won’t leave it as long this time!!!!

I visited with my partner looking for a lovely coffee. We were greeted by the friendly staff when we walked in and felt incredibly welcomed. We had a look at the menu and thought the all day breakfast price was very reasonable. We ordered two double shot cappuccinos and two small breakfasts. The coffee was delicious! Lovely and frothy! The breakfast arrived very quick and was to an excellent standard. The sausage and tomatoes were particularly flavoursome and were the highlight of the dish! We will definitely be back soon and would 100% recommend this cafe!

Have been here a few times now for breakfast between the school run and shopping. Friendly individual cafe with breakfast cooked to order.

Fantastic coffee, great service. Superb.

Quick and friendly service. Comfortable

Heel leuk lokaal tentje met Brits ook voor vega's! Niet duur en vriendelijke bediening. Het zag er een beetje oud uit en de stoelen waren hard, maar verder was het prima!

We hardly know Colchester at all and certainly not the diverse range of coffee shops available in the town. What a pleasant surprise, then, having chosen Harpers for a cup of coffee and a pastry. We were welcomed as soon as we crossed the threshold, which is rare these days. The two cappuccinos and a 'Portuguese-style' pastry ordered were served quickly and tasted great. What a good find. Thank you for making us, as customers, feel valued. A very pleasant experience. The next time we visit Colchester we will know where to head for, if in need of breakfast, morning coffee, or light lunch!

Called in today for 2 coffees and 2 lunches could not fault it at all, excellent meals and service. Thank You.

Called in today cause my wife and I like to support local coffee shops. Brilliant, coffee was the best we have had in a long time. As was the service.

Refused access and services because of my having a medical aid with me and discriminate against me for my disabilitys Strongly recommend dont come here if you are disbled

Fantastic in every way..such happy friendly staff..great selection on menu to suit every taste..including healthy options..lovely food..and FANTASTIC VALUE FOR MONEY..will be back when next in Colchester town center

Lovely food at a very good price.

Nice traditional British simple food cafe.

Good value food. Had a great jacket potato which was a good size with good amount of filling.

This Cafe/restaurant is second to none. The choice of dietary foods on menu are a credit. Superb food and service. Very welcoming

Beautiful fresh food and Fantastic atmosphere. Strongly recommend x

Love this place, lovely staff and quality food

This is by far the best little cafe in Colchester..so great friendly staff..food of a very high standard..what ever you want..a bacon sandwich .or a chicken kebab..all great value for money..good selection..RECOMMENDED

An independent coffee shop in the era of Starbucks and Costa? The coffee is better, the food is better and the service is by people that care and not some low paid students. Support local businesses that pay their taxes and not multi nationals that give nothing back to the community!

Popped in to see Doug (Owner) a couple of days ago for a coffee and one of his famous giant muffins (lemon). As always the serviced was great, the coffee and muffin delicious. If you find yourself in Culver Street West give it a go. There are lots of things to choose from including slimming dishes and a vegetarian/vegan selection. However, if you're in the mood, try the best bacon sandwich in Colchester.

Great. Place to eat. Been several times and have never been disappointed.

I love this cafe and they always accommodate my gluten free wishes. Best GF Millionaire Shortbread ever :)

Lovely food and great service. If you are on Slimming world they even adjust the meals so they're slimming world friendly.

Food was average, and double cooked.

Basic layout, service good and pleasant, and so was the choice food. All you can ask for a small cafe. Ideal for when out shopping for poping in for topping up.

Friendly helpful and lovely food

Such lovely warm friendly staff..great food..by far the best coffee in Colchester..being a black coffee drinker..this is by far the best..all food..bacon sandwiches..jacket potatoes..chicken kebabs all excellent..RECOMMENDED

A cosy café serving lovely coffee and food. Very friendly staff too.

Would recommend. So helpful and very friendly

Dropped by Harper's today. As always the service was friendly fast and efficient. The coffee was the best and the giant lemon muffins are so good there are no words to describe them. Well worth a visit if you haven't been before and if you haven't been for a while why not follow my example. By the way, they do the best bacon sarnies in Colchester

My first visit, I was looking forward to it as there was a healthy, slimming friendly menu, Chicken herb kebabs and rice. The cafe looked shabby, tatty chairs and dirty sticky tables. The food was awful, undercooked chicken and "wet" rice. The waitress offered to "pop my chicken back in" when I said it was undercooked. Not a place I will return to.

Absolutely fantastic place. All the staff are extremely friendly and the food is delicious. I would 100% recoommend Harpers to anyone & its really helpful being a slimming world member.

I had heard about the caffe but had never got round to going into the place.

Lovely fresh food at a good price. Good for those who are watching the calories as well

Great Food and gluten free options

A very nice and busy little family run Café. For what I got (triple decker toasted sandwich with ham and cheese, can of coke and a bag of crisps) for £7 was OK. Seating is a nightmare during busy times as the downstairs offers nearly no seating, and it means that you have to trapse up and down the various floors to find seating. Seating is a real mish-mash of different chairs, looking like they've slowly bought whatever was on sale at QD over the years. Although as a young man I probably could get away with sitting on a normal chair to what can only be described as a coffee table; I could see that many of the more mature patrons of the café were struggling. Just because this is what Starbucks do, doesn't mean its right! It'd be nice if they provided normal chairs to equally normal height tables - considering this is somewhere you can get an English breakfast in the morning, I wouldn't like to have to keep stooping to get the beans in my mouth! Waitresses are often young, but all are very willing to do a good job and do their best. Overheard that one was not overly happy with how a coffee had come out and offered to the customer that she would remake it if needed - which I thought was nice.

Met a friend for coffee. Instantly given a friendly greeting. I have a strong desire to return because they serve great coffee!

Stopped in at lunchtime..had Jacket Potatoes..mine was with cheese and coleslaw..partner had just cheese..lovely as a winter warmer..great quality..great value for money..lovely friendly staff..best in Colchester..RECOMMENDED.

After eating at bills place up in town I was desperate to find a new cafe as portions at bills were abysmal where my partner found this cough and had a quite like to eat at breakfast time the food was cooked perfectly the portions the very fair all in all a great calf