Island Kitchen Cafe, Bar & Shop in Orkney Islands

5/5 for friendly service, great tasting coffee and the bacon roll was yummy - nice soft roll and the bacon was well cooked and thick!!!

Was delighted to se the cafe open when I arrived early for my flight as it’s often closed. Plenty to choose from on the menu with a wide range of breakfast options, lunches snacks etc. It’s a quiet cafe and the staff were friendly and attentive. I opted for a quick and easy bacon roll and flat white coffee which were both very reasonably priced. Bacon is bacon, it’s always cooked to different degrees depending on where you go so I’m never too fussy about it, but today, I couldn’t eat it. Maybe for the first time in my life I’ve declined finishing a bacon roll (judging by my waistline I should have declined a few more in the past!) Firstly, I saw it come straight out of the Bain Marie, but it was cold!! It was definitely cooked, slightly underdone for my liking, but the Bain Marie must not have been on or working I properly? Cold undercooked bacon isn’t nice. I’d go as far to say that the roll that it came in was under-done too!! Pale and doughy bread with no taste (it actually complimented the bacon perfectly!!) Then the coffee… I was pleased to see flat white on the menu as it is my go-to coffee, but not so pleased to try and drink through a good inch of heavy foam in a tall thin coffee cup, to find a warm, milky, coffee-like liquid underneath. The guy that ordered a latte after me probably got exactly the same as I did! I am surprised because the cafe is fitted with a pretty decent coffee machine. I think this could be rectified quickly and easily with some barista training for the staff and a couple of mug options to suit the coffee that’s been ordered. Same for the bacon… maybe some more staff experience to ensure food is checked frequently before serving - being a quiet cafe probably didn’t work in its favour today as the food may have sat for a while! In summary, not a great experience but not enough to put me off another time. I’ll be sure to take a good look at the bacon next time and maybe consider a filter coffee instead of the machine coffee.

Always good to have a snack at the cafe in Kirkwall airport. There’s also a bar and shop. Open for breakfast and lunch as well. Toasted sandwiches always great as are the burgers and chips. Arrive early and give it a try!!