Workbridge Coffee Shop in Northampton

I visit the Workbridge cafe at least once a week. It’s one of the best cafes in the area. Their cakes are amazing, have never had a bad one, and the staff are great. Because they are not an ordinary cafe there is sometimes a little bit more of a wait when they are busy.

The last time we came here one meal was missed by the kitchen .As there were only two of us and we were the only people in the cafe, this was pretty poor. Today we gave it another try....Having waited for 30 mins for our order, it was not overly busy, My husband enquired when it might arrive. We were told it had been received. After another 10 mins when nothing appeared, we asked for a refund and left. No apologies were given. I understand that this is a charity and as such am usually happy to support their work, but I won't be going back.

Unwelcoming This was our first visit so new to it. Went in not knowing whether you ordered at table or counter and was stood looking for s table when approached by one of the staff. Her question was "have you ordered".we said no but how does it work with regards ordering was our question and all we got was the queue is up there. We walked out and will not be back.

My friend and I visited here for lunch on Monday 12th June. The cafe tables hasn't been cleared and there was a shortage of staff serving tables. Our food eventually arrived. The cheese ploughman's was a joke! Cheese slices from a packet cut up into triangles. Not my idea of a ploughman's. The server said we had to get our own cutlery and napkins after he'd walked by them on his way from the kitchen! There were no napkins out so I had to ask for them. They had run out of ice so my cold drink soon became a warm one in temperatures of 28C. The people before us in the queue hadn't received their chips so they went to get a refund. This place used the so good and we enjoyed supporting a charity. Now it's a cafe with poor food and service to match. There are plenty of other excellent cafes in Northamptonshire. Sadly this is no longer one of them. We won't be returning. I'd suggest you try elsewhere.

My mum and I often come for coffee and cake but came for afternoon tea today as a treat. This was honestly up there with the more well known afternoon tea venues in the area. Amazing pastries and cakes, very reasonably priced and excellent service. We’ll definitely be coming back and spreading the word.

My daughter and myself have just enjoyed an excellent afternoon tea. Lovely selection of both savoury and sweet. Thoroughly recommend a visit

Over priced low quality food. Can't recommend with so many good cafes so close to this location in town.

I am a regular to the range of retail here and often stop for a coffee or snack meal. It was so good when the cafe re-opened and I have confidence in their Covid protection. Though the menu choices are smaller it seems to me, my favourite black americano coffee is always hot, mild and delicious just how I like it. Yesterday I accompanied it with a super cheese scone as a late snack lunch. The atmosphere is always calm and no blaring music or announcements, so a little haven in which to enjoy my drink and read my book in peace.

We've been here once or twice for the garden centre and thought we must give the coffee shop a try. Wow' its brilliant, only had time for a quick cream tea but it was delicious. We are definitely coming back for a lunch next time, the menu looks very tempting. Good luck to them and hope that the corona virus doesn't hit them too hard

The Daily Bread organic shop on the site is a regular stop when I'm in the area - their own brand yeast extract knocks Marmite for six, and there are plenty of other weird and wonderful items to add to your larder - and any visit demands a quick look around the associated garden centre, a rummage in the charity shop and a cuppa in the cafe. It's fair to say that they are still working out the best way to proceed - light meals and drinks are available, but when we visited there were no tables indoors although there is plenty of room to sit outside under a large canopy. It's a place where you can refresh yourself at a very reasonable price and also support a good cause, good luck to them as they get to grips with post-lockdown life.

We come to Workbridge often and receive a warm and friendly welcome every time. The food is always fresh and delicious and there is a great range to choose from. We love coming here! Would highly recommend.

We re-visited Workbfidge on a beautiful sunny day, mainly for the garden centre. The car Park was; as ever, a nightmare, so it was good to be able to relax with tea and cakes! The coffee shop is a bustling, friendly, place and it was a great treat to be waited on so diligently.

Had a wonderful afternoon tea.12 of us from a over 60s club attended.Lovely home baked cakes and lovely filled sandwiches.Brilliant service and experience from booking to service. Dietary requirements well catered for.Nothing was too much trouble .Service very efficient and everyone cheery.Without even asking containers appeared as doggy bags as everyone was full and still plenty left.Can thorougly recommend as a good afternoon out with garden centre ,shop and Daily Bread on site.Well done everyone

We visited this coffee shop whilst visiting the complex to buy from the Daily Bread Shop that offers a vast array of organic heath foods. The coffee and bacon butty were very tasty and sensibly priced. There were many craft items for sale that are made on the site by special needs people and a nice Charity Shop and Garden Centre onsite.

Superb afternoon tea! Lovely homemade food at an incredibly good price, served by lovely staff. Would have taken a picture, butwas sharing and the food was disappearing fast. I needn't have worried because there was a goodly quantity. Worth passing some other afternoon teas for. All freshmade. Yum!

The members of staff are so nice and the cakes are the best I've ever tasted and such big slices! There is also a small garden centre and health food shop and charity shop on site. Definitely worth a visit. Great value!

Just returned home from having a delicious afternoon tea with sandwiches and delicious cakes.. What a lovely spread and homemade cakes and cream teas to die for. Staff were excellent and nothing was too much botherfor them Thank you once again

Becoming more popular so parking can be a problem. Food is good quality especially the cakes. Presentation of food can vary but is always good. Value speaks for itself as indicated by numbers dining.

The coffee shop at Workbridge is part of the wider St Andrew’s Healthcare, in Northampton.It is well located on the outskirts of Northampton, adjacent to the Bedford Road roundabout. Accessibility and parking are straightforward.There are other complementary services on site, all part of St Andrew’s impressive approach to community reintegration...vocational training, experiential learning, work and enterprise solutions. Ultimately however, these, like the coffee shop itself, have to compete with other (for profit) providers of similar services....farm shops, garden centres etc. In this respect, we think Westbridge does rather well. We go there, frequently, not because of its ‘not for profit’, charitable ideology (although that is true), but because it provides a jolly good service, good value and, most important of all, because we like it and we enjoy ourselves there.Well done and thank you.

We haven’t been here for a while and remembered it used to be a good place for lunch. It has changed since our last visit, become larger and an outside area added, all looking good. I can only imagine how much money has been spent on creating this cafe. Unfortunately the same thing can’t be said for the food. It’s fine if you just want a sandwich, cake or drink. Where is the hot food , salads etc ?, the only thing we saw was soup and a sausage in a roll. There are no menus, you have to peer at a chalk board on the wall. Whilst we stood there at two other couples came in looked at the blackboard , mumbled and walked out again as did we.Shame, such potential, hope it changes.

We enjoyed a panini and then tea and cake. To me it's a feel good cafe. It's good simple food and nice and roomy with volunteer staff willing to serve you.

I visited specifically to have a salad in between work meetings. I have been before and enjoyed a filled roll but this time ordered a tuna and cheese salad. The cheese was a rectangular lump and had almost no flavour and the tuna (& mayo) had practically no seasoning. The salad was basic and had no finesse. I love this place for the atmosphere and the overall values and ethics but this was a disappointment. Afterwards I wondered if they were short staffed.

When you realise that this little cafe is run entirely by people with disabilities, you know what an inspirational place it is. The food and drinks may take just a little longer to arrive than other cafes, but it is totally worth the wait. Delicious, enormous slices of homemade cakes are to die for, along with lovely coffee. Finish off with a visit to the garden centre, Daily Bread and the charity shop - all run on the same basis.

This cafe is situated alongside the Daily bread wholefood shop. there is also a garden centre and charity shop on site. It is run for the benefit of people with disabilities and is mainly staffed by them. They are polite, friendly and extremely able. We always eat there when we are in Northampton.

This is a great little coffee shop, awesome ploughmans with all the trimmings, really attentive staff.

My son asked if we could go here for lunch as he’d been before and had a good experience.

Perfect selection of cakes and flapjacks with the lovely flat white coffee. Great service and fantastic value

I have been coming here for years and written glowing reviews for it. But is has just won a Good Food Award for best independent cafe - and what a disaster. Suddenly it is overcrowded and they just can't cope. We ordered two bacon sandwiches, one tea, one coffee and two flapjacks. Then we waited for half an hour. Eventually the sandwiches came and were delicious. By the time we had eaten them our drinks had not arrived - we asked where they were were TWICE. They NEVER arrived, nor did the flapjacks. After one hour we left.

On all levels What a brilliant place Most definitely worth calling in Not only a nice place to visit The food is excellent value fresh and very good. There is a very well stocked health food shop selling unique produce Plus I good garden shop.

We stumbled across this place looking for a place to have breakfast whilst waiting for hospital appointment.

Never mind cordon bleu...give me friendly service and value for money every time. No need to book and don't expect a wide selection...you get what you see, and it will always be an satisfying visit. The food selection is basic but wholesome and well prepared. The service is helpful and the prices are much lower than you might imagine. The walls are full of interesting things to buy, some by local artists, so you won't be bored. And the service is excellent, especially if you get Tracy, who wins my award.

Visited today (Sat 25/01/16) Clean, airy room, clean tables, nice selection of digital canvas prints for sale at reasonable prices on display round the room. We had a Coffee, a Tea, a Hot Chocolate and Flapjacks, served in clean, nice sized cups, and on clean plates. Pleasant service, too.

Visited workbridge coffee shop and had the flapjack and coffee. The flapjack was delicious and the portion size was extremely generous. The shop was very busy, but the staff were friendly and efficient. The prices were excellent, almost half of high street coffee shops. Definitely will be returning.

I have been coming here for years, and it has always been a charming and friendly place to enjoy a very good cup of coffee (not to mention the delicious cakes!) It has undergone quite a transformation over the years and now has a large area of outside seating and a much expanded interior with a great atmosphere. A word of warning - DO NOT EAT THE FLAPJACK - it is highly addictive!

Good service and good food. Worth the wait to have everything served fresh and not plastic wrapped. Good space to sit - inside & out - not crowded.

This Coffee Shop was set up to help people at St Andrews hospital gain the confidence to get back into employment. As a result, I have never encountered such happy and friendly staff in a coffee shop. It is very popular at lunchtimes (eating in or take away sandwiches, salads and cakes etc). Service may be slower sometimes when its busy but the rewards are the smiles. Prices are very competitive and the food delicious. There's also a garden shop, a health food shop and a charity shop - all of which are well worth a visit. You can even buy prints from the walls of the coffee shop or pottery items in the garden shop. As a regular visitor, its always a pleasure to eat and shop there.

Brought some sewing pals on a first visit and they simply loved it. Now noted on their travel plans as an excellent stopping off point. Ethical, inclusive and yummy cakes!!!

We have been visiting Workbridge for many years. The staff are always helpful and support the service users to gain both skills and confidence in dealing with work, the public and hopefully moving on to employment. This is clearly the focus of Workbridge. We have always enjoyed the food but recently the bacon rolls and other hot food have been taken off the Saturday menu. During the week this is available and we have often visited then as well. We don't really understand this and many other customers we have talked to have expressed surprise at this decision. We understand there may well be staffing issues associated with this, although it is clear that the number of customers appears to have decreased on those Saturday mornings. We also understand that there is now a new manager for the cafe and would ask that this decision could be rethought? We will continue to support the cafe as always but a bit more flexibility would not only attract more customers and more revenue but would also increase the opportunities for service users. It is still a great place to visit and to enjoy the facilities, and we will continue to support this cafe.

This is a great place, not only because it gives work to people who might find it difficult to get, but also because it does great food at very reasonable prices. The hot bacon rolls are fantastic value. Adjacent garden centre, charity shop and whole foods shop also well worth visiting.

Auntie's 90th birthday. Tables set when we arrived. Good choice of food, nice environment and suitable car parking. Reasonable price - what more can you ask for.

Nice people, sometimes service could be quicker, but relaxing. A definite thumbs up. Light and airy. Interesting display of pictures on walls.

The coffee shop has received a serious upgrade and is now a very attractive venue. The cakes and flapjacks were generously portioned and very tasty. However, the coffee was like warm and the service very slow. Not somewhere to pop into if you are in a hurry.

This is not al a carte dining, it is good home cooking. The food is good quality and nicely presented.The queue can be a bit slow, but it is worth the wait. I had an egg mayo and ham salad, all nice and fresh. No complaints at all. Lovely setting, not far from the town centre and yet you feel like you are miles away, a very tranquil setting. Lovely place to go when the sun is shining.

We called here today for the first time, very impressed. We had tea, coffee and cakes, all very delicious and great value.

I work nearby, and often meet colleagues for a quiet coffee and cake. The refurbishment, means that the cafe is bright, airy with lots of covered external seating. Lunchtime can be very busy indeed, but the quality of the food on offer, and the constant warm welcome of the staff make the wait worthwhile. Homemade cakes are delicious and the portions v. Generous.

Wide menu and good prices. The hot bacon rolls are fantastic. Great ethos, too, as it provides work for people who would find it difficult to get elsewhere. The charity shop and Daily Bread on the same site are also well worth visiting.

I cannot express enough how lovely this place is, friendly staff and great atmosphere. Would strongly recommend a visit!

Nice people, good food and ambiance, even a garden!! The cheese scones are very tasty! Good range of food on offer, clean and tidy. In the summer you can sit outside and make vitamin D!

This is a good meeting place for coffee or a light lunch. Both the savouries and the cakes are home made and taste delicious.

This is a lovely place for a coffee or for lunch. It's so valuable as a community resource, and is located next to the Daily Bread food and spice shop, the charity shop and the garden centre. Well worth a visit.

We are regular visitors to this coffee shop and love the freshly cooked foods. If you go during the busy lunch period then expect a wait to be served at the counter. This is due to the popularity of this place. All food is homemade and we particularly like the soup which varies every day.

Had a late lunch, tuna sandwich and bacon roll. Then the loveliest cake eaten out for a long time. Great cappuccino too

Lovely clean restaurant food is so reasonably priced and made to order, gets very busy at lunchtimes offering soup,panini, sandwiches, toasties,jacket potato and salads, lovely cakes too, a reward card for hot drinks too when full you receive a free slice of cake, lovely areas outside to sit, even by the lake also charity shop, garden centre and the daily bread shop

After a friend's recommendation I visited this cafe with another friend. It was really busy and I can see why. Lovely food reasonably priced. We both had a ploughman's lunch. Two huge pieces of cheese, I had brie and stilton my friend had brie and cheddar, with a salad garnish, crusty bread, pickle and a pickled onion. Delicious and only £4.30 each. They also have salads, sandwiches, jacket potatoes and more. I can really recommend this cafe. There's also a garden centre and charity shop on site and there's Daily Bread which sells dried fruit, pulses and lots more. This is a co-operative not a big company so give them a try.

We've been here a few times, very generous portions of very good homemade cakes and flapjacks at very reasonable prices. They've also just had a patio area added outside which is really nice and means we can now take the dogs along and combine it with a walk to burn some of the calories off limited menu of jacket potatoes, pain is and pasties are all good quality too (and scones are some of the best around). Staff are lovely and always helpful, great to have somewhere like this in the local community. They also have a garden centre and ceramic workshop on site which are both excellent too. Daily Bread co-operative next door also great for health foods and much better value than the high street.

Visited today for tea and cake. The tea was lovely, the service good (though they did forget about our teas and needed reminding: it did get busy suddenly) Unfortunately the very generous piece of Victoria sponge was quite dry which was a bit disappointing.

Delicious lunch well presented, excellent friendly service, pretty surroundings. Well worth several visits.

This lovely little gem is perfect for light refreshments. Have had lunch here on a number of occasions and never been disappointed. The rolls/sandwiches are generously filled, taste lovely and excellent value for money. Service is polite and prompt and impossible to fault.

Great café located just off of the Bedford Road in Northampton. This is a bit of a hidden gem. Offers a basic menu of sandwiches, salads, soups and jacket potatoes at a reasonable price. Staff are lovely and the service is always speedy despite the fact that it always seems to be busy. Nice to sit outside in the garden or on the benches at the front of the café on a sunny day. The café offers work experience for individuals with mental health and learning disability needs which is a fantastic community minded concept. There are also a couple of small shops located close to the café, including a garden centre.

Regular lunches taken here with elderly Mum who staff make a fuss of. Food and service excellent, prices very reasonable. It's nice to feel profits are going back into the community.

Lovely little coffee shop which is a hidden gem. Nice food and lovely staff and an excellent community support project. DEFINITELY WORTH A VISIT

Great little cafe , soups great and huge bowls, lovely home made cake and icing is all to support good cause

I love this place, it is just p the road from my office. They do beautiful food and the cakes are on a par with my Mom's!

Lovely coffee shop with tables outside by the lake as well as inside. Delicious freshly cooked food and lovely cakes.

Lovely surroundings, really lovely staff who will make you up a sandwich if what they have isn't what you wanted. Jacket potatoes and some of the best flapjacks. The fact you are helping a charity too makes it even better. Garden centre and health food shop all part of the same setup. Can't recommend highly enough.

I had to wait for a car MOT and didn't want to pop into town so I wandered down here with no expectation and was blow away.

My wife has been to this treasure of a place quite a few times so I thought I should pop along as well. Situated just off a busy main road, Workbridge is one of Northampton's best kept secrets.