Caffeine and Co - St James' Square, Manchester

I've made no secret on here of my love of coffee and fully buy into David Lynch's famous quote of "Even bad coffee is better than no coffee at all". Having said that, I'd walk a mile through Manchester city centre in the pouring rain for an excellent coffee(and I often do) - the blacker and stronger the better and Caffeine and Co is one of my favourite coffee shops in the city, serving primarily Square Mile from London.

The hand made sandwiches and cakes are always imaginative and when the sun is out the little benches outside are one of my favourite spots to sit and watch the world go by, it all feels so very Scandi cool enjoying an espresso out in the fresh air.

Today I had a Square Mile Red Brick long black coffee, a generous slab of chocolate and walnut banana loaf and a ham and tomato chutney sandwich on sourdough bread. Total £7.

My take-out coffee was as excellent as ever. I was lucky enough to get the end slice of the banana loaf, with a slightly crispy outside crusted with sugar granules and the soft tender flesh of the inside it was just fantastic - not too sweet and perfectly complemented the coffee. The sourdough bread was similarly impressive, very fresh retaining that slightly chewy texture that makes it so great and with a generous filling of ham and home made tangy tomato chutney. 

Overall a great lunch spot, definitely near the very top of my list when i'm working in the city.