Bean And Brush Family Art Cafe Review

Kids Confidential rating: 13/15

Family-friendly service 4/5, Facilities 5/5, Kids Food 4/5

IT'S SAID that us Brits love nothing more than talking about the weather.  Never was this theory proved more true than over the past week or so.  The headlines read 'Freezing February', 'Thermal Thursday' and temperatures of -15C forecast, sent us into a frantic, climatic frenzy.

From the milkman to my own mother, I'd been warned of treacherous climates.  I wasn't sure it was safe to leave the house.

I went out anyway.

When I arrived at 10am on a normal week day at Tesco's car park in Sale, there was complete chaos. Cars, people and more cars.  In the lift, I asked someone why it was so busy, even though a part of me knew the answer already.

“I think its the weather,” she said  “It's going to be -9 this weekend.”

Oh dear, so its true. They're panic buying.

My friend put things into perspective. 

“Its not cold” she spat “my mum said she's had a severe weather warning, -41C.  That's cold.”

“Yes, that is cold” I said, thinking where in the Uk could bear such hellish misery before realising my friend's mum lives in the far north of Sweden.

Bean and Brush is easy to find but parking isn't so easy.  A word of warning, carparks are limited, anything from one to two hours and everywhere else is owned by the clamper van man.

We escaped the madness outside and went in.

The cafe is warm and welcoming; wooden floors, red walls, big lampshades, lines of cakes and pastries on display by the till and the smell of  bacon and coffee filling the air. It was busy but calm, a contrast from what we'd just come from.

The craft area is at the back of the building, up a small set of stairs. There is a lift for wheelchair access.

We were greeted and the rules and prices are explained. The session costs £2.50 plus the cost of the shape/craft you choose (£3.75 for us).

Having two 'lively' toddlers we declined anything ceramic, choosing to try our hand at Decopatch which involves pasting and varnishing paper cut outs to different shaped objects.

The shelves were full of shapes to choose from.  We went for dinosaurs.  Then we selected the paper and got to work creating our masterpieces.

 Once finished our dino's were put into a bag and we moved down to the cafe area to have lunch.

The kids menu is great and very reasonably priced. We ordered a pasta and tomato sauce (£2.50) and a ham and mushroom pizza (£3.95).  Both dishes were freshly made and generous portions.

The adults had an egg mayonnaise sandwich and scrambled egg on toast (£2.95). Both good.

This place is a gem.  We thoroughly enjoyed our crafty morning, perhaps even more then the kids did.  The staff were friendly and helpful and the environment was relaxing.

If you want a change from a noisy playcentre or organised class, this is a great alternative. 

It's a fabulous place to spend a few hours with the kids and friends - plus the children can proudly take their works of art home to show off or giveaway as a gift.  And more importantly, you don't have to clean up all the mess.

Bean & Brush Art Cafe
The Old Sorting Office
12 Hayfield Street
Sale
M33 7XW

www.beanandbrush.co.uk

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Kids Confidential restaurant reviews are from a parent's viewpoint.  Restaurants are rated for their family friendly service, the facilities for children, the children's food and the overall experience as a parent with kids in tow. It's not intended to be a main Confidential food review as found on Manchester Confidential.