Folk cafe bar review

Folk is one of those places that you walk past and think, ‘ooh it looks nice in there’. And it is. The décor is eclectic and tasteful. It has a dark, Parisian boudoir feel about it. There is no hint of a team of interior decorators from a head office on a business park having descended on the place. It is very much an artful work in progress and as a result Folk has quickly earned a reputation as one of West Didsbury's best independent bars.

When I go out with my children I hope that I am polite and friendly, keep my children's noise to a minimum and if they kick off, take them out and I clear up my mess. In return I like to go somewhere where the staff are polite, the food and service is good and my children are not sneered at and on this visit Folk ticked all the boxes.

What Folk isn't is child friendly. And it likes it that way. There are no high chairs, drinks are served to toddlers in glass tumblers and the children's menu is limited to three items although they do state on the menu that you can ask for anything and if they have it then they'll rustle it up.

I'm a bit torn by the whole no kids thing, considering I'm reviewing child friendly places and I have two children whom I love dearly. But sometimes it's actually nice to have a space in M20 that doesn't supply crayons and bouncy castles and generally kowtow to the middle class mums of the area, of which I'm one. Should I feel like that? After all I'm paying good money to eat there and much of the daytime trade is made up of mums with babies but actually yes, on reflection I think it's a good thing.

We went at about 11.30am and were promptly given menus and asked what drinks we would like. Our drinks were delivered quickly and I positioned my little boy by the wall in one of the comfortable booths at the back to keep him in check. My little girl who is nearly one was in a car seat so I put her in the seat next to me as there are no high chairs.

The menu offers a range of home cooked favourites, as well as sandwiches and cakes. It is extensive without being over bearing and there is something for everyone. I ordered mini burger and chips (£4.50) for the children to share. I had the falafel, pitta bread, cous cous, tzatsiki, lemon juice and side salad (£8). The service was friendly and prompt. Yes, I could probably have had a more pleasant experience if I'd been somewhere that caters for children. My daughter wouldn't have tried to pull down the tassels that separate the booths and my son might not have tried to slide under the table twenty times. Then again they would have only been creating some other havoc.

When I go out with my children I hope that I am polite and friendly, keep my children's noise to a minimum and if they kick off, take them out and I clear up my mess. In return I like to go somewhere where the staff are polite, the food and service is good and my children are not sneered at and on this visit Folk ticked all the boxes. I also think that it's good for children to be in a social environment and learn to be out without being constantly molly coddled and pandered to.

Maybe I've gone a bit Victorian in my old age but that's not to say that I won't be at some padded play area tomorrow letting them run riot while I tried to shove a bag of crisps down my neck for lunch. However, for today we were civilised and went for lunch somewhere which may not be child friendly but is none the less friendly. I'm sure that a lot of Folk's clientèle are relieved that the place runs a stealth child awkward policy because not everywhere needs to feel like a creche at lunchtime.

Venues are rated against the best examples of their kind: fine dining against the best fine dining, cafes against the best cafes. Following on from this the scores represent: 1-5 saw your leg off and eat it, 6-9 get a DVD, 10-11 if you must, 12-13 if you’re passing,14-15 worth a trip,16-17 very good, 17-18 exceptional, 19 pure quality, 20 perfect. More than 20: Gordo gets carried away