Not only did The Hawthorne café/restaurant retain pride of place on the first floor when Fulton’s relocated to the Balmoral Plaza development on Boucher Road, but a downstairs espresso bar was included too, with splendid leather seats where you can have a restorative coffee and something to tempt the sweet tooth.
The shop’s stairwell - of cathedral proportions, like the shop itself - incorporates a double escalator leading to the first floor where the Hawthorne has floor to ceiling windows and a number of pleasant seating areas, some with elevated views over the Boucher Road and beyond to the Black Mountain.
If you’re shopping or have business in the area (generous parking) this is a great place to know about as, thanks to the personal attention of Sylvia Fulton, there’s a pride in real home cooking - and the art of scone making is alive and well.
There’s nothing flashy about the food: expect lovely flavoursome dishes like home-made soup with wheaten bread, quiches - asparagus & salmon, vegetable - seafood pie and steak & mushroom hot-pot and several casseroles daily.
There’s always a large selection of salads, and home-made desserts like banoffee and lemon meringue pie - and free refills of coffee. An added attraction, between 12 and 2, is the resident pianist playing on a Steinway baby grand.
Seats 160 (private room, 60). Open Mon Sat 9.15-5.15. A la carte. Espresso bar open to 8 pm Thu, for late night shoppers. Children welcome (high chair, baby changing facilities); toilets wheelchair accessible. Master Card, Visa, Switch.
