teed st larder

I was prompted to write about Teed St Larder, when I saw they were also reviewed (5/5!) in the paper today. I have a fondness for their home-made crumpets served with lemon curd (crumpet and lemon curd, a revelation!). The cafe itself is large and slightly cavernous, and I think they haven't quite got it right, in terms of space.... But it would be my current top Newmarket pick, and they do have a pretty good loo.

Well, in fact they have two - and relatively unusually for Auckland cafes, these are sex-segregated... no dirty boy germs in the girls' loo; no dirty girl germs in the boys' loo! So I can't speak for the men's, but the women's is good. Although it lacks natural light, it is spacious with a maidenhair fern evoking the great outdoors. It's aesthetically austere, all white walls with no art, but it works as an overall aesthetic alongside the 'beer crate' design that flows through from the cafe.

The amenities: a large if plain mirror, domestic loo roll, non-commercial soap, paper towels for the hands; incense sticks.... The one flaw, from an aesthetic experiential point of view, is that the space also houses the baby-changing table, which disrupts the clean lines and minimalist design of the space. Otherwise, it's not bad at all, a nice accompaniment to a nice cafe.

the little cake kitchen

The little cake kitchen is another delightful bakery with just enough tables in its handkerchief-sized space to count as a cafe (though beware they don't have a permit for real coffee cups; there's no space for the necessary steriliser, apparently) and the all-important loo...

There's no two ways about it, this loo is all about functionality! You have the sense of being an interloper into a space not quite intended for you, if you venture here. Staff clothing and various other accoutrements vie for space with essential loo features. It's tiny and grimy; no fancy art or mirrors here... But there's something almost pure and honest that I like about it, even thought on my aesthetic criteria is lacks a certain something (well, to be a honest, a certain everything). That said, there is beauty to be seen, if you look for it.

And it does have natural light - of sorts. It does have domestic loo roll. It does have paper hand towels. It's otherwise small and cramped, and there's certainly no way a wheelchair could enter or exit... The basin is nice, an old domestic style, but it has two taps, dishing either cold or far-too-scalding-hot-for-me (but probably good if you're a bakery worker!) water. The soap's disguised in what looks more like a food-syrup dispenser, so I'm judging it pretty middle of the road.

So it's not exactly a top loo, not a reason to visit the little cake kitchen, but I perversely like it all the same. Thinking about why this is, since it really stretches the bounds, I think it's because they haven't made some half-arsed attempt to disguise the brute reality that this is a functional space one should enter and exit as quickly as possible, and get back to making (or eating) that damn fine ginger loaf!

Monterey

Monterey Coffee Lounge, situated in the West Lynn shops, in Auckland, is a delightful, retro-styled cafe serving excellent food (pretty much all organic), coffee (of course!), the delicious Hakanoa ginger beer, and it features one of my top loos! What is so good about it? The one loo on offer is spacious (disabled), with clean design (white walls, natural light from a window), and simple, beautiful art that fits with the aesthetics of the whole cafe (a whites aviation print, a series of three flying ducks, as mirrors). Paper towels are provided to dry your hands, the soap is a domestic product, perfectly ok, but not 'designer' and even though the taps are separate, the water temperature is good.

This loo rates in my top five, no question - go wee, there, now!