My Top Places to Lunch in Sheffield: Nosh, Division Street

Nosh tea

I think Division Street is great! There’s an independent butchers, quirky pubs and bars, cute cafes and even a Chinese bakery (but let’s ignore the dodgy sex shop shall we?). It’s probably one of my favourite places in the city centre to have a little walk down, as well as the cobbled streets near the Crucible. If you fancy a cheap but tasty meal I’d say Nosh is the place to go, it’s a cafe that opened recently, opposite Bungalow and Bears, and is extremely bank account friendly.

The last person I took here said “it’s very orange in here” but he loved the coffee. It’s true the interior is strikingly bright, but it’s still a relaxed place to go for a bite to eat or a coffee. They always seem to have offers on, 2 for 1 on hot drinks some days, 20% for checking in on Facebook, a Monday quiz on Facebook where you can win free hot drinks or a free meal. They’re handing things out all over the place! You’d have to be really unlucky to get there and there not be an offer on! It would be like going to DFS when they aren’t giving away sofas!

Pancakes

Most recently I was awarded some free pancakes for writing a short review of them on Facebook (they also give you free pancakes on your birthday!) so I really couldn’t wait to get down there and eat my prize! I love visiting for the coffee so I was going to go anyway! The pumpkin latte I had during October was really tasty and luxurious but I would also recommend their mochas and regular lattes on a more normal day, it's definitely one up on the big coffee chains. I ordered banoffee pancakes, and although they were out of bananas I had the toffee sauce and chocolate sprinkles with two pancakes while my boyfriend had four pancakes soaked in chocolate sauce! They were really tasty and I would definitely recommend them, even if you have to pay for your pancakes. 

My pumpkin latte

There is a wide variety of coffees, teas, soups, cakes and sandwiches to please everyone. It’s really very popular, there are people of all ages in there taking advantage of the brilliant deals. With students sat at a table next to pensioners, it's brilliant! I’ve been going since I arrived in Sheffield in September and it’s still so good. The big windows make the cafe bright and the smell of coffee mixed with laid back indie music makes it a really great place to go with friends, other halves or even parents for a relaxing and casual time.

Marmadukes - lunchtime happiness with friends

Help yourself to sauces!

One of the things I love about Yorkshire is the friendly and happy attitude that the people carry with them everyday. It’s very different from the way people are in London and it’s definitely quite refreshing. There is a certain stigma about the North in the South in which everyone is poor, speaks like the Starks in Game of Thrones (“aye”) and is covered in soot. Sheffield is a very prosperous town, but the coal mines have been shut for some time, so it’s unlikely that the people of Sheffield will be covered in soot. I have to admit their accents are pretty strong though! History lessons aside, the homely feeling that is so characteristic of the people of Sheffield is something that has also been transferred into their various eateries. Today I visited a wonderful example of this, Marmadukes on Norfolk Row (just off Fargate), it almost takes homely to another level!

Homity Pie

We went there on the suggestion of my friend Abbie, who had been dying to go (you can check out her blog post about it here) along with a few others, for an early and happy lunch. It really is incredibly inside, so warm and friendly, it’s like you’ve stopped off at someone’s cottage in the Peak District for a bite to eat, there’s even a huge cuddly teddybear! The atmosphere is relaxed and friendly, with shelves of condiments to help yourself to. It makes you want to stay forever, lapping up the welcoming attitude of the staff and the tasty smells of the food cooking. 

rustic sandwiches with salads

The food that they serve is deli style and very British, with homity pies, salads, quiches and sandwiches for the lunchtime customers. The prices as reasonable, I got a homity pie which comes with a salad of your choice for £6, there’s not much you can really complain about especially as you get a filling meal. 

Outside the cafe

Everything is presented in a rustic way with the homity pies served on camping style plates and sandwiches served on thick wooden boards. For anyone who doesn’t know, a homity pie is a traditional British open pie filled with creamy potatoes, onions and leeks, it’s been a long time since I’ve eaten anything like this but gently warmed, this was really tasty with a crisp cheesy top. The cauliflower and couscous salad I had to accompany it, sprinkled with pomegranate seeds, I loved and went really well with the pie. 

The choice of cakes and pastries was amazing, with salted caramel apple pie and scones as big as my hand. I think this is definitely my kind of place. I will be coming back very soon for something sweet! The menu is vast and it’s so popular that there’s an amazing mix of people in there. If you haven’t been you really need to, this place is a must if you’re ever anywhere near Sheffield!