Steven receives awards on behalf of Cafe Morello for  the Norwich in Bloom competition. To see details read the blog for November 4th.

So much has happened since the last update. Amy, who I said had gone on maternity leave, has now had her baby and anyone who has been in the Cafe since 29th. August would have seen the pictures of our grand-daughter Lily who was born on that day weighing in at 9lb 3 oz. As I write this I am sitting in an Hospital room in Delaware, USA where Amy's sister, Jennie, has just given birth to Anna Alexandra. Weighing in at 7lb 10 born on 9th. October. Both are doing well. That's three daughters and three grandchildren this year!! Two girls and a boy and all are doing well, Pam and I thank God for such wonderful blessings.

 

While we are away we have left the Cafe in the capable hands of our regular staff, Jennette, Toni and Fiona, so we know our customers are being well looked after.  Before I left I was busy making lots of soup because, giving in to customer pressure, I had to put it back on the menu from 22nd. September, the official start of Autumn. 

I had thought to start it again from the first of October, but so many customers were coming in asking for it that I just had to give in in the end. So our homemade soup is now firmly back on the menu from now till the start of Summer next year. We have already had lots of good comments from our customers. It is so hard to beat a hot bowl of wholesome, homemade soup at lunchtime, particularly if you add a portion of French stick spread with garlic and herb butter and browned under the grill, mmmmmmm delicious.

 

We have had another change of staff because Hatti found that her work load for her last year of A levels was so high that she could not afford the time to work in the Cafe. We were sorry to lose her as, although she had been with us for only a short time, her bubbly personality was such a delight. We were however fortunate, around this time, to have another young lady come in looking for work. Thirza was looking for work in her gap year and so has now taken Hatti's place. She is settling in quickly as our regular Saturday person as well as occasional shifts during the week. We look forward to her being with us for a long time and since she has been with us she has seen some very busy days and this does not seem to have put her off, so I have high hopes she will fit in well.

 

When I return from the States we have a pleasant engagement to attend, as the presentations for the 'Norwich in Bloom' competition take place. As you know we won our section of this competition for our floral displays in hanging baskets and window boxes etc in the yard outside the Cafe. We were all so pleased to win this award and have some official recognition for what we get so much pleasure in doing every year. In fact, as will have seen if you have been to see us recently, the flowers are still looking good. The Busy Lizzies are still in full bloom as are two of the pink geraniums in the hanging baskets as well as those in the large pots. I have planted some wall flowers in the small garden area and had to water then everyday initially as there had not been any rain for so long. I am glad to say that has given them a  good start and we look forward to a good display in the spring.

 

Its interesting to look back at the weather before we came to the States as it must have been a period close on 6 weeks without any appreciable rain in our area. I noticed that this had a positive effect on the autumn colours and the leaves on the trees looked particularly vibrant this year. This dry period also meant that all the leaves that fell in our garden were so much easier to collect up and the grass almost stopped growing. All in all it was one of the best Septembers I can remember and re inforces it as my favourite month of the year.

 

Going back to the Cafe, we continue to stock Soya milk and this is appreciated by those customers with a dairy intolerance. Also we are still actively seeking a successful recipe for a Gluten free cake. We do make a kind of short bread biscuit which is tasty and sells well but a good cake mixture has eluded us. Two customers have come in recently and said they have recipes that work and will let us have them so we remain optimistic that eventually we will fill this last gap in our menu.

 

Finally, you know we regularly sell the Barundi bears in the Cafe which helps build schools in Africa. Well the ladies from Bunwell Church estimate that we have given them over £200 since we started selling them. They are so pleased and continue to knit more so we will continue to sell them. However, for Christmas we have a new appeal. This one is to help with the 'Shoe Box Appeal' We are hoping to raise £100 to assist in the sending of the 'Shoeboxes', which are filled with Christmas presents to needy children around the world. So when you come in please 'buy a square', it's only a pound and it will all go to such a good cause.

 

That's it for now, quite a long blog but I hope you enjoyed it.

 

Bye for now.

Steven

November 4th

December 2nd

2^nd December

What a busy time we are having in the Cafe! Christmas shopping started about four weeks ago it seems for many of our customers. The city has been exceptionally busy and that means we have too. It's great that so many of you come to see us and I feel I must apologise to our regulars who are finding it hard to get in during the main lunchtime period. I also must thank you also for coming back to us when you are next in the city.

We are into that time of year when we open on a Sunday and this Sunday 6^th will be our third. They are proving busy days and you may get a surprise if you come in because Pam is back!! Well just for these Sundays and she is enjoying meeting you all after so long away.

Last  Sunday Pam and I put up the Christmas decorations and we hope you enjoy the atmosphere created in our small Cafe. I must thank Bruce from Looses for the lovely lights in our yard. He has done this for the last few years and like Topsy they seem to grow every year and look particularly attractive during those dull, dark, winter afternoons. As I adorn the yard with flowers, particularly beautiful in the Summer, I think its great that Bruce plays his part in the winter. We have a very good relationship with Looses and I think this all adds to making Orford Yard a good place to shop and stop for refreshment. I rather like the word symbiotic, and this, I think, nicely describes Morello's and Looses in the Yard.

I must thank one of our customers, Kerry, who has supplied us with some delicious gluten free recipes and we are now regularly offering these for sale and they have been well received, particularly the ‘Black Hole of Death Brownie’!!

Lastly our charity fundraising always goes well in the cafe, thanks for your generosity and I can report that we raised £109 for the ‘Shoeboxes’ appeal. Thank you so much. Also the Burundi Bears continue to sell well and the money is going to help build schools in Africa.

That's it for now. All of us at Cafe Morello wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Steven  

18^th December

As Christmas is approaching fast I thought I would write one more entry before the big day arrives!

Its been all go in the Cafe for some time now. We have been particularly busy for some weeks as the Christmas shopping rush seemed to start earlier this year. I heard on the news that the retail section report a slow down in spending this year. I wonder what everyone is doing in Norwich then?

I have to thank all our staff for rising to the challenge and working so hard over this period and to our customers who cope with the extra queues with such good cheer.

I have introduced a policy, which will become the norm in future, concerning the sharing of tables. This has come about because some customers, not our regulars, try to reserve our large tables, which will seat 4 or 5 or more, for just 2 people. Now, as you know, we only have 9 tables inside and if each of these only has 2 people at them, then I would not stay in business for long! So at our busy times, I will expect tables to be shared. This is in line with our reputation as a friendly, family restaurant and of course if some customers want privacy then they can always wait for a small table to come free (there are 3 of these). I don’t think any of our regulars, nor the majority of customers who visit us,  will have any problems with this policy and of course in all respects we try to make sure our customers are comfortable and at ease. However I would ask that everyone respects this policy, thank you.

I am sitting here at home and  there is a lovely wintry scene outside, with our garden covered in snow, and it is very cold outside at about minus 1 C.  I love snow and though it causes its difficulty to many and makes travelling difficult and dangerous, I love it. Pam and I may make a snow man in our front garden before I make my way into the cafe later this morning. I hear , on the radio, that there are at least 100 schools closed today as at 8.15 am. I wonder if this will make the city busier or whether it will keep people indoors? It is always hard to tell as the weather is clear with a lovely blue sky at the moment. As there are so few shopping days left before Christmas I expect lots of people will feel they have to get in to get those last presents.

Our new Gluten free products are selling well, and not just with celiac, as they are very tasty. We have this week added mince pies to this list, so if you have this problem then you can be confident that we will have something for you.

This coming Sunday 20^th. We will be open again but it will be our last one and we return to our usual Sunday closing thereafter.

Well as I have said before, I Hope you all have a lovely Christmas and that 2010 is a good year for you.

From Pam and Steven