Despite the constant rain and gloomy weather most months of the year, London is a surprisingly big cycling city.  Any day of the week, cyclists flood the streets, from commuters on Boris bikes to the serious cyclists zipping around on £3000 bikes. A thriving community of cyclists has developed and on the weekends you can see them flocking to the countryside in droves.  Whether it’s a smashy ride or a gentle pootle in the lanes, a coffee stop is usually obligatory.  Subsequently, there are a variety of cafes which cater to riders in the areas surrounding London.

One of these spots is the Tulip Tree Tea Room opposite the Chiddingstone castle. An easy 40 kilometers or so from Crystal Palace, it’s a cozy cafe that’s perfect for a stop to grab a bite to eat and warm up. I visited on a recent bike ride on a rainy October Saturday. I had been told of their banging breakfast sandwich so of course I had to try their All Day Breakfast Sandwich.

The Sandwich

Overall: 7.4 / 10

The Good

This sandwich is packed with bacon. Bit of a bold move but if you back your bacon and put forward some well cooked (not too crispy not too chewy), flavorful back bacon like the tea room did, it works splendidly. The brown bread was simple but added a great doughy texture and was a solid choice for the sandwich. Add in an almost perfectly cooked fried egg, some sausage, and a dash of mayo and this hearty sandwich was the perfect fuel up halfway through a long ride.

The Bad

For what might be the first time in the UK, I was underwhelmed by the quality of the sausage. Not that it was necessarily bad but nothing compared to the bacon it accompanied and was certainly not a Cumberland sausage. The bread lacked some structural integrity making it hard to eat as the sandwich fell apart in my hands. There was no cheese (obviously) and not much pizzazz outside the mayo. The sandwich was also too bacon heavy. Don’t get me wrong, I understand the bacon was the star of the show but even Michael Jordan had Scottie Pippen. Bring in a few more stars to support the bacon and add a bit more pizzazz and this sandwich could really be special.