Tony Quarrington

“We love local”, the menu discreetly declares,
And be it full English, vegan, porridge or toast,
There is no other brunch venue in town compares,
For welcome and fresh fare make this no idle boast.

Hallowed hippie hangout half a century before,
Deafening juke box blasting in Archie’s coffee bar,
Reefer smoke swirling round the dim, crowded top floor;
Once the Acropolis, now Folkestone’s dining star.

My name quaintly spelt out in wooden Scrabble tiles
Beckons me to my customary window seat;
I taste my cappuccino while returning passing smiles,
No better spot from which to watch the winding street.

Among the mounted shelves and dried hops tree lights glint,
Local art and thank you cards adorn grey green walls;
I settle down to check my current poem print
And order food before the lunchtime menu calls.

My Kentish sausage breakfast bap arrives in time,
With two poached eggs sharing its king sized sourdough bed;
To not eat every single scrap would be a crime,
Or of pomegranate seed salad leave a shred.

But how do I contrive to eat this luscious beast
While maintaining my natural elegance and poise?
Here the humble breakfast is a flavoursome feast;
I glance again upon the street towards Big Boys.

Strange how the enduring romance of the scene below
Recedes when rain stained stone slabs no longer glisten,
But sitting here in the corner by this window,
Between the houseplants to cultured chat I listen.

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