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Digbeth
- Thread starter Astoness
- Start date
dek carr
gone but not forgotten
Can anyone remember a Cafe the second shop up toward Deritend from Smithfield Garage. this was probably the smallest cafe in brum they had little pews between tables for seats two men ran the cafe lovely blokes though, we would go in there for a tomato dip (a crust dipped in the tomato pan) for a penny,every day they would have a tray of cakes that lasted about 10 minutes if you were lucky i used to love the Lardy (dripping )cakes the size of a piece of bread i could sink my teeth into one right now. Dek
motorman-mike
Brum visitor who stayed.
dek that was the Minerva Cafe, alternative Midland Red canteen for many of us that worked at Digbeth Garage/Coach Station.
The Minerva Cafe was a real old family run business, it was run by John Fletcher and his brother Ernie Fletcher, together with their sister Lil, who communicated between the brothers who apparently didn't get on. So John worked at the front of the shop serving sausage and tomato sandwiches and 'tomato dips' and Ernie worked in the back kitchen where he cooked the bacon and made up the orders for the local factories to take out. 6 days a week it was a little 'goldmine'.
The interior fittings were all pre-war and they were never changed or upgraded, dark brown paint and tiny little booths to sit in, stools in the window where you could look out onto Digbeth and the Midland Red opposite, even the old one penny pin ball machine at the back of the cafe was a museum piece, it must have come from the 30's.
The cafe was started by Joe Fletcher the father of the family in the 30's and John and Ernie came into the business after war service.
The cafe closed when Smithfield Garage obtained the buildings to extend their premises to the corner of Oxford Street sometime in the late 70's I think.
I can still remember those sausage and tomato sandwiches, the sausage's were slow cooked in a little black metal cooker on the counter next to the hot water urn and had a taste that I dont think any sausage will ever have again and all for one and six, oh the memories!!!
Smiler
The interior fittings were all pre-war and they were never changed or upgraded, dark brown paint and tiny little booths to sit in, stools in the window where you could look out onto Digbeth and the Midland Red opposite, even the old one penny pin ball machine at the back of the cafe was a museum piece, it must have come from the 30's.
The cafe was started by Joe Fletcher the father of the family in the 30's and John and Ernie came into the business after war service.
The cafe closed when Smithfield Garage obtained the buildings to extend their premises to the corner of Oxford Street sometime in the late 70's I think.
I can still remember those sausage and tomato sandwiches, the sausage's were slow cooked in a little black metal cooker on the counter next to the hot water urn and had a taste that I dont think any sausage will ever have again and all for one and six, oh the memories!!!
Smiler
motorman-mike
Brum visitor who stayed.
I well remember watching John slice all the bread by hand - no slicer or pre sliced bread in the Minerva. They used long catering sized loaves and his breadknfe had been sharpenend that much the blade was about half the width it started out as. If you asked for a crust to your sandwich he managed one off each loaf as he used to go off at an angle with his cutting so the end crust ended up wedge shape. Trevor was right about the sos and tom sandwiches!
paul stacey
master brummie
my favorite was a tomato dip, we did it with a piece of fried bread dipped in tomato pan and brown sauce deffinatly brummie and simply the greatest.
dek carr
gone but not forgotten
Smiler thank you for your memories youv,e painted it exactly as i recall it even down to that little penny pin ball machine screwed to the wall what a good memory you have. i was a 15-16 year old electrical apprentice based in Moor St in the early 60s we often did electrical work at Smithfield Garage i was no more than nine and a half stone at that time and any time i went to the Cafe i was befriended by John who must have thought i needed fattening up he was always giving me food that i could not pay for the cafe used to shut early afternoon he used to tell me to come back just before he shut and would give me a sandwhich or any cake that had not been eaten i really looked forward to working in Digbeth as this would give me an excuse to go in the cafe. Dek
Couldn't agree more.I first went there in early 1960 when I worked at Henry Shaws' in Birchill street.The sos and tom then was a shilling and I think the dips were tuppence.He use to sell lots of dips to the men who were staying at Rowton House and sometimes when the weather was a bit parky you had a job getting in there and they took ages to get through even a single slice.I don't think they were allowed to stay in Rowton House during the day.I will never forget the taste of the sos and tom,the best ever and I have been in a few cafes in my work as a hgv driver for about fifty years.BobS.
H
Humph3
Guest
I had a similar cafe to visit near the reservoir in Reservoir Road Ladywood during luchtime when i was at school in the early 60's. We could get a penny dip. Thick wedge of bread dipped in the frying pan with bacon fat and tomato - it was lovely. If you asked for a tuppenny dip, you got lumps on it - that is tomato. Also once week, we would go down to the off license where we could get penny bags of Smith's crisps. They were broken crisps which were delivered only once a week and used to go like hot cakes. Twice as big as a normal bag and packed tight and for the quarter of the price.....
Regards
Humnph
A Sparks
master brummie
Probably because people in those days got plenty of excercise through hard work and walking everywhere. It counteracted the less than healthy food!
W
Wendy
Guest
Here is a thought provoking picture of women and children in Digbeth 1912 during the coal strike. They had to rely on the Medical Mission to feed their children.
paul stacey
master brummie
Can I say how these women look quite proud, and how spotless they seem to be attired with their white aprons and the children too.
paul
paul
A lot of the women are wearing flat caps. Would they have been their own or their miner husbands I wonder? Viv.
W
Wendy
Guest
I love the ladies in their flat caps. I remember in Kathleen Dayus's books she would mention her mother putting her cap on when going into battle with a neighbour.
That's funny Wendy. I suppose wearing them gave women a sense of power and strength! Viv.
HI HUMP3
I can recall that cafe during that period it done very well for customers
and later on in the years they had a small hatch applied to the side of the shop ; for late night trading where upon all the late night dwellers
would stradle out of the tower balloom and we would all be queing up at the hatch to get a hot dog or burgerfrom the hatch ;
and after a while a year down the line the friend of my brothers from ickneild sqaure set a couple of hot dogs stands on the gate
and down at the naggs head pub ;at the bottom of iclneild port rd and just down the rd from resservoir rd
and one at spring hill by bulpitts charging one shilling and six pence he had four home made carts on pram wheels a box and a cake tray lids
with he burners inside he box on wheels all painted and decorated in appropiate colours white and red ; very smart looking indeed
a friend and my two brothers helped him out we took them carts out and we wore the white cow gounds and a hat
we had the burners with in the box below along with was facilitys ;and towels ;
;
hav a good day best wishes astonian;
I can recall that cafe during that period it done very well for customers
and later on in the years they had a small hatch applied to the side of the shop ; for late night trading where upon all the late night dwellers
would stradle out of the tower balloom and we would all be queing up at the hatch to get a hot dog or burgerfrom the hatch ;
and after a while a year down the line the friend of my brothers from ickneild sqaure set a couple of hot dogs stands on the gate
and down at the naggs head pub ;at the bottom of iclneild port rd and just down the rd from resservoir rd
and one at spring hill by bulpitts charging one shilling and six pence he had four home made carts on pram wheels a box and a cake tray lids
with he burners inside he box on wheels all painted and decorated in appropiate colours white and red ; very smart looking indeed
a friend and my two brothers helped him out we took them carts out and we wore the white cow gounds and a hat
we had the burners with in the box below along with was facilitys ;and towels ;
;
hav a good day best wishes astonian;
Last edited by a moderator:
Brookfields Lad
master brummie
The Minerva cafe.
I worked at Smithfield Garage in the early seventies. Sausage and Tom sarny was the norm every morning. The Minerva was exactly how it has been described except for one small detail; It was always full!!
I worked at Smithfield Garage in the early seventies. Sausage and Tom sarny was the norm every morning. The Minerva was exactly how it has been described except for one small detail; It was always full!!
W
Wendy
Guest
I am sure you are right Viv. It looks to be the hierarchy or older women who wore the caps. We know they had to be tough and maybe waring a cap gave them more courage, as it was usually a mans attire.
McKenna gives two possible sites for a Woolpack, one based on Westley's map, where the Rea crosses the high st, and th eother , more recent at no 124, which would be in the middle of the Old Cold Storage building near Allison St. however I cannot find any reference to no 124 being a licensed premises , having looked in directories of 1892, 1890, 1880, 1873 and 1855. So it may be just a McKennor error.
pudding
master brummie
Thank you Mike, and Phil, for your replies.
Mike the location that the cold storage warehouse is on a slight hill but the picture of the woolpack appears to be on a flat piece of land?.
Phil I don't know if you have notice on the photo there is a name plate but I can't make out what it says (side street/road or alley)
Mike the location that the cold storage warehouse is on a slight hill but the picture of the woolpack appears to be on a flat piece of land?.
Phil I don't know if you have notice on the photo there is a name plate but I can't make out what it says (side street/road or alley)
Phil & Pudding
Sorry to put the dampers on things, but I was looking in the newspapers site to see if I could find a mention of the woolpack and found the following advert. On examining Pudding's drawing, if you enlarge the title at the bottom left , i think it says Walsall underneath Digbeth . I think it most likely , seeing the great similarity, that Phil's picture is the same pub. Mr Pitt was later charged with receiving stolen money from his wife, but was released under dubious cercumstances as he said he & his wife were off to the US
Sorry to put the dampers on things, but I was looking in the newspapers site to see if I could find a mention of the woolpack and found the following advert. On examining Pudding's drawing, if you enlarge the title at the bottom left , i think it says Walsall underneath Digbeth . I think it most likely , seeing the great similarity, that Phil's picture is the same pub. Mr Pitt was later charged with receiving stolen money from his wife, but was released under dubious cercumstances as he said he & his wife were off to the US
Digbeth is apparently the bit that joins Park st to High St in Walsall (though google maps sent me to Bloxwich when I put in digbeth, walsall) The woolpack can be seen, and its position and shape fits pictures. the sign on the side of the pub which was poibnted out would say "The Square"
