Restaurants, Cafes, Coffee Bars

Mayjan mentioned the coffee bar in Albany Road. I remember it in the late 1950s and was intrigued by it, being 10 to 12 at the time. I remember motor bikes parked outside and Teddy Boys inside in leather jackets with the booming Juke Box playing Elvis etc. I think the place was called "Rendezvous".

It was run by a couple called "Butler" for thirty years and apparently had no planning permission to be run as a cafe! (Not uncommon in Coventry at that time). City planning records

When I came to Coventry in the early sixties I would occasionally go to what I think was called the Casino? Cafe in Spon End. As it happened I was seeing a girl at the time who was quite into religion. Opposite that Cafe was a Church (round the corner from Dyers Arms) with a large set of steps leading to the entrance door. One night I was feeling over-exuberant and decided to jump up those steps three at a time. Girlfriend was not impressed as she saw it as disrespecting Church property. However, as it turned out she was more than happy to see me miss my footing completely on the way down and was convinced it was divine retribution. Our beautiful friendship did not last too much longer after that (Oh well).

Yes it was. A temporary building sandwiched between the post office and the motorcycle dealer. It was destroyed by fire I believe and replaced with a more permanent building which is now a chinese takeaway.

The Albany Road cafe was 'La Ronde' - it had 2 pinball tables in a small area at the back - as well as juke-box.

I reckon thats the place. Trophy Autos run by Bernard Maybury was the motorcycle dealers I believe.

I used to go to the "La Ronda" circa 1959. There were no Teddy Boys, but several bikers used the cafe. They served good coffee and had a very good jukebox. It was a cheap night out for us, we could make a cup of coffee last all night, listen to the latest records, and of course "hand jive".

That's a sore point point with me. There are few places a teenager in Coventry can go these days to pass the time without spending a lot of money and or getting drunk. Chapelfields wasn't much better in that respect during the time I lived there (late 60s to mid 70s). "The Teenagers' Graveyard" I called it. I believe there had a been a cafe in Hearsall Lane before then but it closed as a result of the nearby Plaza ceasing to be a cinema.

I must have been 12 or 13 (1963-64) and had often wondered what the Bridge Restaurant was like. I took my younger brother in there for afternoon tea and was presented with a plate of fancy cakes which according to the menu were priced at 6d. All of these cakes for 6d! I couldn't believe it and between us we devoured the lot. Of course the reality was that they were 6d each. I just had enough to pay for them but it meant a long trudge home on Shanks's pony to Holbrooks for us both

Wasn't The Lunch Box, at the Forum, opened by Noel Gordon who used to host a TV programme called Lunch Box? Also, I worked for Lloyds Bank in the 60's and the Chinese restaurant in Warwick Row (was it called The Mayflower?) had a person who did the paying in, by the (we thought) hilarious name of, well the last part of his name was U Yu. I'll let you guess his first name!

Anyone recall 'The Sizzler' at the Coventry Theatre? Entrance was at the side along the Lady Herbert Gardens. I recall it had 3 round windows. I don't think it traded as a restaurant after the early 1970s

I used to live in Burns Road, so the Lunch Box was literally at the bottom of my street. They had an offer one week, late 70's,early 80's, that if you could eat a massive 3 course meal it was free. Fail and it cost £5. I thought I'd give it a go. The first course consisted of about a pint of very thick soup, accompanied by half an almost stale, french stick! That was enough to keep you going for about a week on its own! The main course was actually served on a silver tray - no plate, just the tray!! I manfully attacked it but barely made any impression before I realised it was 'a meal too far!' The tray was taken back to the kitchen to a big cheer from the staff. I didn't even want to look at the double apple pie and cream pudding. I made my way home feeling decidedly unwell and retired to bed. I vowed never to try to eat anything on that scale ever again, a promise that I have kept to date! The staff said only one person had managed to eat the full 3 courses, personally I think even Billy Bunter would have struggled against such odds!

The offer on my meal MR was not the same as Philip's. It was for just one week and advertised heavily on Mercia Sound.

Does anybody remember Restaurant Roma, on the corner of Queen Victoria Road/Croft road? More a cafe/coffee bar!! My sister worked there part time at the weekends back in the 60's, I remember calling in for sausage, egg and chips on a Saturday after doing some shopping in town.