Restaurants, Cafes, Coffee Bars

His name was Fitzpatrick, sorry badboy for the life of me I can't remember his christian name.

Tricia, his christian name was Fred, he also owned the Allesley Hotel. Regards, creteskyblue.

Thanks creteskyblue, will be able to sleep tonight now.

I was thinking it was Fred Kilpatrick. My neighbour used to work as a waitress at the Allesley Hotel.

He was Fred Kilpatrick & he lived just up from the Royal Court & later owned the Allesley. He died several years ago. I worked as wine waiter in the banqueting suite in the late 1970s whilst in the 6th form at school. 3 lads & 20-odd girls - happy memories!!! John

Reading about the Captain's Table made me think about restaurants in the city. I can vaguely remember being taken as a young girl (as a treat by a relative) to the restaurant at the Hippodrome and I can remember going to the restaurant above the Gas Showrooms in Corporation Street, I think it was in the early 60s. I also remember Gladdings in Shelton Square had a restaurant above it and, of course, there was The Bridge Restaurant. This was before Chinese restaurants came to Coventry, I remember a Chinese restaurant in Warwick Row and one by the station, and I think that there was one in Ironmonger Row. I hope I have got these right!! Does anyone remember the Steak House in Heath Road before it moved to the arcade?

He came to Coventry from Ulster and his first venture was a cafe in Ford Street.

The Gas building restaurant upstairs or up-lift (do you remember the metal cage lift operated by an attendant?) in the Gas Showrooms. It was a full waitress service at all times. Very nice too. I knew that I had been a good boy if I was treated to my Saturday dinner in there 1960. The Bridge Restaurant I remember, but none of my family were ever impressed with the food there. The Cathedral Refectory was another favourite, now called Benedicts it is still enjoyed by me. They score extra points in my books for employing people that life has not dealt a very fair hand. I was out on my bike going along the old Clifford Bridge Rd. about 1959, just a country lane with double hump back bridges at one end in those days. I was nine or ten at the time, anyway I passed a small cafe (long since gone). I was starving, so after checking my cashflow, about two shillings (10p now), I had sufficient for a plate of egg chips with beans. I thought that was brilliant, all on my own.

The Berkeley Grill used to be the Centre Ballroom. I used to go to ballroom dancing lessons there, the teachers were Alf Armstrong and Hetti Armstrong. Saturday nights were disco nights and used to be frequented by Teddy Boys and more often than not the night ended with fights. I was about 15 at the time and obviously wasn't allowed to go there.

Hi all, I don't like to argue but the owner of the Captains Table in Hillfields was John Reeve, he also owned the Castaways club.

Growing up in the 1950s one of the pleasures was to be able to frequent the coffee bars that sprung up around the city centre and further afield. Totally harmless but to many parents they were usually considered dens of iniquity. As I mentioned on another topic two to get us going were the 'Beaker' in Beake Avenue opposite the Radford Common, (who remembers the big fight there one Friday evening in 1959) and the Portofino in Primrose Hill Street. This was a lot more upmarket than the 'Beaker' and useful for the nearby dance hall, remember the John Barry Seven there in the early 60s before he got involved with the James Bond films. My memory has suddenly gone on me but there were two in Far Gosford Street. One was opposite the Colin Campbell, almost on the corner and one further down on the Colin Campbell side and more or less where the ring road is now. There was a furniture warehouse opposite. One of these was called the 'El Cubano' or similar, what was the other? Perhaps we shouldn't forget the Wimpy in the lower Precinct, nice to know it's had another incarnation. Any more that pop into the head?

Hi Heritage I remember the Portofino in Primrose Hill Street, as you say it was a bit up-market and I only remember going in there once. As I recall the El Cabana was opposite the Colin Campbell and I remember a coffee bar being somewhere in or near Ford Street, I wasn't allowed to go to any of these as there was often fights in them. A coffee bar I used to go to quite regularly was the La Ronde in Albany Road; it had a great jukebox and the coffee was good.

Anyone remember the Sombrero Cafe by Pool Meadow bus station?

"El Cabana" and "Gigi", both in Gosford Street. There were others as well, the "Alex" at the very bottom of Gosford Street just before it became Far Gosford Street and another next to the Fox & Vivian pub I dont remember the name of. In the late 1960s the "Sorrento" opened almost next door to El Cabana. El Cabana and Sorrento: Gigi (far left) and "Steak House": Alex Cafe:

Yep, a biker's cafe and one of my favourites even though I was too young to be a biker: