T2 Tea Cafe of the Year: Yum Yum Bakery

Guildford

Yum Yum Bakery in Guildford has, for the past 35 years, embodied what a cafe should aspire to be: a place of comfort, connection and damn good food. From the small oregano “pizza” takeaway joint Toufic Haddad opened in 1990, to the contemporary, multi-venue cafes run by son Najib Haddad, Yum Yum Bakery evolved while holding true to the familial warmth at its heart, and that’s what keeps multiple generations of customers coming back.

That, and the glorious excess of a Lebanese-style brunch: feasts of colour, nostalgia and unpretentious deliciousness, using a hand-built oven to make halloumi pide, egg and awarma (confit lamb) manoush and the same wood-fired bread Toufic brought over from his hometown in Lebanon, Aley. These are served alongside new dishes such as a lamb shawarma with mint, pomegranate and house-made chilli and tahini sauces in a flatbread “taco”. Coffee isn’t the focus, but it’s good, and there’s a must-try frozen limonana.