'Coffee Cake', 28 Broadway Parade, Crouch End, London N8

[Al-khiyal]

Ali Benammar with the wide array of cakes available in Coffee Cake

How often is lunch a hurried bite of a limp sandwich at the desk?

Or, slightly better but not much, a pre-packaged supermarket salad munched on a street bench?

So it was with decided relish that I headed to Coffee Cake - although even I chickened out of going on a weekday and instead plumped for a more leisurely Saturday lunchtime.

Set on the edge of Crouch End's fashionable run of boutiques, it certainly cuts a dash.

With its exposed brick walls and plain white tables, the feel is more art gallery than steamy café.

And behind the expanse of glass facing the street are white worktops piled high with a spread of savouries and salads, six-day fermented sourdough loaves, multi-coloured meringues - and such intricately constructed cakes that they demand to be gazed at rather than gobbled.

The man behind Coffee Cake is Algerian-born baker and cordon bleu chef Ali Benammar, 42, who has been in Crouch End for about a year and recently opened another café in Blackstock Road, Finsbury Park.

He describes his food as French Continental with (although he told me not to say this for fear it would put people off) a splash of North Africa.

Anyway, wherever the food is from, it's fresh and it's good.

We tucked into a spread of salads (and I don't mean limp leaves topped with flavourless tomato and a couple of mozzarella balls).

There was Algerian couscous with shallots, sultanas and spring onions, quinoa with pan-friend aubergine, pearl barley with mushrooms, almonds and yoghurt, and chicken marinated in Algerian spices and crème fraîche. In addition, there was roasted okra and carrots, broccoli with chilli and garlic, and roasted sweet potatoes and butternut squash in yoghurt.

Vegetables are even sneaked into the cakes - the chocolate and beetroot and chocolate and courgette combinations are surprisingly light and not too sweet, although for true dessert lovers there are plenty of more normal sweetmeats such as the very yummy chocolate cake with pear and ginger and the apple strudel.

Many a punter would happily pay well for such cooking but the prices are thankfully not out of this world. Three salads with bread costs £4.90 while cakes range from £2.20 to £2.70. The café is also refreshingly unpretentious, unlike some other venues, although it can get busy.

Mr Benammar is also sharing his skills with customers by starting a cookery course. You can pick up a leaflet in store or phone for information.

So if you can tear yourself away from work for an hour - or if you fancy a well-deserved sit down after hitting the shops - Coffee Cake is worth adding to your shopping list.

COFFEE CAKE

28 Broadway Parade, N8

Tel: 020 8342 8989

Disabled access: Yes

Seriously delicious

[HOUDA-K]

"He describes his food as French Continental with (although he told me not to say this for fear it would put people off) a splash of North Africa."

On the contrary Benammar.

Thoose cakes do look good & cookery classes to.