Why the food at Joni in Sheffield's Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet will put a spring in your step

The Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet site is the popular Oughtibridge café’s second ‘proper location’, and is swiftly becoming a favourite for many — for good reason. The folks behind Joni also have another venue working with Sheffield Museums at the Kelham Island Museum called Island Café and are currently preparing a third location at the Botanical Gardens, which is set to open this summer.

So I thought to myself, why not on a busy early afternoon on a Friday when the sun is out and the cafe is bursting at the seams with an onslaught of brunch and lunch ordering customers… Whatever could go wrong?

Thankfully little, despite a number of diners at the premises, both inside and out, the staff are continuously making their way amongst the crowds with a smile and ebullient hospitality. To say that it’s quite busy would be an understatement.

Even though the sun is out the breeze is brisk, so what better way to warm up than with a coffee, I ordered a flat white to help battle the cold somewhat. It worked a treat.

After a few minutes one of the front of house team came outside to take my order and I opted for the Wild Mushroom Benedict. I’m genuinely glad that I did. For a brunch dish it’s visually delightful and plentiful too.

Featuring a sourdough bloomer as the base, topped with seasonal mushrooms, poached eggs and a salsa verde drizzle. Poached eggs are always a precarious choice and in this instance they were perfect, not too watery and the consistency of the yolk was definitely worthy of any influencers Instagram reel or TikTok for that matter — in broad Yorkshire terms, it was a bit of alright (“reyt nice” for those of you out there who are particular about the local lingo). The mushrooms were also cooked to a good level, in some places they can overdo the mushrooms making them overly chewy, waxy even. However, that wasn’t the case at Joni.

After polishing off the main dish I was definitely more than satisfied but after taking a look at the sweet treats on offer, I had to go for a dessert. Naturally because I possess the dietary requirements of a hyperactive five-year-old, I had to go for a slice of the Rocky Road. It was a great choice, a lovely texture and well-measured combination of marshmallows, biscuit and raisin pieces. I’d recommend it wholeheartedly and wish I could have indulged a little more in the other offerings, perhaps another time.

The service is pretty speedy considering the growing crowd, expectations are clearly managed with an explanation on any wait for food, and table checks are frequent without being overwhelming. A really friendly team is in place here and it bodes well for Joni’s third location.

In total, for a flat white coffee, Wild Mushroom Brunch and the Rocky Road, my bill came to £19.20. Sure, it’s not cheap but it’s also not wildly overpriced either… a good balance I would say and with the flavours on offer, as well as such stellar presentation of the dishes, I’d have no qualms whatsoever about wholeheartedly recommending Joni to anyone seeking a delicious brunch selection.

And this is all without taking into account the location in the historic Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet site, you’re surrounded by carefully curated history and with plenty of parking on offer you should definitely add Joni to your spring and summer venue selections list.