Kids Corner Cafe, Banbury

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Kids Corner Cafe offers a homely environment for kids to play in safely, with good food too. A simple idea, but a brilliant one. Enter this converted house on Bridge Street and you feel like you're in an odd combination of someone's front room made public. Tables and chairs are set out for guests, but there's a bookcase of kids' books, a dolls' house, a load of games, and a welcoming smile from owners Emma and Garreth.



Upstairs they've padded out half a room to make a safe soft play area for under-4s, with a small slide, a tunnel, and some see-saws. Add in boxes of toys and soon you have a room full of happy chaos.



There are high stools to perch on, or proper tables and chairs for a proper sit down. With free wifi available, you're free to sit down and rest while the children play (or just join in and have some fun).



A number of tables have blackboard material stuck on, making an instant drawing surface for kids to enjoy. Tables also have pots of crayons, with plenty of colouring in materials too. With booster seats and high chairs available, it makes for an inviting place to sit down, if you can drag the children from the toys of course.



The food is a simple range, but satisfying. Sandwiches made to order, breakfasts at adult or kid size, delicious burgers in brioche buns, or cute lunchboxes to engage the children... there's enough for children to find something they like, and adults too, without being complicated. Served quickly, with child-size cutlery as needed, it's a great place to both entertain and feed a child.



A slush machine offers the potent blue and red drinks kids seem to love (however much adults despair). There are plenty of other drinks available too, with a fridge full of options, and good coffee. Yes, a child-centred cafe with good coffee. This is a rare thing, making it a place to be treasured by all caffeine-seeking parents.



Even the bathroom is sensibly designed for small people. WIth plenty of room to manoeuvre, there's a baby change unit, a loo with a special pull-down child seat, and steps up to the sink to help children get up to wash their hands.



Helpfully, activities often take place there, especially at key times of the year, or on busy days. At Easter, they had resources to make Easter bonnets, for example. On a Saturday morning, you might find a mobile hairdresser there, skilled at dealing with wriggly children or armed with glitter and ready to do some hair and body decoration. Emma and Garreth have their own children, so you find yourselves playing alongside them, a real 'home from home'. They know what it's like to have kids and struggle to get out, and have tried to make that easier.



There have been pottery painting with hand and footprint sessions too, and this ceramic theme has been extended to tiles etc. to decorate more generally. Integrating with the community is something Emma and Garreth have been keen to do.



With generous opening hours, they're advertising coffee on the run for commuters heading to the station opposite, as well as catering to children and their carers at most times of the day. They're also open to being contacted about group bookings. Relatively new to Banbury, and replacing a much-loved cafe in its place, Kids Corner Cafe had a lot to live up to. So far, they seem to have done it!



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