A Plant Feast - Eartha Review
Cardiff’s City Road might not strike you at first as a place buzzing with Gen-Z hangouts. But take a stroll down the street a hundred yards and you’ll find a café-shop that might persuade you otherwise.
Heralded as a hidden gem amongst plant fanatics, Eartha attracts green-fingered students by day and hungry foodies by night. Step through Eartha’s doors and you’ll be greeted with a particular smell. The earthy whiff of houseplants will give you a clue as to why this café has its simple but curious title.
As soon as you have passed the forest of bonsai trees and Monsteras, you’ll likely be met by a cheery member of staff inviting you in. And if you hear the words, ‘we’ve got a table for you in the garden yurt,’ then you can rest easy: you’ve struck gold.
Some Eartha treats.
Expect plates piled high with pillowy sundried tomato donuts and over-stuffed ciabattas delivered to the snug of the yurt – Cardiff’s answer to hygge—protecting you from the city’s frequent downpours. Eartha’s savoury donut creation may sound like a culinary crime to lots of people, but it is the doughy-salty-creamy snack that will thrill your taste buds and cure any hangover.
Eartha’s menu is one of its biggest draws. The café’s selection of small plates does not simply follow the latest food trends but appears to set them. Thankfully, Eartha’s famous chickpea fritter frequently features on their menu. To any reader well versed in French cuisine, you will recognise it as a panisse, but to everyone else: it’s salty, crispy, vegan heaven. If it’s on the menu, order it. You won’t be disappointed.
After finishing the plant-based feast that is both kind to your purse and your stomach (and not forgetting the planet), take a stroll towards the city centre. A quick internet search will tell you to head to Juno Lounge for a slice of cake. However, a person with local knowledge will instead direct you to Jacobs Antique Market.
Certainly not your average charity shop, this unassuming spot in the city is a well curated mix of art, decor, fashion, and music records spanning multiple floors.
Surprisingly quiet and relatively unknown, this antiques centre will restore any calm you may have lost during your journey through the quagmires of St. Mary Street.
Spend an hour sifting through an overfilled rack of leather jackets, finding towering bookcases jammed with vintage encyclopaedias, or discovering entire rooms neatly stacked with vintage milk bottles. At this point, the lowering sun may have signalled to you that it is time for an evening tipple. Head to the high reaches of Jacobs Market where you will find a rooftop bar more than capable of quenching your thirst.
During your ascent, be sure to poke your head into their spacious gallery. Once you’ve perused some of the works of Cardiff’s talented local artists, continue to the bar, order the white sangria, and finish your day safe in the knowledge that you’ve spent a few hours finding the best kept secrets that Cardiff has to offer.
Written by Emma MacDonald
Emma MacDonald is a passionate foodie, keen to explore the plant-based culinary scene. She creates her own recipes for Instagram @emmasplantry whilst working for a publishing company based in South London.
