An advantage of living in small towns, we haven’t been "contaminated’ by chain type diners/cafés. 
It actually took two decades to bring back a McDonald’s which had been closed down, we have a Burger King too now, but they are a minority, compared to the vast amount of independent, family owned, little characteristic bars/restaurants/pizzerias, etc. 
Sounds wonderful Rose!
Does that abundance of eateries keep prices competitive and affordable?
A lot is also influenced by which country you are in. When I travel back to the UK I find the number of chain coffee shops, fast food outlets and restaurants disappointing - and it is everywhere not just the big cities. In rural France, where I live, if I drew 30 km radius circle from my house, there is one McD’s and … that is it for chains. Dozens of privately owned bars, restaurants, tearooms of course.
Lots of poverty and poor people around Sheffield and Rotherham and even beginning to leech into Doncaster. If there were no McDonalds or KFC’s in great abundance, these people would not be able to eat. There is a good reason why our cities are beginning to deteriorate but I wouldn’t be allowed to post it.
Foxy! 
That is just plain silly!
I’ve worked in quite a few customer facing roles in my time in hospitality, quite late in life, way beyond my spotty teenage years. I still enjoy it, engaging with others, always learning…
Nothing personal Chilli, just a light hearted look at the world today…
I know that Foxy!
I read you loud and clear 
Thank you kindly, Mr Chillboot. We do enjoy a nice chilled wine with lunch at our local pub.
Hi
Very few chains in the Town Centre, mostly on the Retail Parks.
We are very fortunate in having a lot of independent shops and cafes in the Town Centre.
We also have an amazing sandwich shop in the Town Centre, made in front of you when you order and especially popular in summer.
If you want a Turkish shave or haircut, or a vape, or a second hand reposesed phone, Doncaster is the place for you…
You’ll need to go to one of the out of town garden centres if you want a good meal though.
I would say they are affordable and competitive, yes . In our bars, for example, the cost of an espresso coffee ranges from €1,20 to €1,50. You can still buy a pizza slice from pizza places for about €1,50.
Naples is still decently affordable, even if it’s a big city.
During family holidays we’ve visited and explored many beautiful little towns in Central and Northern Italy, accommodation and eating out all at decent costs.
If my experience in the UK is anything to go by, none of the chains could make a decent coffee, Starbucks was by far the worst, Costa a close second.
One does not have this problem with Tea, problems problems, who needs them?
Keep Blighty “Tea Toff” free 
I don’t know if you ever visited Algerian Coffee Stores in Soho during your time working in The West End Rose?
It’s donkeys years since I’ve been there but what an amazing place!
.
When I was a gopher working at Terence Conran’s design studios in Neal Street as a seventeen year old I’d be sent to buy mega bags of his own special blend of coffee for the staff’s breaks. No value tins of Nescafé for us!
All very tempting, you could spend a fortune, chocolate too!
I think it’s the first and only time I’ve seen a tea brick. 
Definitely going for a visit during our next day trip to London!
I never buy tea when I am out, they all use tea bags even in pots which I hate.
No, coffee in Australia is excellent, it is you damn foreign types that have to put up with inferior stuff 
Isn’t it sad and awful that your statement is so very true. If you’re tight on money then buying unhealthy prepared foods is the absolute worst - cheap but more costly than making healthy meals are home from simple ingredients. So we are letting people be poor and not helping them with simple cooking & nutrition knowledge. In fact I envy folk up in these towns with significant Asian communities as these always have well priced shops full of bargain ingredients - dried chick peas & lentils, spices galore, fresh coriander. Stuff I simply do not see in France. These people do not know how lucky they are.
That’s what I thought. We don’t what this young chap is going through. Maybe he just lost his wife. Maybe he HAS to go to work but really doesn’t want to for whatever reason. I don’t think I’d be happy working for minimum wage at a coffee shop. Maybe he has seasonal affective disorder.
None of use know whats going on in his life…Cut the guy some slack.
Interesting Chilli, no, I never noticed it. Looks like a place where you can choose from many different exotic tasting coffees, great. Your workplace must have had very happy staff, receiving special treatment during coffee breaks. 
In late 80s our office was in Jermyn Street, right opposite Fortnum & Masons. Guess where we used to buy our coffee, tea and sugar? So expensive, but our manager was ok about it, all on the company’s expenses. We could only buy instant coffee as we only had a kettle in our little office kitchen, not a coffee machine.
Never heard of tea brick before.
I just looked it up, completely new to me. 
I couldn’t possibly imagine!
But that must have been a kind gesture so to speak, a personal touch
