Cosy courtyard café with ice cream hut where you can get two breakfasts for under £20

When you wake up to the sun shining on a Sunday morning it's tough to fight the urge to treat yourself to breakfast out.

As it was Father's Day, we knew we were chancing our arm slightly as we pulled up outside The Courtyard, in St Helens, fearing we'd see queues of people ahead of us. But luck was on our side, and as we walked into the cafe's quaint little courtyard, the large group of people who had arrived just before us were already being shown to a table.

As expected, it was bustling with customers, the contented buzz of conversation and delicious smell of cooking food filling the air.

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In no time at all we were shown to a table inside the café, which at one time was a newsagents. Despite its location on busy City Road, once you step into the cafe's enclosed yard you'd never think you were next to a main road.

The courtyard even boasts a small hut from which ice cream is served.

I was not upset to be offered a seat inside as, despite the sun putting in an appearance, it was still a little on the cool side for me to be dining al fresco. Presented with the menu, we were warned there may be a little wait on food given just how busy the kitchen was - which we absolutely understood.

The menu is extensive, packed with breakfast classics and specials, then lighter bites and sandwiches served from noon. There is also a specials board in the courtyard where you wait to be seated, which on Father's Day was offering the aptly named 'Big Daddy Burger' for £13.95.

The cooked breakfasts are substantial, with two sausages, two bacon, an egg, a hash brown, beans, tomato, mushrooms and two slices of toast costing £9.45 - with the option to add black pudding for 75p.

For those feeling extra hungry there's the big breakfast, with three sausages, two bacon, black pudding, two eggs, two hash browns, beans, tomato, mushrooms and two slices of toast for £12.45. There are also cooked breakfast options for vegetarian and vegan diners, both priced at £9.95.

As I was feeling adventurous my first thought was try the American-style pancakes, which come with a choice of toppings. I was initially tempted to go for those, loaded with berry compote, mascarpone and honey yoghurt at £6.95.

But then I spotted one of my favourites, eggs florentine, two poached eggs on a bed of spinach, smothered in hollandaise sauce and served on toasted muffins, also priced at £6.95.

My partner opted for the small breakfast, a sausage, rasher of bacon, an egg cooked to your liking, beans, tomatoes, a hash brown, mushrooms and slice of toast for £7.45. Not being a fan of mushrooms, he asked if he could swap them out for an extra slice of toast, which he was told was not a problem.

We also ordered two glasses of fresh orange at £2.20 each, to sip while we waited, which were served in super-quick time. The juice was delicious and there was no question it was fresh.

As we chatted away planning the rest of our day, we didn't notice any wait for the food which was served piping hot to the table.

My eggs were perfectly poached, the rich and creamy hollandaise perfectly balancing against the mellow, bitter taste of the spinach. The muffins were lightly toasted didn't go mushy, even after the egg yolks had run over them.

Considering he'd ordered the small breakfast, my partner's plate was loaded with an impressive amount of food. The toast was lightly browned, the slather of butter provided with it melting into the bread as it was spread. The hash brown was crisp and golden, while the bacon and sausage were full of flavour.

I'd been tempted to order a side of extra toast at £1.25, but after cleaning my plate I was nicely full so was glad I hadn't. The staff are lovely, very knowledgeable and were really helpful and attentive to the families who were dining with smaller children.

In total our bill came to £18.80, which felt like a very good price for the quality and quantity of the food we'd eaten. I was so stuffed, on my way out I failed to check out the selection of homemade cakes on offer on the counter. I won't be making that mistake on my next visit.

The Courtyard is at 245 City Road, St Helens. Food is served all week from 9am to 4pm, with a takeaway service available for self collection.

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