Bucks &amp; Oxon


<p>Darker evenings and a winter chill in the air&#8230; I feel some serious hygge coming on. Grab your cosy cashmere and head down to my favourites in Bucks and Oxon.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-norsk-haddenham"><strong><a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="http://mynorskway.com/cafe/" target="_blank">NORSK</a>, Haddenham</strong></h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="667" height="500" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2019/07/norsk--667x500.jpg" alt="NORSK Cafe in Haddenham, Buckinghamshire" class="wp-image-92895" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2019/07/norsk--667x500.jpg 667w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2019/07/norsk--150x113.jpg 150w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2019/07/norsk--300x225.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2019/07/norsk-.jpg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 667px) 100vw, 667px" /></figure>



<p>Just add effortlessly chic customers, and hey presto, you have <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://bucksoxon.muddystilettos.co.uk/little-black-book/directory/norsk/" target="_blank">Muddy Award-winner</a>&nbsp;NORSK (they’ve only gone and clinched it again in 2022!). It&#8217;s a fave cafe experience of mine, not least because of the potential to browse for gifts and homeware while you’re there, but also for its simple and wholesome yet indulgent Scandi cuisine. NORSK is open for breakfast and lunch, and the Norwegian-inspired menu changes weekly with specials like salmon and egg on rye or the irresistible cinnamon buns.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hamblin-bread-oxford"><a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://hamblinbread.co.uk/" target="_blank">Hamblin Bread</a>, Oxford</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="666" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/10/Untitled-design-26-1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-138249" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/10/Untitled-design-26-1.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/10/Untitled-design-26-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/10/Untitled-design-26-1-400x266.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/10/Untitled-design-26-1-788x525.jpg 788w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>After the closure of Westgate&#8217;s&nbsp;<a href="http://kupp.co/locations/oxford/">KuPP</a>&nbsp;and the student fave <a href="http://skogen.kitchen/">Skogen Kitchen</a>, just off Oxford’s High Street, I&#8217;m relieved to still be able to get my cinnamon bun fix at this fab little bakery on the Iffley Road, part of the foodie enclave around Magdalen Road that includes Taste Tibet, Elle&#8217;s Deli and the Magdalen Arms. Hamblin is run by Hugo Thurston and Kate Hamblin who previously worked at London hotspots E5 Bakehouse and Moro, as well as in Scandinavia. Be warned, it’s so popular they tend to run out of sourdough and rye loaves by mid morning, but you can reserve items a week ahead. This is the bakery for purists – all of the bread, buns, cakes and pizza are made with stone ground flour from organic wheat and rye, grown within 50 miles of the bakery. It also now stocks local cheeses, cured meat and fish, fresh fruit and vegetables and natural, organic and biodynamic wines.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lofgrens-oxford"><a href="https://www.lofgrens.co.uk/whatsinstore" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Lofgrens</a>, Oxford</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="666" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T112653.463.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-137191" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T112653.463.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T112653.463-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T112653.463-400x266.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T112653.463-788x525.jpg 788w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Speaking of Skogen Kitchen, did you know that you can still get their doughy and delicious cinnamon buns? It&#8217;s one day only a week, and you&#8217;ve got to get there early. Head to Lofgrens, the gorgeous Nordic homeware store on the afore-mentioned Magdalen Road, on Saturdays from 11am and I challenge you not to come out with some gorgeous Swedish linen, rattan or ceramics along with that freshly baked bun&#8230;.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ole-steen-oxford"><strong><a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://oleandsteen.co.uk/" target="_blank">Ole &amp; Steen</a>, Oxford</strong></h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="666" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T110939.497.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-137185" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T110939.497.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T110939.497-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T110939.497-400x266.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T110939.497-788x525.jpg 788w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>The word on the street is that the latest outpost of Scandi bakery Ole &amp; Steen will be in Marlow. The site, on the high street near the bridge, won&#8217;t open until the new year, but if you want a bite of their delish smoked salmon roll with pickled cucumber with lemon and herb cream cheese (my fave), followed by a rye bread cookie (yes, really!) then you can catch them at the Oxford outpost in Westgate. In a rush? No problem, grab an espresso and one of the cutely named ‘Danish Social’ pastries in a variety of flavours, though there&#8217;s also salads, soups and open rye bread sandwiches if you want to go easy on the carbs.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-out-of-office-olney"><a href="https://www.outofofficecoffee.co.uk/locations/olney/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Out of Office</a>, Olney</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="666" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T111221.158.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-137187" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T111221.158.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T111221.158-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T111221.158-400x266.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T111221.158-788x525.jpg 788w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Pared down interiors? Check. Great coffee? Check. Lust-worthy bakes? Check. Out of Office has it all &#8211; and a loyal following thanks to its superb Colonna coffee beans and bakes from local producers such as Geoff&#8217;s Real Artisan Bread and Clare&#8217;s Vegan Bakery. Look out for cinnamon swirls Wednesdays and doughnut Saturdays. There are also branches in Stony Stratford, Witan Studios and Newport Pagnell, and as the name suggests, remote workers are welcome.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-scandinavian-coffee-pod-cheltenham"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/scandinaviancoffeepod/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Scandinavian Coffee Pod</a>, Cheltenham</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="666" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T113547.060.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-137194" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T113547.060.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T113547.060-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T113547.060-400x266.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/Untitled-design-2022-09-21T113547.060-788x525.jpg 788w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Ok, so we&#8217;ve gone slightly over the border here in the western edge of the Cotswolds, but if you&#8217;re a coffee lover, you&#8217;ll be rewarded. Just don&#8217;t ask for a frappe-mochaccino with vanilla syrup, this place is for purists only.  Expect seriously good coffee, and locally sourced cakes and pastries. That&#8217;s it.</p>



<p><strong><em>Looking for more autumn comfort?</em></strong></p>



<p><a href="https://bucksoxon.muddystilettos.co.uk/eat-out/cafes/oxfordshire-buckinghamshire-coffee-cafes-sofa/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cosy cafés with comfy sofas and great coffee</a></p>



<p><a href="https://bucksoxon.muddystilettos.co.uk/eat-out/cafes/best-bakery-buckinghamshire-oxfordshire/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bakeries we love in Bucks and Oxon</a></p>


Coffee and a bun? 6 Scandi cafes in Bucks & Oxon

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