Olive & Bean

About Olive & Bean

Olive & Bean has been trading on Clayton Street for years and is one of the better-known independent cafes in Grainger Town, the grid of nineteenth-century streets laid out by Richard Grainger and John Dobson that forms the retail heart of the city centre. It sits a couple of minutes from both Central Station and the Grainger Market, on a street that has otherwise seen a lot of turnover, and it has built its reputation on being a calm, unhurried room in a busy shopping area. The interior is deliberately mismatched and homely rather than styled, with sofas and shared tables, and it is the sort of place people settle into for an hour.

The kitchen covers breakfast, brunch and lunch through the day, with cooked breakfasts, sandwiches, salads and a substantial cake counter, and there is a clearly marked gluten-free range alongside vegetarian options. It is open seven days, from early morning to early evening on weekdays and slightly shorter hours on Sunday. Tables are walk-in only and it does not take reservations, so weekend mid-mornings can involve a short wait. For anyone shopping in Eldon Square or the Grainger Market and wanting an independent alternative to the chains, it is the obvious stop.

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