This weekend I found myself in one of those cheaply run greasy spoon roadside cafes
! The table cloths were plastic. The knife and forks had more fingerprints than a pub door knob! Interestingly the menu listed espresso as a drink which I thought I would order while waiting for my coffee. The waitress returned with a small cup of strong filter coffee and a little cream pot! She then confessed that she didn't know what espresso was!?!?!
I must say that when the food arrived there was plenty of it and it tasted good so I was pleasantly surprised. (Steak and Kidney pie, chips and peas!) It was actually better value and tasted nicer than these national motorways service station corporations - you know the ones (they charge £3 for a drink and you pay extra for salt and Kechup!)
So the moral of this story is (I suppose) - don't overlook the small local business when it comes to roadside food. Even the burger bars parked at the side of the road provide a good value meal squeezing so much meat between the rolls that you have trouble carrying it
!