Are South East motorists paying too much for breakfast? Huge prices differences identified elsewhere
New research carried out by Vansdirect has found that drivers in the South East of England are paying much more for roadside breakfasts than their counterparts in Scotland.
The study also found that Scotland was offering the cheapest motorway breakfasts in Britain, and the North West currently delivers the best value fry-ups across all regions examined during the research. Travellers using the M3 and M27 in the South East were paying the most for their breakfasts, and the M60 was offering the best value roadside breakfast in the North West.
Regular users of the M74 in Scotland currently enjoy the biggest breakfast savings. A typical quality breakfast on the M74 is setting motorists back just £3.20 on average. This is a huge £2.70 less than what drivers using the M3 in the South East are paying, with their breakfasts costing £5.90 on average.
https://www.vansdirect.co.uk/top-rated-motorway-cafes-in-great-britain
Cheapest UK motorway for breakfast
| Motorway | Average price of breakfast items |
| M74 | £3.20 |
| M42 | £3.50 |
| M8 | £3.60 |
| M61 | £3.80 |
| M20 | £4.00 |
| M56 | £4.10 |
| M62 | £4.10 |
| M11 | £4.20 |
| M23 | £4.20 |
| M6 | £4.20 |
| M4 | £4.30 |
| M60 | £4.30 |
| M1 | £4.40 |
| M40 | £4.50 |
| M25 | £4.60 |
| M66 | £4.60 |
| M5 | £4.90 |
| M18 | £5.00 |
| M27 | £5.90 |
| M3 | £5.90 |
The research also found that the M8 in Scotland was offering exceptional value when it comes to breakfast treats. Breakfasts were costing just £3.40 per café on average, which was £1 less than the national average of £4.40. 35% of the top 20 cafes for low-cost breakfast sandwiches are located in Scotland.
Other zones offering big value for money included the M42 in the West Midlands and the M61 in the North West. These areas were typically charging less than £4 not only for bacon or sausage sandwiches but for entire fry-ups.
The study also aimed to find the best café in terms of price, convenience and quality. This appeared to be the Crossburn Kitchen Café, located just two miles from the M74. This Scottish café was selling bacon or sausage sandwiches for just £1.70 and had an average customer rating of 4.45 out of 5.
Cheapest roadside cafes for a breakfast sandwich
| Motorway | Café | Sausage sandwich | Bacon sandwich |
| M74 | Crossburn Kitchen Café | £1.70 | £1.70 |
| M42 | The Deanery | £1.90 | £1.90 |
| M74 | Abbeygreen Café | £1.90 | £1.90 |
| M74 | Aroma Coffee and Kitchen | £1.90 | £1.90 |
| M66 | The Café | £1.90 | £2.00 |
| M8 | Snax Café | £1.90 | £2.00 |
| M8 | The Farm at No 12 | £2.00 | £2.00 |
| M8 | Breakfast, Brunch and Lunch | £2.00 | £2.00 |
| M11 | Café Blue | £2.10 | £2.10 |
| M18 | BEE JAY’S Café | £2.10 | £2.10 |
| M23 | Parkside Café | £2.20 | £2.20 |
| M66 | Pinto’s Sandwich Bar | £2.20 | £2.20 |
| M6 | Café 28 | £2.30 | £2.30 |
| M61 | Katy’s Kitchen | £2.30 | £2.30 |
| M74 | Route 74 Truckstop | £2.30 | £2.30 |
| M42 | Nibbles Café | £2.20 | £2.40 |
| M61 | The Cottage Tea Room | £2.50 | £2.40 |
| M20 | The Happy Chef | £2.45 | £2.45 |
| M42 | Ye Olde Pound Café | £2.45 | £2.45 |
| M25 | Wonder Café | £2.50 | £2.50 |
Britain’s cheapest quality roadside fry-up was deemed to be Bee Jay’s Café along the M18 in Yorkshire. This Rotherham greasy spoon was charging just £3.20 for two slices of bacon, two sausages, egg, beans and tomatoes. The North West was identified as the best region for a cheap fry-up, with 30% of its cafes featuring in the top ten for this category.
Cheapest roadside cafes for a fry up
| Motorway | Café | Price of fry up |
| M18 | BEE JAY’S Café | £3.20 |
| M61 | Katy’s Kitchen | £3.50 |
| M42 | Nibbles Café | £3.50 |
| M62 | Bex’s Coffee Shop | £3.55 |
| M23 | Parkside Café | £3.90 |
| M62 | LA Café | £3.90 |
| M4 | The Café at Ridgewell | £3.95 |
| M42 | The Deanery | £4.00 |
| M66 | The Café | £4.00 |
| M66 | Pinto’s Sandwich Bar | £4.00 |
| M56 | Momma ‘B’s | £4.00 |
| M8 | Snax Café | £4.30 |
| M42 | The Kitchen Café | £4.40 |
| M20 | The Happy Chef | £4.55 |
| M61 | Pine Tree Farm | £4.59 |
| M20 | Mickey’s Rock Diner | £4.80 |
| M42 | Ye Olde Pound Café | £4.95 |
| M62 | Café 8 | £4.95 |
| M3 | Cafemonde | £4.95 |
| M74 | Crossburn Kitchen Café | £4.99 |
The customer rating chart saw the M60 in the North West faring the best. Cafes in this area had an average rating of 4.78 out of 5. The M62 in the North West had a rating of 4.61, with the M6 being rated 4.6. The East Midlands topped the chart in terms of individual highest rated roadside cafés, scoring 4.61 out of 5.
There appears to be growing demand for quality affordable breakfasts due to trends such as the rise in courier services. The pandemic has caused more people to shop online rather than offline, which has inevitably led to an increase in hungry value-seeking van drivers on the roads of the UK.
Best value motorway for breakfast, ranked by customer reviews
| Motorway | Average café rating (out of 5) |
| M60 | 4.78 |
| M62 | 4.61 |
| M3 | 4.6 |
| M6 | 4.6 |
| M1 | 4.59 |
| M74 | 4.57 |
| M8 | 4.55 |
| M56 | 4.54 |
| M25 | 4.53 |
| M18 | 4.52 |
| M27 | 4.51 |
| M61 | 4.5 |
| M11 | 4.49 |
| M40 | 4.48 |
| M66 | 4.45 |
| M20 | 4.42 |
| M42 | 4.41 |
| M5 | 4.39 |
| M23 | 4.37 |
| M4 | 4.34 |
A Vansdirect spokesperson commented:
“With the pandemic bringing a tidal wave of courier services and other van-related services to our doors, the nation has gradually come to see their van drivers more regularly, perhaps even sparking friendships along the way.
“We’re pleased to see this change of direction, where van drivers are seen not only as vital cogs in the delivery machine, but also as essential figures in the community.
“While our research has found there are plenty of top-quality roadside cafes to keep our van driving workforce chugging along, we hope to see this positive spotlight on our nation’s van drivers continue long after the pandemic.”
For further insights about Vandirect’s research, visit the Vansdirect blog.
-ENDS-
Notes to editors
Vansdirect collated five of the top-rated cafés for each of Britain’s 20 busiest motorways. Breakfast menu prices, including average cost for breakfast items, and average customer ratings were added to the database.
Cafes in the research had to meet the following criteria to be featured in the research:
They are situated within 10 miles of their respective motorways
They are rated above four stars on both Google and TripAdvisor
For further press information, please contact:
Carly Trigg
About Vansdirect
Vansdirect was established in 1999 in the Welsh valleys and has grown to be the no.1 independent commercial vehicle retailer in the UK. They are the current holders of the Leasing Broker Federation’s ‘Best van leasing broker’ award, having won it for the fourth consecutive year in 2019.
Offering free delivery, industry expertise, and flexible van finance options, Vansdirect are pleased to have satisfied thousands of customers every year since the brand’s inception.
