Please use the contact form only if you really need to, as we’re a small team and may not see messages straight away. Calling us directly means we can help you more quickly and personally.
Contact Info
Please use the contact form only if you really need to, as we’re a small team and may not see messages straight away. Calling us directly means we can help you more quickly and personally.
MASHAM is about as Yorkshire as Yorkshire gets. Beautiful walks by the river, past the cricket pitch and up into the market square which is surrounded by venerable stone buildings and is the venue of the annual sheep fair.
A Yorkshire tea room, overlooking a monument to the current Yorkshire obsession with cycling, sells meals in Yorkshire puddings.
Yes, as Yorkshire as Yorkshire gets – there’s the sweet smell of a feud hanging in the air as this small town of 1,200 souls has two breweries, one called Theakston’s and the other run by the black sheep of the Theakston family.
It’s even got a trace of the county’s cussedness in its name: how can it be pronounced Massam when there’s clearly a sh, as in sheep, in the middle? So in such quintessentially Yorkshire surroundings it is a big surprise in a honey-stoned building next to the church a Middle Eastern cafe.
Johnny Baghdad’s is small, as crowded as a souk and as steamy as an Arabic summer. It’s dazzlingly decorated, with bright red walls covered in sparkly eastern fabrics and climbing geckos, and the attentive black-clad waitresses expertly weave their way between the tables carrying full trays like women in a bazaar.
There is a conventional Yorkshire menu of sandwiches, baps and paninis, but it is on the specials blackboard where east meets west – and that’s not just ridings.
For vegetarians, there was cauliflower, paneer and pea curry, or Moroccan spiced koftas, or goat’s cheese, roasted pepper and tomato chilli chutney wrap, each priced around £8.
I opted for the more conventional homemade beef burger topped with cheddar, fried onions and mayo (£9.25), and we also had a smoked mackerel pate (£7.75) a spicy chicken served in tomato salsa on a flatbread with houmous (£8.50), and homemade fishcakes (£8.50). We’d stumbled upon Johnny Bagdad’s on an early November Sunday lunchtime, a day mild enough for the dogwalkers to still be happily sitting outside
Our café is nestled on the Market Square in Masham, Yorkshire, in the corner next to the church at 52 Market Place, Ripon, HG4 4ED. Surrounded by the charm of this historic market town, it’s a lovely spot to relax with a coffee, meet friends, or enjoy a bite after exploring the area.
Check out the Visit Masham website to discover all the latest events, activities, and happenings in the community. It’s the best way to make the most of what Masham has to offer.
