Hatton Locks Café
Canal-side café next to the famous Hatton flight, a natural meet point for road and gravel routes from Warwick.
Why cyclists like it
Hatton Locks Café is one of the most distinctive café stops in Warwickshire, not because of the coffee or menu, but because of its location beside the famous Hatton Flight of locks. If you're looking for a stop with character and somewhere to spend a little time off the bike, few cafés in the county offer a more interesting setting.
First impression
Unlike many café stops, Hatton Locks Café feels more like part of a day out than a standalone destination. The café sits beside the Grand Union Canal at the base of the Hatton Flight, a staircase of 21 locks that regularly attracts walkers, boaters and cyclists. The outdoor seating overlooks the canal, and it doesn't take long before your attention drifts from your coffee to the narrowboats working their way through the locks.
The ride there
The location is both a strength and a weakness. For riders coming from Warwick, Leamington Spa or Kenilworth, Hatton Locks is relatively easy to include within a loop. The quieter roads through Hatton village and Rowington are far more pleasant than using the main roads where possible. However, most road cyclists will find that a short section of the Birmingham Road (A4177) is difficult to avoid completely. It's not a road many cyclists would choose to ride for longer than necessary, and that's worth knowing before planning a route. Once you leave the main road behind and descend towards the locks, the atmosphere changes completely.
Food, coffee and facilities
The café serves breakfasts, lunches, sandwiches, cakes and hot drinks, with indoor and outdoor seating available. Reviews frequently mention the friendly service and the canal-side setting. The outdoor seating is one of the café's biggest assets. It provides plenty to look at while you stop, and on a busy day there's a steady stream of boats, walkers and cyclists passing through.
Bike-friendliness
Cyclists are a familiar sight at Hatton Locks and there is ample space around the café area. The outdoor seating makes it easy to remain close to your bike during a stop, and the informal atmosphere means arriving in cycling kit never feels out of place.
Is it worth the detour?
That depends on what you're looking for. If your priority is finding Warwickshire's best speciality coffee, there are other cafés on the Ride Coffee Return map that place more emphasis on coffee culture. If you're looking for a café stop with a genuinely unique setting, Hatton Locks is much harder to beat. The combination of canal, lock flight and countryside makes it unlike any other stop featured on the site.
Ride Coffee Return verdict
Hatton Locks Café earns its place on the Ride Coffee Return map because of where it is rather than what it tries to be. The short section of Birmingham Road is a compromise most riders will have to make, but once you arrive, the canal-side setting offers one of the most memorable café stops in Warwickshire. It's a place where many riders are likely to spend longer than they originally intended.
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