I’ve been meaning to check out Weybridge’s speciality coffee scene for a while, so when I found myself in the vicinity with time on my hands on Saturday, I did just that. I did have a list of potentials, but ended up visiting Maya, which was a chance discovery. A self-styled artisan micro-bakery and coffee house, I spotted Maya as I wandered down the appropriately-named Baker Street.

Opened in March 2019 by Oniz and Serdar, everything is prepared on site in the kitchen/bakery at the back, including the sourdough loaves that form the basis of the breakfast (available until 11:30) and sandwich (lunch) menus. There are also plenty of cakes, while the coffee comes from Square Mile, Maya offering a standard espresso-based menu using the Red Brick blend, with milk-based drinks served in HuskeeCups.

You can sit outside in the sun at the solitary table, or inside, where there’s a sunny window-bar on the left, plus tables down the right-hand side, opposite the counter. The kitchen and bakery, meanwhile, are tucked away at the back.

You can read more of my thoughts after the gallery.

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Maya is right in the heart of Weybridge, on the north side of Baker Street, meaning it gets plenty of sun. At the end of a terrace of brick-built shops with accommodation above, the front is almost all glass, including a large window down the left-hand side, where a short passage ends in a gate, presumably to the private gardens behind the terrace.

The central door is deeply recessed between two large picture windows, the one on the right sloping forwards at about 45° before ending in a short section parallel with the street. The window on the left is more conventional, but not as deep, leaving just enough space for a two-person table between the window and the pavement, Maya’s only outside seating.

Inside, Maya goes a long way back, with the counter, set back on the left, dominating the space. Roughly square, the cakes are displayed along the right-hand side, while the espresso machine and its grinders (for Square Mile’s Red Brick blend and seasonal decaf) are against the wall on the left, the menu written on a mirror above them. The bread is displayed on the back wall, while you order at the front of the counter, which is opposite the door, before taking a seat.

The choice of seating is fairly simple. Behind you and to your left is an L-shaped window-bar, with a pair of stools down the left-hand side, although I’m sure that in pre-COVID days, there would have been at least one more stool (in the window at the front). Alternatively, you can take one of the tables on the right.

A four-person table occupies the window at the front, which is behind you as you enter, while a row of three two-/three-person tables runs along the wall, extending down opposite the counter. The first and second are separated by a large pot-plant, while the third is beyond some retail shelves. At the back, bookshelves denote the end of the coffee shop, with the kitchen visible beyond.

I arrived just before noon on a Saturday, by which time the sourdough loaves and all the pastries had already been sold. I wasn’t the only one who was disappointed, judging by the constant stream of customers who came in asking for bread. Fortunately, the kitchen still had sufficient bread for the sandwiches, so I ordered the halloumi and paprika one for my lunch.

Although you choose from a pre-set menu, all the sandwiches are made to order in the kitchen, so there can be a little bit of a wait, particularly if Maya’s is busy. My sandwich duly arrived, the two halves mounted on top of each other and skewered with a wooden stake to keep them together. The halloumi was lovely, but the highlight was the soft, springy sourdough bread, which isn’t always the case with sourdough.

I paired that with a shot of Square Mile’s seasonal Red Brick blend as an espresso, served in a classic white cup. While Red Brick holds no great surprises for me, I’ve not had it as an espresso for a while and had forgotten its pleasing acidity, which I really enjoyed.

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