Forte Cafe to the rescue
Last Thursday was not a good day for the Frockers. The combination of a break down (of the automotive kind), a dental appointment and a scheduled website upgrade (which always makes us nervous) all in the one day caused stress levels to rise exponentially, but we are pleased to report that we survived, mainly thanks to the kindness of a stranger.
Dentistry is never a pleasant experience and so it was a reluctant Alison who set off for her afternoon appointment in Dundee. Her trusty Merc may have clocked up a lot of miles but after its MOT last month it was running like a dream and covered the 12 miles into town without incident. Little did she know that it was secretly plotting its pothole revenge and with only a loud clunk as a warning, the front spring sheared off, immobilising the vehicle on a busy Dundee road.
Pathetically picking up two halves of the coiled spring from the aforesaid busy Dundee road while parked on double yellow lines and calling Johnny Frocker on the mobile was the best action she could muster. Thankfully, a concerned stranger soon appeared, offering assistance in the form of an impromptu diagnosis of the problem, a warning not to move the Merc and a calming coffee in his nearby cafe until AA back up arrived.
To cut a long story short, the dental appointment was made with minutes to spare, the car was duly delivered to a local garage, and by the time we made it home, Frocker Tom had successfully completed the website upgrade. So all's well that ends well.
We plan to thank the cafe proprietor personally, but in the meantime we'd like to send a big shout out for the Forte Cafe at 98 Dura Street, Dundee. Although we frequently pass it, we had no idea what a gem of a place it is and will certainly be calling in for coffee and cake in the future. Behind this 30s deco signage lies the most fabulous retro interior which we are going to appreciate much more fully on our next visit.
Dentistry is never a pleasant experience and so it was a reluctant Alison who set off for her afternoon appointment in Dundee. Her trusty Merc may have clocked up a lot of miles but after its MOT last month it was running like a dream and covered the 12 miles into town without incident. Little did she know that it was secretly plotting its pothole revenge and with only a loud clunk as a warning, the front spring sheared off, immobilising the vehicle on a busy Dundee road.
Pathetically picking up two halves of the coiled spring from the aforesaid busy Dundee road while parked on double yellow lines and calling Johnny Frocker on the mobile was the best action she could muster. Thankfully, a concerned stranger soon appeared, offering assistance in the form of an impromptu diagnosis of the problem, a warning not to move the Merc and a calming coffee in his nearby cafe until AA back up arrived.
To cut a long story short, the dental appointment was made with minutes to spare, the car was duly delivered to a local garage, and by the time we made it home, Frocker Tom had successfully completed the website upgrade. So all's well that ends well.
We plan to thank the cafe proprietor personally, but in the meantime we'd like to send a big shout out for the Forte Cafe at 98 Dura Street, Dundee. Although we frequently pass it, we had no idea what a gem of a place it is and will certainly be calling in for coffee and cake in the future. Behind this 30s deco signage lies the most fabulous retro interior which we are going to appreciate much more fully on our next visit.
