We have no idea whether Nutmeg is related to the health food shop next door, who owns it, how long they've been there, or whether there are plans afoot for expansion, turning vegan and/or macrobiotic, or giving up caféing altogether in favour of a career in investment banking.

The more 'alternatively' inclined among you will already know you can lunch at Nutmeg and then pop next door to stock up on organic shampoos and other provisions.

You will already be enjoying the little oasis of smaller shops along that stretch of Victoria Road beyond the police station, while the rest of us trawl the household brands on Westborough.

And you will already know you need to get there early or reserve a table if you want lunch (two sets of potential customers were disappointed when we were there; the café has less than twenty seats.) Nutmeg is a vegetarian café of the old school, the kind conceived before we started flying in exotic fruit and vegetables out of season from far-flung continents, before hippies went dayglo, when Small was Beautiful and local was best.

The eating experience is accompanied by notices and leaflets for meditation groups and hypnotherapy, a rack of hand-made cards and an exhibition of paintings by Scarborough's abstract art group. One of the painters was there as we ate, enjoying an artists' gathering while sitting underneath his very own painting.

A lady on the adjacent table has something to do with the literature festival. People seem to know each other. It's that kind of place. But not exclusive. No, you will be made to feel very welcome by the woman who serves you your chunky salad or soup, accompanied by enormous home-made, seed-filled bread rolls. You can have organic scrambled eggs on toast, bagels, potatoes, or a dish of the day (today risotto).

The sweet of tooth have a choice of home-made cakes – including the now-ubiquitous carrot cake, of course, but also lemon with polenta and gingerbread apple pie. Our salad of the day – humous: clean-tasting, nutritious and filling – cost £3.50 and the ginger bread apple pie £1.60.

The latter, an open pie with gingerbread mixture on top, tasted fantastic but fell down a little on texture, almost as though the mixture wasn't quite cooked.

But hey, it came with dairyfree ice cream with flecks of real vanilla in it, so who's complaining. You don't go to Nutmeg to split hairs (nor indeed for an indoor loo – the facilities are across the yard). You go, because the food is earthy, healthy, tasty, and served in large portions by an extremely nice woman in comfortable surroundings and in the company of people who smile at you and make you want to smile back.

(A dating note for males in their thirties and forties: women outnumber men by about 15:2.) We liked. We shall return.

Value for money: 4.25
Overall: 4 (inching towards five if you're vegetarian, we imagine)