M’s of Aylsham – Cocktails, Conversation and a Place to Belong
There are several things you might notice when you first walk into M’s of Aylsham.
Perhaps it will be the deep blue walls, old beams and exposed brickwork; the glasses glinting above the bar; or the handwritten board announcing a cocktail created in tribute to Dolly Parton. You may spot the fresh fish counter, catch the smell of something delicious being cooked in an improbably small kitchen, or discover the mermaid wallpaper in the loo – a much-loved attraction in its own right.
What you notice most of all, however, is how comfortable it feels.
That is no accident. When Emma Payne began imagining M’s, she wanted to create somewhere people could enjoy good food and a properly made drink, but also somewhere they would feel welcome – whether arriving with friends, meeting somebody later or simply walking through the door alone.
“I wanted people to feel special when they came in here,” she tells me.
Four and a half years after opening, M’s has become a place for cocktails, tapas and fresh fish, but also celebrations, friendships, chance conversations and some very important moments in its customers’ lives.
And it all began with Emma deciding that Aylsham was missing something.
The idea that brought three worlds together
Emma had reached a crossroads in her career. She had spent 20 years working for North Norfolk District Council, but before that had worked in pubs, bars and restaurants around Cromer.
“I’m a Cromer girl and very proud of it,” she says.
Hospitality was already in her blood, and she had always wanted to own a bar. Sitting in Felbrigg Hall one day with a cup of tea, she began seriously considering what she could do next.
Emma had lived in Aylsham for around 20 years and loved the town, but felt there wasn’t anywhere she would naturally go by herself for a drink. She wanted somewhere intimate and welcoming rather than enormous – somewhere to sit at the bar with a glass of wine or cocktail, perhaps share a few small plates, and spend a couple of unhurried hours with friends or family.
Then came the fish.
Emma’s husband Johnny works at Coxfords Butchers in Aylsham, so she understood the difference between buying carefully sourced produce and simply picking something up from a supermarket. With her Cromer background, she felt just as strongly about fresh fish – and knew that Aylsham did not have a fishmonger.
Her brother is a chef, which helped with the food side of the plan. Gradually, the three parts came together.
“Why don’t we do a fish deli, cocktail bar and tapas?”
On paper, it sounded slightly bizarre. The more Emma thought about it, however, the more certain she became that it could work.
From mood boards to opening night
Emma discovered that the ground floor of the former Ironmongers building on Red Lion Street was being divided into smaller units and arranged to meet owner Tim Briscoe.
She presented him with her unusual idea. He asked her to put together some mood boards so that he could understand what was in her head.
Fortunately, he loved it.
Emma already knew how she wanted M’s to feel: deep blue, warm wood, touches of gold and brass, and a sense of understated elegance that complemented the Grade II listed building rather than competing with it.
The wallpaper was the first thing they bought. Emma’s mum, Diane, chose the deep blue paint from one of its colours, while friends and family helped to decorate and lay the floor. Johnny cut the tiles behind the bar, and Tim brought the building’s old beams, brickwork and fireplace back into view.
Emma handed in her notice in October 2021. M’s opened on 16 February 2022.
“I was so nervous,” she remembers. “I didn’t know if people were going to like it or if they were going to come.”
She needn’t have worried. Aylsham embraced M’s – and, as word spread, people began travelling from further afield too. Today, Emma welcomes loyal local customers alongside returning visitors who make M’s part of the reason for coming to Aylsham.
Cocktails made properly
Before opening, Emma taught herself mixology.
She practised cocktails at home, researched their histories and learned how different spirits, measurements and ingredients could be combined. She became fascinated by the stories behind classic drinks, from the Prohibition era to the cocktail cultures of London and New York.
“It’s an art, mixology,” she says. “I came to realise that and really respected it.”
Then she discovered she was rather good at it.
Today, the cocktail list at M’s runs to several pages, but going off-menu is equally welcome. Behind the bar is Emma’s cocktail “bible” – an extensive collection of tried-and-tested concoctions. If a customer doesn’t quite know what they fancy, Emma and her team will help them find just the thing.
Seasonal cocktails and a changing cocktail of the week give the team room to play. When I visited, the latest creation was Dolly: Tennessee whiskey, lemonade, peach schnapps and lemon juice, devised as a tribute to Dolly Parton.
Emma’s own favourite is a Cosmopolitan.
“It just hits the spot,” she says. “It’s fruity, it makes me smile, and when I drink one it always reminds me of New York and Carrie Bradshaw from Sex and the City.”
Despite tired ideas about who drinks what, cocktails at M’s are most definitely for everyone. Emma still laughs about the group of rugby players who came in and ordered Piña Coladas.
Quite right too. Life is too short to let somebody else choose your cocktail.
A taste of Norfolk
From the beginning, Emma wanted M’s to champion Norfolk produce.
Before opening, she visited local vineyards and breweries, meeting the people behind them and learning about what they made. Those relationships continue today, with Norfolk wines, beers, lagers and spirits playing an important part in the drinks menu.
“I wanted people to be able to try a glass of Norfolk wine without having to pay an extortionate price or buy a bottle,” she explains.
The fish deli was approached with the same care. Emma spent time with John and Claire Davies of Davies Fish Shop in Cromer, learning about seasonality, sustainability and which fish to buy. Fresh fish and shellfish are supplied from Cromer and Lowestoft – and Diane dresses the Cromer crabs.
The tapas menu brings everything together. There are familiar favourites such as homemade beef meatballs, tiger prawns, scallops and bruschetta, alongside sharing boards and smaller dishes for those who simply fancy something with a drink.
The seafood platter is the most popular, bringing together Cromer crab, hot roast salmon, smoked mackerel and crayfish tails with sourdough from neighbouring Bread Source. Emma’s meatballs also have a family connection: they are made using beef from Coxfords Butchers.
Much of this is prepared in a kitchen so compact that every pan, fridge and piece of equipment has its appointed place. Emma cooks while remaining part of the room, adding to the informal, almost European feeling of the bar.
There are no rules demanding that everybody at a table eats or that customers order a certain number of dishes. One person might have tapas while somebody else simply enjoys a drink.
“That’s how I wanted it – really easy-going.”
A place where conversations happen
Emma’s original ambition was very specific. She wanted a woman to be able to walk into M’s alone, sit at the bar and feel comfortable having a glass of wine.
She might chat if she wanted to, wait for friends without feeling awkward or simply sit quietly and enjoy being there.
That instinct has shaped the whole atmosphere of M’s.
People at neighbouring tables begin talking. Strangers discover mutual friends, exchange recommendations and occasionally even connect somebody hoping to move to Aylsham with somebody else who knows of a house for sale. Friendships have formed across the room, and conversations have continued long after the first drink.
“It’s just creating a space where conversations can happen,” Emma says. “That’s really cool, I think.”
Customers come for lunch, an evening out, a drink before going elsewhere in town or a nightcap on the way home. Some find themselves lingering much longer than expected.
“There’s no clock in here,” says Emma. “I want people to sit and enjoy, breathe, relax and have a conversation.”
That may be why M’s can feel as though it belongs in a much larger city or somewhere on the Continent, while remaining unmistakably rooted in Aylsham and Norfolk.
The moments that matter most
One part of the business Emma had not anticipated was the number of people who would choose M’s for their celebrations.
The bar can be privately hired for birthdays, anniversaries, engagements, weddings and charity events, with food and drinks tailored to the occasion. M’s also hosts live music, tasting evenings, cocktail-making classes and other special events.
Yet it isn’t the scale of these occasions that matters most to Emma. It is what they represent.
Families bring an 18-year-old to M’s for their first legal drink. Couples choose it for a wedding anniversary. Customers come in to share the news that they are expecting a baby, return for mocktails during the pregnancy and later bring that baby in to meet everybody.
Emma has also lost customers she had grown to know and care about, but their families continue to visit because M’s remains part of their story.
When Emma talks about these people, it is clear that they are the reason the long hours and pressures of hospitality remain worthwhile.
“For a family to bring their 18-year-old here for their first drink, or a couple to celebrate their anniversary here – of all the places in the world they could do it – that’s what keeps me going.”
M’s may have begun as a business idea, but it has become somewhere people trust with pieces of their lives.
Part of Aylsham’s growing story
Emma was careful from the beginning not to duplicate what other Aylsham businesses were already doing. She wanted M’s to complement the town’s pubs, restaurants and bars, giving people another reason to come to Aylsham and another choice once they arrived.
Since M’s opened, more independent hospitality businesses have joined it. Emma believes that variety makes the town stronger: the more there is to enjoy, the more likely people are to travel to Aylsham, spend time here and return.
She is now chair of Aylsham Business Consortium and values the support local owners can give one another, particularly when running an independent business feels difficult.
“There’s no bigger reward than supporting and encouraging one another.”
As for what comes next, Emma would like to develop the cocktail-making side of M’s, taking classes and cocktail experiences out to private parties and events. At home in Red Lion Street, the focus remains on continuing to enjoy Aylsham, support other businesses and welcome people through the door.
“Come and have some local quality food, Norfolk drinks, cocktails and conversation,” she says.
That is probably the best way to experience M’s: arrive without rushing, choose something that makes you smile and give yourself time to settle in.
Have tapas or don’t. Ask the team to find your perfect cocktail. Talk to the person at the next table, or enjoy a quiet glass of wine by yourself.
And if you visit the loo before you leave, do take a moment to admire its famous mermaid wallpaper.
Visit M's of Aylsham
11 Red Lion Street, Aylsham, NR11 6ER Tel: 07778 546825 Website: Click here to find out more about M's Follow: Instagram / Facebook
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