We visited a Cannock truck stop cafe that is known by drivers across the UK - and we will definitely be stopping by again

However, while now known as 'The Hollies' - to many it's the legendary Greasy Lil's Cafe, a 'greasy spoon' that almost all of us have visited and remember fondly.

The cafe started out as a much-loved tea room in the 1920s, quickly gaining a national reputation for serving quick and easy food for the professional driver and proving a safe place to rest.

Now, visiting the service stop, we can see that their ethos of providing a place to rest for those who need it hasn't changed.

The exterior

The actual building itself will come as a shock for those who remember the old Greasy Lil's from days past. I was certainly surprised by how much the building had changed since I first visited it in 2005.

The rest stop now features a purple and white building complete with plenty of parking for both HGV and lorry drivers and regular customers alike.

Electric charging bays and an onsite modern refuelling station sit on the carpark, which in the Greasy Lil's days of old would have looked like alien technology.

I was shocked at how clean it all was. In our minds, we may picture a seedy and messy, lorry-packed carpark that we might see on TV, but instead, it's a pleasant experience even just standing outside.

The interior

The biggest change of course was inside.

A complete remodel of the interior took away the greasy walls and packed floors that I (strangely) fondly remember - now it is a simple but efficient mix between a run-of-the-mill service station and a true truck stop.

The interior features a friendly tuck shop with a gaming arcade, several rooms for overnight customers, washing facilities, and of course, the legendary cafe.

Staff members were a pleasure to talk to. They reminded me of the customer experience you might have received from a 1950s cafe, merrily singing and chirping while cooking cleaning and completing their tasks.

Everyone greeted me like they were my aunt or uncle "Hey darling, how you doing?" or "alright mate, how's your day?" it was a pleasant and warm experience that contrasts the regular transaction-minded conversation you might get from a motorway service station.

The cafe, instead of the weirdly familiar old grease smell and cigarette smoke, was replaced by lorry drivers enjoying meals and drinks, staff talking to regulars, and otherwise just general cafe antics.

Talking about the service, lorry drivers Liam Maher and Jessy Barrett, from Manchester, said: "We have actually just come from Scotland, we stopped here on the way down the UK.

"Every truck driver in Manchester knows this stop. It has more space than a lot of service stations and it has better utilities. These smaller more independent places are just better to have a break."

What I loved about the experience, was the attention to history. Despite now being owned by Certas Energy, the group made it a point to feature old archived images of the Greasy Lil's, showing the journey they have travelled, and paying respect to their past.

Talking about the building's history, the Manager of The Hollies, David Weaver, said: "It's got a long history. Everyone remembers us as Greasy Lils, and we didn't want to take away from that.

"Obviously we are called The Hollies now. But everyone loved Greasy Lils, we all came here to eat on long journeys or get food after a long night. We appreciate that history."

The food

After waffling on about the building and staff, we now arrive at the important part of the experience. The food.

I vividly remember the Greasy Lil's full English breakfast of old.

The visual aspect of the old fry cook throwing rashers of bacon and links of sausages onto the grill. Impulsively dunking your bread into the tomatoes after making a haphazard sausage sandwich. We all love it.

All I can say is, that while the venue may have changed, the experience of the food hasn't.

The flavours were amazing - the sausages split apart in an array of flavour as you bit into them, the bacon was crispy but not overdone and the egg was perfectly runny, splitting the second I hit it with a bit of bread.

Full English breakfasts are extremely easy to cook but terribly hard to master. It's almost impossible to stand out in the crowd of thousands of fry-ups available across England. But I would say that I would remember this one.

This is true 'caff' food. Real scran for hungry drivers. It's clean, it's tasty and most importantly, it's very filling.

The menu has expanded to accommodate all flavours and diets, pies and chips, steak, salads, omelettes and a range of kids' meals and beverages.

Better yet, everything is adjustable to taste.

Mr Weaver said: "Our staff here are very accommodating. We have a menu, but if you don't like something or if you prefer something else, we can normally accommodate you.

"The full English breakfasts are the most popular item on the menu. It's something we have always done. Everyone remembers them."

It's always hard to pull negatives from something so positive, but The Hollies is just that, it's all positive, they pursue cleaner energy for HGVs, they offer cheap rooms for long drivers, they have good hearty food, and all with a smile on their faces.

In all, I would say our lovely Greasy Lil would be proud of what our renowned greasy spoon has become.