Pret à Manger, London Bishopgate

The Location: Pret à Manger, London Bishopgate
The Visit: Wednesday 11th October, evening
Cake: Almond bakewell cake
Tea: Pret own brand
The Cake: I would normally love almond bakewell, but this one had taken its name to heart and had been baked too well - overdone round the edges, was too crispy for my liking in this case.
The Tea: Pretty nice for a takeaway tea
The Café: Grabbed a quick bite to eat on the train home from Liverpool St. Towards the end of the day so the selection was sparse, which is probably why the poor cake.
Verdict: 6/10. Fresher cake would have increased score to 7.

Salthouse Harbour Hotel, Ipswich

The Location: Salthouse Harbour Hotel, Ipswich
The Visit: Saturday 7th October, afternoon
Cake: Afternoon Tea so a large selection of cakes
Tea: Unbranded loose leaf in a pot
The Cake: Very good selection of cakes and puddings
The Tea: Lovely tea, and accompanied by a glass of champagne. 
The Café: A special visit arranged for my wedding anniversary with my wife, this is supposedly in the best hotel in Ipswich, with a very classy afternoon tea offering. There was drizzle so all seats were inside, but this didn't disappoint, with lovely surroundings. We had opted for the Luxury Afternoon Tea which included champagne (De Devaux for those interested). Everything about this was top quality, even the savouries and the scone to finish.
Verdict: 9.5/10. Only lost half a point because of the wait for service.

Sainsburys Cafe, London Colney

The Location: Sainsburys Cafe, London Colney
The Visit: Tuesday 26th September, lunchtime
Cake: Strawberry pavlova
Tea: Sainsurys Red Label (own brand), in a pot
The Cake: Despite being a simple meringue, cream, jam, strawberries, was very tasty. I do love a pavlova.
The Tea: Pretty average, standard. 
The Café: Stopped en route to London for lunch (I also had a mozarella pesto panini, very good but not relevent to this blog) while working. Good wifi let me work for half an hour whilst eating. Overall very crowded, people were struggling to find seats.
Verdict: 7/10. Lovely cake, average tea,

Ikea cafe, Neasden, London

The Location: Ikea cafe, Neasden, London
The Visit: Wednesday 30th August, lunchtime
Cake: Swedish apple pie with cream
Tea: London Tea Company English Breakfast
The Cake: Had been chilled for some time, so actually had lost some flavour. Not bad overall, but would be better left at room temperature for a bit longer before eating.
The Tea: Good quality, helps that it's free with an Ikea Home membership card! 
The Café: Stopped in on the way home from London for a lunch of meatballs and ended up spending far too much on random furniture and homewares. Very busy as lunchtime in the school holidays, we eventually found a table by a window overlooking the car park.
Verdict: 7/10. Tastier cake would have increased score to 8.

Urban Jungle, Norwich

The Location: Urban Jungle, Norwich
The Visit: Saturday 26th August, afternoon
Cake: Victoria sponge (gluten free)
Tea: Unbranded loose leaf in pot
The Cake: Everything in this cafe is gluten free, as the owners have a coeliac in the family. But to be honest, you'd never know from the taste. Lovely texture, not too dry, good amount of jam and cream.
The Tea: Loose leaf can be hit and miss sometimes, but this was very nice. 
The Café: Came with the family, as we'd heard so much, especially on the gluten free front as my wife has an allergy as well. Tables dispersed among trees both inside the marquee and out, with an inside fish pond as well. Very chatty staff too. Comes recommended, though access is tricky without a car.
Verdict: 9/10.

Starbucks, Riverside, Norwich

The Location: Starbucks, Riverside, Norwich
The Visit: Saturday 26th August, morning
Cake: Lemon Drizzle slice
Tea: Teavana, Starbucks' own brand
The Cake: Tasty and tangy, but overall a little dry
The Tea: Average. Starbucks clearly concentrate on their coffee to the expense of tea!
The Café: Visited whilst waiting for my car to undergo work at a nearby garage, this is a new build cafe in the car park of a retail park. Almost identical to most other Starbucks. Pretty average overall I'd say.
Verdict: 6.5/10. 

Asda Cafe, Hall Rd, Norwich

The Location: Asda Cafe, Hall Rd, Norwich
The Visit: Monday 21st August, afternoon
Cake: Cinnamon roll
Tea: Yorkshire
The Cake: Prepackaged gives a cheap impression, but this wasn't at all bad. The big disappointment with it, was the icing that stuck to the packaging on opening.
The Tea: Good tea, stayed hot for a long time.
The Café: Almost an afterthought, the cafe upstairs in Asda has to compete with Costa and Greggs, both next door. Cheap plastic tables and furniture, and disposable tableware, are not the best look, but do the job, especially to bring the prices down (they succeed). Quality of comestibles is good overall, though there's not a huge choice of cakes.
Verdict: 7/10. 

John Lewis Cafe, Norwich

The Location: John Lewis Cafe, Norwich (upstairs)
The Visit: Sunday 25th June, afternoon
Cake: Victoria sponge with rose petals
Tea: Twinings Full English
The Cake: The cake itself was very nice, moist and spongy with a good filling. However the rose petals did nothing for it, completely flavourless just adding a bit on unwanted crunch.
The Tea: Very good, strong tea. Nice big pot, got 3 cups out of this one.
The Café: Visiting with my son after buying his new Cubs uniform instore, before it closed for the Sunday afternoon. I used my "free hot drink and cake" coupon, whilst Matt had a chocolate and hazelnut wafer with fruit juice. 
Verdict: 7/10. Would have been 8.5 without the rose petals.

Starbucks, Colney Fields Shopping Park, London Colney

The Location: Starbucks, Colney Fields Shopping Park, London Colney
The Visit: Wednesday 14th June, afternoon
Cake: Lemon and poppyseed muffin
Tea: Starbucks Tazo tea
The Cake: I admit, I'm a fan of this muffin. Light, soft and zingy, with a blob of lemon curd hidden inside.
The Tea: Pretty normal own brand tea, in the Twinings Everyday category. Average
The Café: Pit stop on the road, this Starbucks is easily accessible from the M25 upstairs in a Sainsburys. I'd had a sandwich as a late lunch, this counted as pudding, and was a very successful one.
Verdict: 7/10

The Flying Chariot (Wetherspoons), Heathrow Terminal 2

The Location: The Flying Chariot (Wetherspoons), Heathrow Terminal 2
The Visit: Tuesday, 13th June, late evening (came for pudding)
Cake: Victoria sponge
Tea: Twinings Everyday. Single mug with milk from an urn
The Cake: I had requested the carrot cake (that happens to be gluten free) but they had sold out, only having the Victoria sponge left. I was pleasantly surprised. It had a nice dryness but with the right amount of filling and icing to match it. Very good.
The Tea: Not so bad as the usual Everyday tea. About average, nothing special.
The Café: Landside in Heathrow Terminal 2, so accessible to everyone. Some tables had a view over the southern runway (see photo) but the slats prevent really good views. 
Verdict: 7.5/10

Sainsburys Cafe, Longwater, Norwich

The Location: Sainsburys Cafe, Longwater, Norwich
The Visit: Saturday 3rd June, afternoon
Cake: Strawberry tart
Tea: Sainsburys own brand Red Label
The Cake: Quite tasty, though the pastry was a little dry. The creme patissiere filling was nicer. The few strawberries made some bits fruitless, others fruit-heavy
The Tea: Pretty normal, middle of the road pot of tea. Nice big pot, got 2 1/2 cups out of it.
The Café: Visiting with my son as a treat for going shopping (he had a bag of popcorn), we took a seat overlooking the store. Overall pretty average.
Verdict: 6/10

Kulula flight, Johannesburg Lanseria - Durban

The Location: On board a Kulula flight from Lanseria (Johannesburg's second airport) to Durban
The Visit: Saturday 29th April, late afternoon
Cake: A double chocolate muffin
Tea: Five Roses with milk
The Cake: It seems that Kulula have learnt well with regards muffins on board aircraft which tend to dry out too much - this was smothered in plenty of icing which helped enormously. Very tasty.
The Tea: Five Roses is South Africa's premium brand, it was ok but nothing special.
The Café: Buy on board an aircraft. Not much choice of location! Some good views out of the window to start with before it got dark.
Verdict: 6.5/10

British Airways Terraces Lounge South, Heathrow Terminal 5

The Location: British Airways Terraces Lounge South, Heathrow Airport Terminal 5, London
The Visit: Thursday 27th April, breakfast (very early, 5.30am!)
Cake: A pain au chocolat (hiding behind the bacon roll)
Tea: Twinings English Breakfast
The Cake: A pretty standard mass produced pastry. Quite tasty but a little dry, not buttery enough.
The Tea: Pretty standard Twinings.
The Café: The largest of the BA lounges, very impersonal. Help yourself buffet.
Verdict: 6/10

Cafe Versailles, Lisbon, Portugal

The Location: Cafe Versailles, Lisbon, Portugal
The Visit: Saturday 4th March, breakfast
Cake: Pastel de nata, traditional Portuguese custard tart
Tea: A first for this blog, not tea but hot chocolate.
The Cake: Delicious. Creamy filling, flaky pastry, plenty of flavour.
The Tea: Or hot chocolate in this case. Very thick drink, full of flavour, tasted like a bar of chocolate had simply been melted. Again delicious. 
The Café: A traditional style cafe, attentive staff and elegant surroundings, and huge selection of sweet and savoury delights, Top marks.
Verdict: 9/10

Club Aspire, Heathrow Terminal 3

The Location: Club Aspire lounge, Heathrow Airport Terminal 3
The Visit: Friday 3rd March, late evening
Cake: Pre-packaged blueberry muffin
Tea: Twinings English Breakfast, milk from a jug. 
The Cake: Pre-packaged, so I knew beforehand that it would be quite dry. The blueberries gave it a little moisture, and some flavour, but not much.
The Tea: Normally a good tea, but this was self-serve with hot water from a coffee machine, so not quite hot enough, but adequate.
The Café: Actually the lounge, as all food and drink was included in the entry price. Smaller than most lounges, but comfortable, with some seats with a view over the apron.
Verdict: 6.5/10

Cafe Bar Marzano, Norwich

 

The Location: Cafe Bar Marzano, Norwich, in the Forum in the city centre
The Visit: Saturday 14th January, early afternoon
Cake: I literally cannot remember. From the photo it looks like a carrot cake.
Tea: Teapigs Everyday Brew, milk from the urn.
The Cake: It was tasty, I do know that (I've never had a bad cake from the Forum cafe) but it was entirely forgettable. A decent amount of cream filling, but still an average cake.
The Tea: Not a particularly common brand, but certainly not a bad one. Above average.
The Café: The Forum Cafe is a particular family favourite, with a good selection of gluten free cakes as well as glutenous (my wife is allergic). Good seating areas, but the problem is the popularity - there are never any sofas free when I go! This time was no different. Still, a nice spot to sit back with a snack whilst the children read their new library books.
Verdict: 7/10

Easyjet Flight, Faro-Southend

The Location: On board an Easyjet flight from Faro to Southend
The Visit: Saturday 18th February 2017, around lunchtime
Cake: Blueberry Muffin
Tea: Twinings English Breakfast, milk in fresh sachets
The Cake: I've had some nice muffins on board flights before, but this one was not one of them. Dry and flavourless, the blueberries gave some slight damp texture but still didn't taste of much. Disappointing.
The Tea: Twinings English Breakfast is usually a good cup, and this was no different. Flavourful, it certainly hit the spot, helping to make up for the poor cake.
The Café: I didn't really get much choice in this matter! At seat service on board the flight. I was in the middle seat between my 5 year old daughter to the window, and another passenger on the aisle.
Verdict: 5/10 (1/5 for the cake because I was hungry, 4/5 for the tea)

Marks and Spencer Cafe, Norwich

The Location: Marks and Spencer cafe, Norwich (upstairs)
The Visit: Saturday 17th December, late afternoon
Cake: White chocolate and red velvet layer cake
Tea: Unbranded
The Cake: This was a good cake. Delicious chocolate flavour, with a white chocolate candycane on top. Enough, but not too much, cream and frosting, and a moist cake made for good eating,
The Tea: About average. Not bad but not excellent. 
The Café: I managed to scrape together an hour in the run up to Christmas to get away from the family to buy them Christmas presents, and snuck into a cafe for some tea and cake before meeting up again. It wasn't long before closing time, and the choice of cakes reflected that - I had the last piece of what was apparently a very popular choice. It hadn't dried out, which was good. Not many people left in the cafe by this time, I found a place hidden away in a corner. I wasn't disappointed, though the excellent cake was let down slightly by the poor tea.
Verdict: 7/10