L’eau A La Bouche (E8 4PH)

35-37 Broadway Market, London E8 4PH

http://www.labouche.co.uk/

Situated on the ever popular and frequently busy Broadway Market, L’eau a la Bouche is guaranteed a heavy footfall, which accounts for our frequent difficulty in finding a free table. 

My favourite spot to sit inside is in the left hand corner at the junction of two large windows – one overlooking Benjamin Close, and the other looking out onto Broadway Market. This spot is a real suntrap and maximises both light & warmth, so is perfect on cooler days. I don’t have a favourite spot to sit outside, since each time I’ve been here all the tables outside have been fully occupied.

Their cake selection is manly – no frilly, creamy pale-coloured sponges here. It’s a solid selection and while it’s not too cakey (aside from the staple offering of carrot cake), they do serve a mean Portugese custard tart.

Manly cakes. Girly doilies.

The café is a combined gourmet deli and coffee shop, appealing to the upwardly mobile urban hippie (the staff can best be described as “alternative” and “laid back"). 

I was bowled over on one visit by the bear-face coffee froth on Ben’s latte. This is not a euphemism. I’ll spell it out… Ben’s latte had a bear face imprinted onto the froth. If that’s still not clear, then check out the photo. 

Beats seeing the Virgin Mary on a slice of toast any day. 

Why the sad face Mr Coffee Bear?

CakeMyDayLondon Rating

The Haberdashery (N8 8PL)

22 Middle Lane, London, Crouch End N8 8PL

http://www.the-haberdashery.com/Home.html

Crouch End packs an unexpected punch with a high concentration of cafes in a fairly small radius on and around the high street. 

The Haberdashery is just off the main road, tucked into a quiet side street. It has won a few awards (Best Coffee Shop in London (London Lifestyle Awards) and Best Caffeine Fix in London (Grazia Magazine) to name but two), so I came with high expectations.

The verdict? Well, a little mixed. The Haberdashery gets top marks for its “eclectic and vintage décor” (as described on their website). It really is quite sweet, with a wall feature comprised of colourful tea cups, crocheted tea-cosies in the shape of owls on shelves and artwork decorating the whitewashed wood-panelled walls.

I enjoyed their Victoria Sponge with filling that tasted of real strawberries, although the sponge itself was a tad dry. Ben’s Orange Polenta cake was the real winner, and I managed to sneak in a few mouthfuls when he wasn’t looking.

If you look carefully you can see where a mouse has nibbled Ben's cake

But… there is a but.

I thought the prices were a little on the high side and at the top end of what one would pay for a slice of cake. 

The ambiance was destroyed by the overbearingly loud 1950s rock & roll music (rockabilly?) cutting through the small space, drowning out any hope of actually relaxing with one’s own thoughts. I regretted not sitting outside in the tiny rear courtyard, but the weather was too chilly for me.

On both occasions we have visited, the staff seemed rather obsessed with where customers sat (and could not sit). This might be to maximise the ratio of number of customers per table, but it felt a little OTT, kind of like when you visit someone's house and aren't allowed to sit in their "special chair". That said, Ben and I have such a chair at home, covered in expensive plush fabric and even our cats know not to sit on it. Now that I have put that into words, it does sound pretty strange. 

But back to the cafe. 

Perhaps reflective of the area’s distance from central London and plethora of “family homes” in the vicinity, The Haberdashery was at times too crowded with strollers and little people, making it feel more like a parent’s club than a hip urban hangout. 

Even so, it’s a great place to visit if you’re in the area even if just to see the cutesey interior. 

CakeMyDayLondon Rating

Tarte (TN16 1JE)

High Street | Brasted, Westerham TN16 1JE, England

I know, I know. This café is not in London. And it’s not “cool” either. But bear with me. 

Formerly known as “96 Degrees”, it was renamed "Tarte” by the new owners (although their cash register receipts still say 96 Degrees). 

The café is decorated in a chic country style; a large communal wooden table with bench seating takes up about a quarter of the interior space, and individual tables and sofas make up the remaining seating. It’s relatively popular with passing cyclists who ride the Sevenoaks to Westerham route through picturesque countryside.

The family who run Tarte are ridiculously good looking and super nice. They remind me of Mike and Carol from the Brady Bunch. Their children help serve customers, and it’s all such wholesome family fun that my faith in the family unit is restored every time I see them working in such harmony together. Seriously. 

Largest sugar bowl I've ever seen looming ominously over the carrot cake. 

Ben doesn’t rate the coffee. But I rate the carrot cake, which is what keeps us coming back. It is exactly how carrot cake should taste... rich, spicy and moist with delicious icing. It is also very reasonably priced, and I confess that on some occasions I’ve ordered two slices.

It doesn’t bother me that I can’t get mobile phone reception or that the cafe doesn’t have wi-fi. I forgive them for having no online presence (I can’t even check-in my location, shock horror). I don’t care about it being slightly twee and too magazine-shoot perfect. 

As long as they keep selling their carrot cake I will continue returning. 

CakeMyDayLondon Rating

Franze & Evans (E2 7DL)

101 Redchurch St, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, E2 7DL

http://www.franzeevans.com/

Located in the heart of East London action, Franze & Evans has an up-market feel and is very busy all the time. We were fortunate to get a table outside, probably because it was raining and no one else was prepared to brave the elements. Their loss.

This is a terrible picture and really doesn't do the cake justice. Oh well, I guess I'll have to go back and have more cake so I can take a better photo. 

There was a delectable selection of cakes on offer, and I chose the delicious lemon courgette cake. 

I'm a fussy eater and I will only eat courgette (or most vegetables if truth be told) when it is combined with sugar and icing, so this cake was perfect for me. 

Also, I'm pretty sure it counted towards the recommended five-a-day servings of fruit and veg.

I will definitely go back for more next time I need a veggie hit, maybe on another rainy day.  

CakeMyDayLondon Rating

The Hackney Pearl (E9 5LX)

11 Prince Edward Rd, Hackney Wick, London E9 5LX

http://www.thehackneypearl.com/

The brownies. The brownies. The brownies.

I almost finished writing this review after I wrote the above, but felt that a little more substance was needed. Plus, I reasoned that a few more paragraphs would allow me the opportunity to mention the brownies again.

I love this place, not least because it’s one of the few cafes in the area that has plenty of free car parking available on Saturdays. 

There is little pretense at the Hackney Pearl. The tables and chairs remind me of my school days in the 70s and 80s (probably because they are). It’s rustic, it’s shabby. But really, it’s so cool. I feel cooler every time I come here, just mingling with the young urban crowd.

This picture, oddly enough, is devoid of brownies. But hopefully you can use your imagination to visualise what a brownie looks like. 

The staff can sometimes be a little on the vague side (pretty things but a bit vacant), the music can be a bit hit and miss. The cakes are not so cakey but more slicey (think banana slice, carrot cake slice), but honestly, all I care about is whether or not the brownies are available. 

The brownies are divine. These are not your run-of-the-mill street market crumbly sort, but are instead made of rich and smooth melt-in-your-mouth (and in your hand) chocolate ganache. 

After munching my way through one of these babies I make sure to limit my sugar consumption for the remainder of the day. 

I’ve never been tempted to have two brownies on the trot, for fear of falling into a diabetic coma.

So do yourself a favour. Go to the Pearl. Have a brownie. You’re worth it. 

CakeMyDayLondon Rating