A Toulouse Tea Crawl

Sometimes, you visit a town with so many good cafés that you just can't choose which one to visit. I found myself in this quandary when I visited Toulouse. The beautiful Ville Rose is full of classy cafés. Here are some that managed to visit in 24 hours:

Breakfast: Le Temps des Tartines

I started the day at Les Temps des Tartines with a French take on a Full English. The best addition was the toast- you can't beat french bread and french jam! The raspberry jam was especially good. Also, you're not going to starve with the generous portion size! The highlight for me was the accompanying cinnamon hot chocolate- so delicious.

https://fr-fr.facebook.com/pages/Le-Temps-des-Tartines/258250317541844

Morning Coffee: Le Moderni'thé

This café wins points for its great modern style. The stylish interior is decorated with pop art that contrasts nicely with the stark white walls and bare bricks. The modern atmosphere was reflected nicely in the cake. We had a fraisoffe, or strawberry and toffee dessert. There's nothing like putting a new spin on a classic, and this definitely gave bannoffe pie a run for its money. We also had a lemon meringue pie, because who can say no to lemon in summer?

http://www.lemodernithe.com/#!home/cvky

Lunch: Aux Douxes Heures

At lunch time it was time to find a cracking formule or set menu, and Aux Douces Heures ticked all the boxes. Nice food: check. Central location: check. Value for money: check. I had a spinach soup, salmon tart and apple and speculoos crumble all for twelve euros. Delicious food, and as it's just off the main square it was great to dash in to when it started raining.

http://salondethe-auxdoucesheures.blogspot.co.uk/

Afternoon Tea: The Flowers Café

You could tell straight away that this was going to be a good café. It was so popular that I had to queue to get in, but it was definitely worth it! Sitting at a sunny table in a beautiful square next to a fountain, I enjoyed a raspberry and pistachio tart with a proper thick Italian hot chocolate. It's only a shame that I couldn't try more of the cakes, the ones that everyone else were eating looked fantastic too! Flowers Café was a great way to finish off my tea crawl.

http://www.theflowerscafe.com/eboutique/

So there we have it. Four cafés in one day. It's definitely not something to do everyday, I daresay it cancelled out any good work I achieved going to the Refuge de Bans. However, I loved visiting all of Toulouse's cafés and never underestimate the joy of café culture. Toulouse: It's a beautiful town with beautiful food.

Comments

Tea with a ghost? | Tiny Tim's Tearoom | Canterbury

Canterbury is such a historic city so I was looking for a traditional place for afternoon tea. Tiny Tim's Tearoom was the perfect place. Housed in a gorgeous 17th century building, this tearoom is particularly inviting with its baked goods displayed in the shop windows. Inside, Glen Miller was playing softly in the background, giving the place a nostalgic, vintage feel. Many British favourites were on offer, such as, crumpets, scones and hearty sponge cakes. I had an excellent coffee and walnut cake which had a wonderfully potent coffee flavour unlike many shop-bought ones. Served with a dollop of cream, ice cream or custard, these cakes are the ultimate comfort food. Tea is also in abundance. I tried Keemun Orchid which was a black tea that had notes of plum, orchid, sesame and pine. There are also more traditional blends for those who prefer more conventional tea. I attended this tearoom alone after a pleasant morning visiting Canterbury Cathedral. However, was I t...

The Apple Pie Map | Hirosaki, Aomori

Are you a fan of apple pie? If you are, then Hirosaki might just be the place for you! Hirosaki is in Aomori, a prefecture in the Tohoku region in the north of Japan. Aomori is famous for its delicious apples, and nowhere is this fruit more greatly celebrated than in the city of Hirosaki. There are over 50 shops in the town selling different types of apple pie. With so many options, it can seem overwhelming. How can you possibly find the perfect pie for you?! Well, the answer is simple. All you need is the Apple pie map ! Not only does the map tell you all the different locations for pie shops and bakeries, it also rates each pie on its sweetness, sourness and amount of cinnamon. My personal favourite is スリーブリッヂ or Three Bridge, a cute little bakery near Hirosaki station. Their pie is rated 3/5 for sweetness and sourness. But don't take my word for it, head to Hirosaki and do your own research! There's plenty of pies to enjoy and beautiful sites ...

Fried Chicken Parfait? | Karafuneya Coffee, Kyoto

We've been around the world and tried many strange ice creams, from the tomato flavoured ice cream of Nice to the salt ice cream of Dublin . However, nothing quite matches the crazy ice creams available at Karafuneya Coffee in Kyoto. As soon as you enter this lovely cafe in the Sanjo area of Kyoto, you are greeted by an enormous number of plastic models representing the amazing desserts. The best thing about Karafuneya is the sheer range of sundaes. We were equally thrilled by the classic chocolate and strawberry parfaits and the slightly more unusual Japanese flavours, such as macha and black sesame. There were even enormous sundaes (about 2 feet tall) that you can share with all your friends. However, the real eye catchers are the more outlandish ice cream combinations. We spotted a model for a French fries parfait, a deep fried chicken parfait and an American hot dog parfait. The models actually looked surprisingly delicious, but we weren't feeling too adventurous. So ...

Crumbs to Crunch

Search This Blog