cafes 2022 – Surobi Scribbles

The Tiffany Blue Box Cafe at Harrods / The Most Luxurious Cafe In London?

Surobi Mohammed — Sun, 20 Nov 2022 15:22:23 +0000

Hello everyone! Back in August last year, my sister and I had the privilege to have a very special meal in this expensive cafe in Harrods. This was none other than Tiffany Blue Box Cafe and they were mostly known for their afternoon tea. Little did my sister and I know that we would end up having a three course meal instead! Was this experience worth the money or should you look for an alternative?

What is Tiffany Blue Box Cafe?

Tiffany Blue Box Cafe serves breakfast and afternoon tea. It is presented by Tiffany and Co, the retail company, and the food is unique and pricey.

What I Ordered And My Opinions On It:

Breakfast – £45 each

This was a set menu so you had to pick which item you wanted from each category.

Seasonal fruit bowl

This fruit bowl contained a normal selection of fruits and acted as a side. They were just your standard fruits but were a healthy side/starter to nibble on before the main meal. It was a small portion. My sister really enjoyed having this. It also added some nice colour to the table. I would rate this a 3/5.

Baked all butter croissant with chocolate filled cremeux

This croissant was pretty standard but I loved how the chocolate was oozing out of the croissant. This reminds me of a classic French breakfast and again this was quite small so it was easy and quick to eat. I would rate this a 3/5.

Eggs Florentine

Eggs are one of the food that my sister and I do not try very regularly. This looked interesting so we decided to try this egg dish. It looked very unique and it was this nice royal yellow and green dish. To me, it tasted pretty delicious and it is definitely do those people who love eating their eggs. It was also very heavy and filling because I think I was quite full already at this point! I would rate this a 3/5.

Drinks (hot chocolate and juice)

I don’t remember if we have to pay additionally for this but do double check if you want to have other drinks with your meal. I had juice which was again pretty standard and also the hot chocolate (as a chocolate lover). The hot chocolate was rich and creamy and I believe it was one of my favourites from this whole meal. Again, I couldn’t fully enjoy it though because I was quite full already! But I really liked these drinks and would rate it a 4/5.

The Place:

The place was large enough and you did have to prebook your table. There were other people at their tables and the tables were quite big yet, you will be on close proximity with other guests. I loved how everything was very clean and blue in the shop which really brought out the Tiffany vibes. I felt like a royal person!

The Service:

With great prices and great money spent comes great service! Of course, the standard of the service was high at the Tiffany Blue Box Cafe and the staff were kind and were willing to answer any questions my sister and I had about the menu. They also served the food at a decent amount of time – it perhaps took longer than usual as they are pretty unique dishes.

Would I Recommend It?

If you want to try living the Harrods life, I would say trying this place once is worth it! I was slightly disappointed with the lack of choices, especially in terms of Halal food and I wish there were more choices available for the price we are paying. I feel like the food however was quite unique and it was a new experience. I felt like a queen being served all the new and uncommon dishes at this beautiful restaurant and spending time with my sister! So, yes go with your loved ones if you have some spare money saved up once but it is definitely not a must for teenagers or anyone with a budget! It was a great experience after all and my tummy felt full after having all the food!

My Rating: 3/5

My Rating System:

⅕ – was below average and would not recommend even trying once

⅖ – the food was average and would not recommend trying

⅗ – the food was delicious but would recommend trying maximum once

⅘ – the food was really good and would recommend trying here

5/5 – the food was outstanding and is one of my favorites!

Order from here (not sponsored): https://www.tiffany.co.uk/blue-box-cafe/harrods/

If you have stayed till the end, you can have a bonus gift! Listen to my podcast released this week: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/girl-how/ep95-why-all-women-should-lhids6Of_Mr/

Thank you for reading, and have a lovely day!

Charista / The Best Bangladeshi Cafe In London?

Surobi Mohammed — Sun, 30 Oct 2022 07:32:03 +0000

As a proud Bengali, I love to devour on Bengali foods such as ‘chotpoti’ or ‘biryani’ (if you know, you know). So this half term holiday, when my sister found a Bangladeshi cafe serving one of my favourite foods, I just had to go!

In this article, I will be sharing my review of Charista, a Bengali cafe in Bethnal Green, London.

What is Charista?

Charista is a restaurant that is known to be the ‘home of chai nashta’. It is a small cosy place and they also say they brew only ‘organic tea from the gardens of Bengal’.

What I Ordered And My Opinions On It:

The Food

Fuchka (£6.50)

This was my favourite food from here and one of my all-time favourite foods! The presentation of this food was gorgeous – there were around 5-7 of these puris in one plate! I loved how we could place the tamarind water inside ourselves which made it like a DIY experience. The tangy tamarind water gave it that kick of flavour and the challenge is to put one fuchka into your mouth straight away. The crunch of the puri and the softness of the egg makes this so tasty! An Asian delight that was 5/5 for me!

Papri Chaat (£7)

Yet another food that was Asian. This was quite unique to me. On the outside, it looked colourful and fun and it hid all the ingredients on the inside. When it came to taste, I thought it had different flavours happening which combines quite well together for me. Altogether, it was a 4/5 for me.

Chilli Paneer (£7)

Next up is the chilli paneer. Because I chose mild spicy for the foods, I thought this wouldn’t be too spicy but this paneer was a bit too spicy for me. I also didn’t enjoy the texture of the food that much. It was a bright red colour, which gave off the spicy vibes. I am not really a paneer person, so I would rate this a 2/5 but my sister really enjoyed having this!

Murghi Biryani (£9)

Biryani is yet again one of the top foods on the list! The biryani was presented in a cute small bowl. It had some toppings on top. In terms of taste, I thought it was executed just as it should be perhaps, but perhaps not restaurant quality as I found it a bit dry to eat. Despite the good taste, the dryness made it a little difficult to eat so I would rate this a 3/5.

Charista Special with Gurer Chai (£3.20)

This tea was good! You might think how does hot tea go with spicy Asian food? It did hurt my taste buds at first but then I tasted the tea and it was sweet and delicious. It had the nice brown colour of tea and I really liked the overall taste of this tea.

The Place:

The place was much smaller than I expected but there were only about 2-3 groups of people on average. It was subtly dark but sitting next to the window gave us good lighting. This cosy vibe made me and my sister have so much more fun as we had our girly laughs!

The Service:

The service was pretty good! The staff members served the food and it didn’t take too long. They also provided us with the option to get our teas later on.

Would I Recommend It?

Overall, I think that Charista was a great place to go and as they say perfect for ‘chai nashta’. However, the pricing was a bit in the higher range compared to other cafes like Mi Chaii. For that reason, I would probably only return again to have the Fuchkas as they were my favourite but for no other item.

My Rating: 4/5

My Rating System:

⅕ – was below average and would not recommend even trying once

⅖ – the food was average and would not recommend trying

⅗ – the food was delicious but would recommend trying maximum once

⅘ – the food was really good and would recommend trying here

5/5 – the food was outstanding and is one of my favorites!

Order from here (not sponsored): https://www.instagram.com/charista.shoreditch/

Thank you for reading, and have a lovely day!

MI CHAII Ilford / The Best Afternoon Tea In London?

Surobi Mohammed — Sun, 22 May 2022 06:54:54 +0000

One of the things that my sister and I love are afternoon teas! Afternoon teas are so wholesome, posh but casual at the same time! I had tried an afternoon tea at Tiffany Bluebox Cafe previously, but that was more English style. During the month of April, we decided to try an authentic Indian/Pakistani style afternoon tea, and boy, we were not disappointed!

In this article, I will be reviewing Mi Chaii!

What is MI CHAII ILFORD?

MI CHAII ILFORD is a coffee shop, but in reality, it is more than that – they sell teas, street food and afternoon teas!

What I Ordered And My Opinions On It:

Afternoon Tea For Two People (£24.99)

Samosas

First up were the samosas, and they were classic samosas, packed with flavour and with a nice pastry covering at the top. They were quite large in size with the golden pastry at the top. For me they were a solid ⅗. They were executed nicely and were delicious, but it’s just your average classic samosas – a delight for us Asians.

Pakoras

Next up were the pakoras. The pakoras were small in size, and of this slightly dark orange colour. It had herbs on top, and looked appetising and slightly oily. They did not disappoint me, however, as they were still crunchy in texture and delicious. I again rated this a ⅗.

Chicken Tikka Sandwich

The chicken tikka sandwich was quite unique to me. It consisted of white bread and looked quite colourful inside the soft white bread. But when it came to taste, I found that the mint overpowered the flavours of the chicken and the chicken tikka in itself was not of my favourite flavours. It was executed as suggested, but I wish there was a better balance of the flavours. I would rate this a ⅖.

Chicken Wrap

The chicken wrap, on the other hand, was wholesome. I rated this a ⅘. This was because it was a good portion size, and it was made of the white tortilla roll. Inside, it was packed with flavour, and it was quite unique to me. It was yummy and overall, I was satisfied with this wrap, despite being a person who is not a huge fan of wraps.

Masala Chips

For me, chips have to be really good to impress me as I don’t really like chips. But these chips, ladies and gentlemen, were not your average chips! It had a nice mix of orange and yellow on the outside and they were quite thick in size. When you eat it with the sauce, it is a great combo and it truly was a brilliant side to have. I would rate this a ⅘, as perhaps the chips could have been thinner but more could have been provided.

Red Velvet Cake

The red velvet cake was hands down absolutely amazing! The presentation was immaculate with the vanilla icing drizzled over the top. I loved the look of this and when it came to taste, it was absolutely tasty! All the flavours were in harmony together and it was not too sweet nor tasteless. This made me happy despite being a person who always takes chocolate. I would rate this a 5/5.

Gajar Halwa

The gajar halwa was a classic Desi snack, which I wanted to try after having heard about it many times. The gajar halwa is mainly made of carrot and it was presented in a cute silver dish which was very Indian. It was quite sticky in texture but it was still tasty, yet not up to the standards I was looking for. I would still recommend trying it once, which is why I would rate it a 3/5,.

Kashmiri Chaii

Last but definitely not the least, we have the Kashmiri Chaii. This drink was a beautiful pink in colour and served in this blue glassware with the jug containing the tea and the antique mugs. The chai was totally delicious and one of the best teas I have tried! I had more than one serving of this as it was sweet and contributed to the meal very nicely. I would rate this a solid ⅘.

The Place:

The place was quite small compared to what I expected from the photos. It is decorated in quite a homely yet posh way with the main colour theme being blue. There is a wide selection of seating to choose from such as two seaters or even six seaters. It is quite dark in the two seaters, which is why my sister and I moved tables.

The Service:

There was only one staff member there and she actually served us. The waiting time was around 20 minutes which was reasonable and the lady was very nice. She had the etiquette of asking how the food was during the meal and she ensured there was a smooth experience. It was overall good service, especially because there were only around 3-4 customers in the shop with us.

Would I Recommend It?

I would say that overall, I loved coming to this cafe and trying the food from here. This was a nice experience and I got to try some new foods as well as tap into the classic foods that I have known growing up! The service and place was homely too and my sister and I chatted about life while sitting there eating. I would highly recommend this place!

My Rating: 5/5

My Rating System:

⅕ – was below average and would not recommend even trying once

⅖ – the food was average and would not recommend trying

⅗ – the food was delicious but would recommend trying maximum once

⅘ – the food was really good and would recommend trying here

5/5 – the food was outstanding and is one of my favourites!

Order from here (not sponsored): Mi Chaii – New Tea In Town

Thank you for reading, and have a lovely day!