Coffee & Living

I am heavily influenced by Monocle, I believe that Monocle is more than just a media. It is a lifestyle. Given the opportunity to visit the Monocle Cafe in London, as an avid follower, I had the urge to check out the cafe myself.

Nestled in the Marylebone neighbourhood, the Monocle Cafe embraces the classic essence of Monocle - simple, hipster, diversely global and refreshing.

The interior is noticeably narrow. Extra seats are available on the lower ground, however the entire cafe is designed in a minimalist fashion that you won't feel cramped up despite the lack of space. They have a basic menu and a typical range of coffee selections.

On our table, we had chicken katsu sandwich, Scandinavian breakfast, flat white and latte to start our day. Overall the food was great, the coffee was average and the service was acceptably fast. This place is a cafe for everyone. Whether you're with friends for a meet-up or a writer looking for a caffeine fix, it fits those moments you're looking for. And, definitely, it makes every Monocle fans feel at home.

Location:
18, Chiltern Street, London

Opening hours:
Mon-Wed 7am til 7pm
Thu & Fri 7am til 8pm
Sat 8am til 8pm
Sun & Bank holidays 8am til 7pm

Price range:
£3 - £10

Out of the States, you can only find this in UK & Japan. I woke up super early for this, as I was not keen to queue for it...

Expect to see other pastries along the way too..

Their pastries are so pretty, I wish I had room for everything!

As I visited the cafe in London, I picked the Paris-London.

Frozen S'mores (£7.20)

This has got to be my favourite for the day!!! Torched, soft and fluffy marshmellow wrapped around Tahitian vanilla ice cream that's still frozen inside... Every bite is super heavenly!

Cronut of the Month : Mandarin Jam with Valhorna Tivara & Milk Chocolate Ganache (£4)

Did not really like the cronut in London as compared to NYC - was not as flakey... It just had the texture of a donut more like it.

Paris London (£7.50)

Earl grey mousse and lemon curd - no ladies can resist lemon curd! At least the people that I know.

Yes... I had these all by myself, with a takeaway cronut too!

Likes: Very "Instagrammable", picture worthy, beautiful pastries, convenient. Will definitely be back for pastries

Dislikes: Not cheap - a standard pastry would cost you at least £6 each, and even more if you dine in. Cronut is not as perfect as New York's version. Will definitely not order the cronut again

Dominique Ansel Bakery
17-21 Elizabeth St,
Belgravia
London SW1W 9RP
United Kingdom
+4420.7324.7705
Opening Hours
Daily 8am - 8pm
Sunday 9am - 9pm
Dominique Ansel Bakery's Page
Dominique Ansel Bakery on Facebook

One of the things you have to do in London, is to have an afternoon tea. If you love afternoon tea and Disney at the same time, here are two afternoon tea in London that you shouldn't miss.

Following the recent blockbuster movie, Beauty and the Beast, the Hotel Kensington is serving an afternoon tea with all the characters as the main attraction of the tablewares. You will find Mrs. Potts and Chips serving you the delicious delicacies handcrafted to suit the theme. The price is GBP35 per person with additional GBP10 for a glass of champagne. It is a decent price to pay for the experience and food. Book your table immediately to avoid disappointment.

Another place which lacks of hype but just as magical is the Sanderson Hotel Alice in Wonderland Afternoon Tea. Technically, Alice isn't a Disney Princess, but she is so well-loved, her reputation is on par with the other Disney Pricesses. The Sanderson Hotel have been serving the Alice in Wonderland Afternoon Tea for a long time and often fully booked in months in advanced. Also known as the Mad Hatter Tea Party, the presentation is in line with the characters in the cartoon. The price is approximately GBP48.

This was the only tea room available in Fortnum & Mason at point of visi, without a booking and the queue wasn't particularly long.

The afternoon tea set, not the best but it was OK for an affordable session! Not too many things on the plate like the usual afternoon tea spread for those who just wants the scones!

*Reservation is recommended.

The Parlour
181 Piccadilly
W1A 1ER London
United Kingdom
020.7734.8040
Opening Hours
Daily 9am - 6pm
The Parlour's Page

Fish and Chips

Some photos which were meant to be posted long ago. W's afternoon tea set is probably different now. Nevertheless, their tea set is beautiful!

W London
10 Wardour St,
Leicester Square
W1D 6QF London
United Kingdom

Pretty little cakes at The Tea Room, Harrods London.

Don't know what Rose Tea they served but it was just sooo good. Being biased but tea in London is always good :P Especially when they use the entire bud instead of dried shattered leaves which you can barely tell how it looks like!

No tea is complete without some scones!

Scones with clotted cream. The texture of the cream is SUPER smooth! It was served chilled, so much so that I thought it was ice cream.

Cake Selection

If you haven't booked any famous tea places in London, this is the place you can go for last minute afternoon tea experience. Instead of paying 70 quid per pax, 40 quids is enough to feed two person. Of course you don't expect as much, but still anything in Harrods serve decent quality. But be mindful that you're not paying hotel prices, so don't expect hotel standards.

The Tea Room
Harrods
87, Brompton Rd
SW1X 7XL London
United Kingdom
020.7730.1234
Opening Hours
Mon to Sat 10am - 9pm
Sun 11.30am - 6pm

Who needs a real rose when you can have the ice cream!!!!! Real roses will DIE!

The lady who served me said I could pick as many flavours as I want. The one in the middle is the "main" flavour; pistachio gelato. It's probably the nicest Pistachio flavoured gelato I've tasted!!! The rest are just all mixed flavours I can't recall what's what.

Amorino Oxfordshire
Bicester Village
50 Pingle Drive.
OX26 6WD Oxfordshire
United Kingdom

You can also find Amorino elsewhere in London

Amorino Soho - W1D 6HF
Amorino Chelsea - SW3 4NT
Amorino Covent Garden - WC2E 9AR

Amorino can also be found in a few other countries. Click here for all countries.

Lynette insisted that Pinkberry's frozen yogurt is the best!! I... have no absolute idea what Pinkberry was until she told me! The first thing in my mind when she mentioned frozen yogurt was Tutti Frutti... which wasn't really that great.

But I have to agree with her that Pinkberry is AWESOME!!! You get to try the flavours before picking it.. The coconut seems OK too but I ordered the strawberry and mango. Maybe I'm not a fan of coconut that's why I think it's just OK.

And why do I agree that it is good? It's really, really light and flavourful. My favourite would be the strawberry. Unlike Tutti Frutti which is slightly thicker (like ice cream), Pinkberry is light, smooth and refreshing...

The frozen yogurt comes with toppings as well, with a little extra fee. Topping includes chocolates, fruits, nuts, cereal, depending on what you like. I... prefer plain yogurt. I can't remember the price of it but it's not expensive. Probably costs less than £3 for a small cup. Actually the small cup is quite huge... Ask for two flavours if you can't decide, it'll amount to the same price anyway.

Pinkberry Selfridges
400 Oxford Street,
W1A 1AB London
United Kingdom

Mino Japanese Restaurant, the one and only decent Japanese cuisine in town.. Apart from sushi and sashimis they do serve desserts as well. They have different promotions from time to time, currently they serve free green tea ice cream for every check-in with a photo.

Just show it to them and you'll get it. Easy? Someone taught me how to make green tea ice cream, perhaps I'll write up about it one day, it's really simple but I'm not sure if it works. ^_^

Coconut ice cream in a coconut shell. Interesting? I mean, having the idea of the ice cream in the fruit itself. Creative! The ice cream is very rich in coconut taste, and it has little bits and pieces of the coconut in it. Someone even mentioned to me that it totally reminds her of the ice cream she had in Bangkok. I've never been to Bangkok, maybe when I do I'll definitely say something about it.

Tiramisu ice cream!! Initially I thought it was going to be "just another tiramisu cake". It does look like a cake, but it's actually the ice cream. It's just like a frozen tiramisu cake, instead of the soft and fluffy cream it's ice cream. I like the idea of it actually, the ice cream is very strong in coffee taste. Yummm

To add on, they are currently doing a 15% off promotion for students so long as you flash your student ID. :)

Mino Japanese Korean
20 Eden Street,
Kingston upon Thames
KT1 1BB London
United Kingdom
020 8546 5283

They will start off by serving selection of sandwiches / cakes / tarts.

Scones will then be served about 15-20 minutes later to ensure the freshness of it.

This post will not be descriptive as all I can say is you have to try it out yourself. If you're looking for a traditional English afternoon tea place, go for it. Remember to book in advance. You MUST book otherwise you won't your table.

It costs £42 per person. I believe they have already increased it to £45. Click here to reserve your table online.

P/S: You will not be disappointed :)

The Ritz London

150 Picadilly,

W1J 9BR London

United Kingdom

020 7493 2687