Macaroons & Afternoon Tea

My one bit of chill out time over the last couple of weeks was at the end of last week when Sarah, one of my closest friends from school (I can't quite believe I left 4 years ago!!) came down to Brighton for a couple of days. She'd never been before so we spend Friday, in the rain, typically, wandering around the delights of Brighton. This mainly involved eating. And drinking. But mainly lots of eating! The day coincided with my housemates birthday which gave us even more of an excuse for sugary treats if ever we needed one!! Sarah reminded me that it was only a couple of years ago that she ate so many sweets that she made herself physically sick... I don't ever want to have to properly grow up!

After a potter around the vintage shops and a necessary trawl of Primark, we headed to top chef Julien Plumart's newest venture, Boutique et Salon de The in Duke Street. On the ground floor is what can only be described as a macaroon showroom - heaven! The multi-coloured display of macaroons is incredibly inviting and your faced with some difficult choices - salted caramel, vanilla, triple chocolate, raspberry, the list goes on! We decided to head upstairs to make the flavour decisions to a very minimal space, dominated by two huge glass chandeliers and delicate fresh flowers on every table.

The macaroons lived up to their expectations and the vanilla was definitely top of my list. Real vanilla pods and sumptuous ganache. Signs around the room in both French and English suggest that 'savouring a macaroon is like eating a whole cake by yourself whilst sitting on a cloud' and I would be the first to agree!!

Next, we decided that one lot of delicious sugary treats simply wasn't enough and headed out for afternoon tea for Yasmin's birthday. After walking past it on numerous occasions we decided to try the Blackbird Tearoom, also on Duke Street. Described as 'the best tearoom in Brighton' it wasn't hard to see why: quaint, traditional yet with a little twist on modern and great service from the waitresses, the tearoom was perfect for the occasion. 

Sarah and I decided to share a savoury and a sweet scone and both were delicious - onion marmalade, cheese and cress followed by thick clotted cream and raspberry jam. So delicious! 

Camilla went for the asparagus and poached egg, Yasmin the speciality Bluebird cake and Morgan and Helen couldn't resist the cream teas. Everything was gorgeously presented on vintage china and so reasonably priced there is simply no option but to go back soon for seconds!!

We ended our Brighton day of food and drink with some celebratory bubbly and a visit to the Mesmerist for swing night, where the birthday girl danced the night away and we all spend some time chatting and catching up, relishing the much needed break from revision and essays!