Review: Modern Art Oxford Cafe, Oxford, UK

I so badly wanted to like this cafe.

Salad bar? Check. Wide range of veggie options? Check. Good prices? Check. 

However, there were a number of things which really disappointed me with the cafe at Modern Art Oxford. 

Walking into the cafe early on a Sunday morning, we were the first customers. We walked up to the counter and asked about what is included in the 'meal deal' (salad plate, dessert and hot drink) - the staff didn't really seem too sure. So they called over another staff member who I can only assume was higher up on the ladder. However, he didn't seem to know either. Not off to a great start.

Next we asked what was in the various baked goods. They were serving frittatas and slices of pizza - all looked great but none were labelled and the staff were obviously clueless as to what they were. 

After being told that the pizza was vegetarian, I was pretty annoyed (understatement) to bite into it and find it contained salami under the tomato.

They replaced it quickly, nevertheless, the damage had been done. The actual salad components were tasty enough and if you are looking for a cold plate, it's a good enough cafe to stop by.

However, there are better places to go for lunch in Oxford. And more interesting selections of salad available.

If visiting, I would stick to the salad bar section and avoid the cakes. We ordered the coffee cake and it was certainly not freshly baked. It was sickly sweet, over creamy and did not taste remotely of coffee. Any redeeming qualities of the salad selection were quickly overpowered by the taste that this cake left in my mouth.

Overall, I was disappointed with the cafe here and, with so many great eateries in Oxford, I doubt I will be returning.

✭

Review: Lily Vanilli Bakery, London, UK

I first heard of Lily Vanilli when my Mum bought me 'A Zombie Ate My Cupcake" many, many years ago.

I have since been intrigued by this baker and keen to sample her food. Upon researching her bakery, I was slightly disappointed to discover that she was not serving bleeding heart cupcakes year-round but perhaps I was being slightly unreasonable... (what can I say... I am a total horror fiend...)

Despite this discovery, the constant feed of pictures of sweet treats on Lily Vanilli's instagram page convinced me that the bakery was worth visiting and so, upon making a trip into London, it was the first place that I put on my list to visit.

The cafe opens only on Sundays and is located off Colombia Road in Shoreditch. For a tourist, it is out of the way and really not ideal. This was the major clinch for me. Unless you happen to live in Shoreditch or Bethnal Green, It's certainly not a convenient place to pop for coffee and cake.

Nevertheless, I went... I sampled... and I left - very satisfied.

Although, I do m think after traveling for so long to get there my expectations were a little too high.

However, the friand was yummy. It was really, really, good. Sticky, savory and sweet, gluten free and vegan. It was definitely good. Good enough that it made me start googling similar recipes as soon as I got home. The coffee was good as well.

Pear, parsnip, ginger and chilli cake

It was a little pricey... three and a half pounds for a cake is just about reasonable... bump it up to four pound twenty just to sit on the bakery bench for fifteen minutes and it was enough to raise my eyebrows. I ordered a friand and a coffee and it came to almost seven pounds.

By all means, if you live within a reasonable travel distance, I would go and try it out. If I am in the area again, I will most certainly return. However, if, like me, the yearning for sweet friands, brownies and cupcakes involved taking a tube ride and a tedious bus journey, maybe just purchase Lily's Sweet Tooth book instead.

✭✭✭✭1/2