Fluffin' Fantastic

By Angela Noelle from Striking Keys.

One brisk Friday afternoon, I hastily steered a tandem buggy through the mall mayhem with my infant crying out for milk. My milk, that is.

I wasn't fond of the idea of finding a seat in the mall's main walkway to nurse the thirsty babe, nor did I suspect my toddler (also in tow) would be happiest seated in such a spot.

A cafe is what I needed. A comfortable one. One with a corner, where I could feel discreet. One that would sell me two cups full of frothed-up warm milk, without a side of judgement.

I found that cafe in The Meridian foodcourt; Gloria Jean's, thank you for letting me park up in your cafe. Thank you for charging me 80 cents per cup of "fluffy." Thank you for shaking the chocolatey stuff on top. Thank you for saying nothing when I parked my giant wheeley contraption in amidst your tables and chairs. Thank you for the two marshmallows you generously added to each of our servings, for smiling when you saw a mother ordering the same cheap, non-menu item as her daughter, and for carrying them to our table.

Your cushioned, high-back bench seating allowed me to see to my 9-week-old baby's needs in comfort whilst my 2-year-old eagerly spooned out her treat. I'm pretty sure your establishment's layout allowed me to have complete privacy...which is a nice option, in light of recent press for breastfeeding mothers.

Great price.
Great set-up.
Great not having anyone tell me both of my daughters couldn't have a drink.

I cannot tell you enough how much better a day can be when it is broken up into moments such as these;
Thank you.

P.S. I don't even drink coffee...but I assure you, I'll be back. Again...and again.

Whangarei's best kept secret...

Reviewed By Jacksta-B

Well its not much of a secret judging by the amount of tour buses that hit the spot, but let me tell you about one of my favourite places in the city the New Zealand Fudge Farm and cafe. This places has ruined all other fudge for me, if its not Fudge Farm fudge, it isn't fudge.
My love affair with their fudge started years ago when it was a little business on the way out to Dargaville. Situated on a farm, the fudge was made by a couple who made their fudge from fresh dairy milk. Now a decade or two on it lives in the Whangarei town basin.
They do a range of coffees and drinks and also ice creams and hand made chocolate. But the one thing I go there for the a thing called "Fudge flavourama" And mix of fudge and vanilla ice cream whipped together in a cup or waffle cone. Heavenly! Add my favourite coffee blend and you have my favourite spot in Whangarei. Next time you hit Whangarei, be sure to stop in to this little place.

They are open 7 days a week.

If you are from out of town and need to sample this yummy fudge they have a website and deliver.

http://www.nzfudgefarm.co.nz/index.html

Delish Cupcakes Review

By Mon of Delissimon

At the beginning of my diagnosis this little shop opened up in Forrest Hill and I've been getting daily Facebook updates on the daily flavours and events of the shop. I salivate everytime. Today for example their flavours for sale are banoffee, choc raspberry, vanilla filled with passionfruit, vanilla stawberry, caramel, choc bomb and JAFA. Sounds delish yeah?


This little shop is Delish Cupcakes.

I heard about these ladies last year when my dad went to the Auckland Food Show and came across the Delish Cupcakes stall. Their progress has been from friends who bake and decorate fantastic cupcakes together to actually opening up a beautiful shop with different flavours everyday. So I thought it was high time to get myself up to Forrest Hill to try them out.
And I wasn't disappointed.

I bought a chocolate with chocolate ganache cupcake and my niece Zara chose a lemon raspberry. Both came in these adorable wee boxes so they wouldn't get squished. The chocolate had a beautiful rich ganache with a lovely moist chocolate cake, and the lemon raspberry had a lemon curd filling with a creamy, sweet and slightly tangy raspberry buttercream which was absolutely delicious (I got to try both, as we left them in the car and forgot about them in our hurry to get Zara to the airport, so she missed out on eating her one....lucky me!). These gals know how to please a fussy cupcake lover like me!

Delish Cupcakes cater for weddings, birthdays, corporate functions, baby showers etc and you can even order online.

So if you are in the area - - then I suggest you pop in and have a squiz and try out a cupcake and a coffee. They also have a range of decorating products if you are inspired to go home and try decorating your own!

Delish Cupcakes
Shop 4, 14-16 Raines Ave, Forrest Hill, Auckland
Open Mon - Fri, 08:00 - 16:30; Sat 09:00 - 16:00
Website: http://www.delishcupcakes.co.nz/

TXT-A-Coffee!

Now you can TXT us your order at 022 694 3159
Name/Coffee/Time - use T for trim, S for soy, L for large.
eg. Fiona L T latte 5 mins

 

Humble Pie - A Dish Served Best At Baobab

STORY BY MISS BONNIE OF THEBABYBUMP

So, after the enormous (and somewhat heated) array of feedback I got in response to my last blog on Baobab Cafe I stayed true to my word and popped on down to see what it was like for myself. And here, in front of you all, I bow my head in shame and say I was wrong, this is my first and last lesson in "doing my homework" before mouthing off. Somewhat. 


I wandered down to the cafe last Friday with a buggy clad bubs and my Mum in tow. Luckily it was a beautiful, sunny day so we didn't need to manoeuvre the buggy into the cafe and try to get it out of the way of passing waiters/patrons because logistically it just doesn't work. If you're buggying baby, make the most of the huge sheltered, sunny area outside or leave it out the front - don't try to shove the apparatus to the side of your inside table, there ain't no room and hey, that's fine.


We were greeted by a lovely gent working the coffee machine like a pro, just what I like to see. The great thing about Newtown? It's amazing coffee. And Baobab didn't disappoint. While we chose something to nibble on out of the decent (and seriously delicious) selection of cabinet food - I had a pumpkin muffin, Mum a date scone and both were so yummy I'm now drooling just thinking about them - a waitress approached the counter to take our orders. This was the only downfall. As lovely as the barista was (and the waiter that brought us our coffees), the girl behind the counter was just a bit.... meh. She didn't smile and wasn't really interested in being polite but you know what? Everything else was spot on so who am I to complain?!


The back outside area was divine - perfect for Mums, babies, kids, everyone! The food, as previously stated, was absolutely mouthwatering and the coffee was to die for. Mum had a chai latte and was overly pleased to find out they make their own chai syrup with real cinnamon and peppercorns. The chai even came garnished with a whole cinnamon stick!


So despite the OK service from one of the staff members (which quickly paled in comparison), the whole experience was fantastic. Gorgeous surroundings, superb coffee and amazing food. I wasn't able to get an idea on how they are with babies but as long as you use your initiative as you would at any other cafe and keep baby related paraphernalia out of the way and keep bubs in a cafe friendly manner I assume that they're spot on. 


I eat my (previous) words and highly recommend this lovely little cafe. So pop the little one in the buggy and mosey on down there to soak up some sun and devour some decent nosh.


PS. Unfortunately I forgot my camera so couldn't take some much deserved pictures so you'll have to let your imagination do the wandering.


Baobab Cafe
152 Riddiford Street,
Newtown, Wellington
Website

Family Friendly with Good Coffee in Mangere Bridge

It's always a bit daunting going out for a coffee as a Mum's group. Finding a place locally that serves good coffee, and will cope with a barrage of buggy's, noise and slightly dishevelled Mum's is a bit of a struggle. Never-the-less when one of our girls saw the play area in Ruby Red we decided to give it a go.

I'm not a coffee aficionado by any stretch, but I really enjoyed the coffee here (I don't like either overly bitter burnt coffee or overly sweet sudo-coffee's). The food also was good, a small selection of savouries and cakes, including a gluten-free orange cake that I considered trying (and I'm not a gluten-free eater) as well as some all-day breakfast options. But by far the most impressive thing about the cafe was the staff - they coped incredibly well with the amount of babies and buggy's and even helped with a wet cloth for my rather messy daughter after her lunch and were really friendly.

The play area at the back is not large, but coped well with 3-4 9 month olds playing "together" and has a selection of toys and books for kids to choose from. The cafe closes at 2pm, due to teh owner also having a young 'un to take care of herself which is understandable.

So all is all a great experience - I realised that I forgot to take photos. But if you're local you'll know the place already, and it's already developing a great word-of-mouth reputation. Go Ruby Red, we'll be back for more!