Tom n Tom's, Sydney CBD

Sydney's getting quite chilly fast, don't you all think? This cold weather has us all retreating to cafes for warming coffees and teas early in the morning. The first sip is always so warming! For something quick, easy and cheap, my friends and I took shelter in Tom n Toms Cafe on Bathurst.

Clockwise from top left hand corner: half honey butter toast + English Breakfast tea, $5.50 / bacon & egg roll / half garlic butter toast + rose flower tea, $5.50

Normally it costs $5.00 for the set but I paid the extra $0.50 for tea because I really am much more a tea person than coffee. This toast was pretty tasty. Though essentially it was just a toastie sandwich. Awesomely crispy and buttery on the outside, melty American cheese on the inside. There was a good sprinkling of parsley but what made this toast different was the drizzle of honey on top. I actually really liked this extra sweetness from the honey! There was nothing fancy going on here, just comfort food at its best on this cold (winter-feeling) morning. I was sad they were out of jasmine tea, but settled for the rose tea which had a nice subtle floral scent (not a fan when it's too overpowering).

K ordered the honey butter toast which had a generous lathering of butter between the two slices of bread. There was honey as well as a sweet caramel-like syrup drizzled on top.  Nothing like a sugar hit to start your morning!

M however prefers something savoury to begin her day with and went for the bacon and egg roll.

It was odd seeing the normally incredibly full cafe so empty early in the morning. Of course we have no complains about that - we got the cafe (almost) all to ourselves to chat. What's better than a quick breakfast catchup with your favourite girlfriends? :D

Tom n Toms
97-99 Bathurst St
Sydney, NSW, 2000

The Victoria Room Tea Salon, Westfield Sydney, CBD

When I first heard about scones, I never understood what the hype was about. For one, they were lumps of flour to me, and two, they looked super ugly!! But then I discovered cream and jam and was it just me, or did it make everything that much more awesome? When I bit into my first scone at the Tea Room, I fell in love. SCONES!! And what pairs better with scones than tea? With such dreary weather in Sydney this past weekend, I was craving nothing more than a hot pot of tea and scones.

How cute are the teacups? Loving the gold :)

Soy chai latte, $5.00

I wanted nothing more than a huge hit of spices to hit me when I drank my chai, but unfortunately neither of us got that :( I was happy that they used fresh spices, but the flavour definitely did not seep into the soy milk despite letting it sit for ages at the table. Ah, looks like I'm still in the search for a good chai.

Scones from front to back: lemon, pistachio & currant / rose / dark chocolate chip, served with conserve & cream, $6.95 each

Loved the flavour of all the scones, though not as fluffy as the scones at the Tea Cosy but still decent :) Pistachios are always a winner for me, and I was scared that the rose scent would be overpowering, but the perfume of the rose was just a light enough and it was so good with the jam and cream. The all had a lovely crust on the outside. The dark chocolate chip was definitely a favourite and was rich enough without the need of either of the condiments!

What is great about afternoon tea with scones is the atmosphere. Great place to catch up with your girlfriends don't you think?

The Victoria Room Tea Salon
188 Pitt St, Shop 4042 Level 4 Westfield Sydney
Sydney, NSW, 2000 

Opening Hours
Daily excluding Thursday: 9:30am - 6:30pm
Thursday: 9:30am - 9:00pm 

 

Girls Day Out

A couple of days ago, I went out with a friend all day for some girly shopping! Surprisingly, we didn't buy too much. Feeling peckish mid-afternoon, we decided that we wanted some tea. The Tea Salon in Westfield Sydney was the first destination we had in mind, but alas it was not meant to be. The line was so long! Wandering around, we managed to find another place hidden inside the Glasshouse called the Tea Centre so we settled ourselves in for some refreshments.

Large pot of tea, 2 scones with strawberry jam & cream, $15.00

We ordered a pot of pina colada tea. It came all pretty and pink! It smelled divine, like creamy coconut. But I have to say, it didn't taste like that at all! It was more on the fruity side however, it was quite bland and on the watery side. The scones arrived a bit flat (looks like we got dud scones!), but weren't too bad lathered with cream and jam ;) Maybe the kitchen was having an off day because I see big fluffy scones on other blogs who have visited.

Continuing on, I was definitely excited about two notebooks I bought from Typo though - they are so cute, don't you think?

Typo notebooks, normally $16.95 each

My friend works in the Cotton On chain so I received 50% both these purchases. I love how they look like novels but are actually notebooks!

Aren't the interior covers amazing?

Our shopping day turned into dinner at Mizuya after feeling like some sushi. Turns out, they also have Happy Hour from 5-7pm daily.

L to R: Pina Colada, Coconut Kimono, $10.00 during Happy Hour (normally $14.80)

There are definitely some major perks to being a girl - we can order girly cocktails with whipped cream and cherries on top all the time! These two were deliciously drinkable cocktails with the pick of the night being the Coconut Kimono with Malibu, plum wine and coconut juice, topped with whipped cream. I don't know what exactly made it blue, but it tasted amazing!

Spider roll, $14.80

 Because who can say no to soft-shelled crab?

Eel roll, $14.80

And throw in a grilled eel roll for good measure.

Shopping is definitely counted as exercise in my books. We managed to walk non-stop for over 6 hours!

The Tea Centre in The Glasshouse
146 Pitt St
Sydney, NSW, 2000

Opening Hours
Monday-Wednesday, Friday: 9:00am - 5:30pm
Thursday: 9:00am - 8:00pm
Saturday: 10:00am - 4:00pm
Sunday: 11:00am - 4:00pm



Mizuya Japanese Restaurant and Karaoke
Basement, 614 George St
Sydney, NSW, 2000

Opening Hours
Sunday-Thursday: 11:30am - 12:00am
Friday-Sunday: 11:30am - 2:00am