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In search of Greenwich’s best… cupcake

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Cupcakes are still having their moment in the spotlight. An edible glitter-covered fifteen minutes of fame. Some might argue that they’ve had their time and we should move onto something else but they are a lot of options in Greenwich. But which are best? I went for a wander around Greenwich, trying the tastiest cupcakes I could find, all in the name of research.

Monsoon, Turnpin Lane. Strawberry. £1.95.
The smallest of the bunch, and actually one of my favourites. But only because I really like Strawberry Angel Delight and that’s exactly what the frosting on this cake tasted like. I was bouncing off the walls after trying this one. It was definitely the sweetest I tried, which is impressive given its petite stature.

Real Baking Company, Greenwich Market. Red Velvet. £2.50.
It’s HUGE! Gosh, that’s one heck of a cupcake. The Real Baking Company really know how to make their cakes look good. I had no complaints with this cupcake, although the frosting was very buttery and there was a lot of it. That’s what you want from a cupcake, isn’t it? If you don’t want frosting on your cake, then you buy a brownie.

Rhode’s, College Approach. Lemon. £2.75.
Oooh, that’s a pricey cupcake. But hello, what’s the inside it? Lemon curd! AND a candied lemon peel decoration on top of the frosting (actually looked nicer than it tasted, bluergh). This was the fanciest of the cupcakes that I tried. And it’s nice to see the Rhodes staff smiling a little more after my chocolate brownie adventures.

Ruby Tuesdays, Greenwich Market. Vegan raspberry and chocolate. £2.30.
WOW. If there wasn’t a sign on Ruby’s Greenwich Market stall telling me this cupcake was vegan, I’d never have known. It was rich and chocolatey, with a perfect swirl of raspberry frosting. Actually, that’s probably the best cupcake frosting I’ve ever had the pleasure of getting all over my face.

Others: A vanilla cupcake from Red Door cafe (£2.65) was my least favourite. Admittedly I visited quite late on a Sunday afternoon but the sponge was a little dry and frosting hard. I wanted to try Black Vanilla but I watched two people arrive after me and get served before me so I left, cupcakeless.

And the winner is…

Ruby Tuesdays is definitely the winner for me. Not only was the cake the tastiest I tried last week, but the service was really friendly as well. I love that her cakes are suitable for special diets. She’s a brilliant addition to Greenwich Market. If the queue for her offerings is too busy, head to the Real Baking Company, or around the corner to Rhodes.

In search of Greenwich’s best… burgers

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Now Byron have finally opened in Greenwich, a search for the best burger in town was on the cards (tough gig, I know). Luckily, bars and restaurants in Greenwich offer a tasty burger indeed. Here are three of the top restaurants and a little look at how their cheeseburgers compare.

Byron

I’ve been not all that patiently waiting for them to open and I’m thrilled they have. My burger (pictured below) was very slightly overdone, as was the service – so keen were they to impress at their soft launch, they told my dining companion the dessert options while I was still eating my burger. The loitering got a little much after a while, but I’m hoping it’s just soft launch teething problems.

I do love their burgers. And I love the American cheese option. You can eat well for a little over a tenner and don’t even get me started on those courgette fries. They’re sprinkled with breadcrumbs and magic.

The Guildford Arms

This was actually my first trip to the Guildford Arms and it’s a cute, quiet place, tucked away in Guildford Grove. The hefty burger was made from chuck beef and very delicately flavoured with worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard and shallots

The burger itself was impressively sized for less than ten quid but came in a homemade bun that was a bit small for my liking.

I’m also never going to be convinced that tarragon mayo works with beef. Excellent pickle action, though – I’m all about slices, not wedges. But the fish and chips my companion had? That looked divine and was giving me serious pangs of lunch envy. Some of the best batter action this side of the river. I’ll go back for lunch (it’s £12 for two courses and £14 for three – just try and stop me), but the burger might not be my first choice.

The Old Brewery

Oh yes. This was a tasty, tasty burger. Probably my favourite, actually. It was pricy – £10.75 and an extra £1 for cheese. And erm… an extra quid for pulled pork as well. I couldn’t resist. I had to. The burger is a little soggy and difficult to eat, but I don’t care because it was perfectly cooked to medium and tasted fantastic.

Alas, there’s no photograph because they took ‘romantic’ lights to a whole new level. We basically ate in the dark. Still, that’s not going to stop me from coming back for a burger. I’ll just pop in during the day so I can actually see.

And the rest? Greenwich Union’s is tasty but very pricy once you factor in that they ask an extra £2.50 for cheddar (seriously GU dudes, that’s not cool). Rivington’s is always a fine option – the burger is tasty but it’s their chips and that smoky ketchup that will keep a smile on your face but they’ve got so much choice on the menu you’re likely to pick something else (probably roast potato based).

As for GBK… well they’re not entirely terrible are they? But with so many decent options locally, I can’t help think they’re punching above their weight a little now.

The verdict? If you fancy a pint with your burger, go to the Old Brewery. If you have kids or like milkshakes head to Byron. Lunchtime? Go to the Guildford Arms for their lunchtime menu.

What do you think? What’s the best burger you’ve had in Greenwich?

In search of Greenwich’s best… Chips

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National Chip Week: clearly one of the very best PR stunts there has ever been. An excuse to eat chips all week is not to be sniffed at. And it’s Friday too, which has always been the best day for a chippy tea. Out of the paper, the smell of salt and vinegar making passers by jealous. Even if you’re not hungry, you can always steal a chip from someone (don’t do it to strangers, it’s frowned upon). But just one question, where in Greenwich are you going to get them? Here’s Greenwich.co.uk’s guide to the best of the local chip shop chips.

The Pier, Greenwich Church Street

Excellent. They’re very excellent at batter, you see. And sometimes pieces of batter fall into the portions of chips and it’s the chip shop version of getting a toy in your cereal. They’re good at crispy bits, they’re good at other things and they crack a smile and have a bit of a chat with you. Cheap as chips too (sorry). The only downside? Terrible, terrible curry sauce.

The Golden Chippy, Greenwich High Road

Regarded as some as the best chippy in Greenwich. I’d be inclined to agree if I didn’t live way on the other side. Good chips, good crispy bits and good prices. I can’t argue with popular opinion, these guys are excellent. If only they were closer to the town centre. Still, I can always walk there and back and burn off all of those chip-shaped calories.

Peter’s Fish Bar, Woolwich Road

OK, so they’re not strictly in Greenwich. But here’s the clincher: they deliver and that’s very unusual for a chippy. Sadly, that’s where my love affair with this particular chip shop ends. They’re not terrible, but the chips are never quite as bang on as you’d like them to be. A little dry, a little bland, not a huge amount of crispy bits and only just above average. I really want to love them – they’re the nearest chippy to me and the potential to have fish and chips delivered makes me very happy indeed. But I’m left a bit disappointed by them. Don’t totally write Peter’s off, though. They also own the greasy spoon next door and they knock up the finest bacon and egg sandwich this side of the river.

The Great British Fish & Chip Shop, King William Walk

When this place opened, it looked a little posher than the rest. And on the surface, it was. They’ve got swanky fish options lined up on the menu (look, chips and scallops is posh), there isn’t a single neon star blu-tacked to the walls, and it all felt a little more upmarket. But that lasted about a week. Now it looks tired. The chips were dry and tasteless, even with extra salt and vinegar once I got home. They’re expensive too. My first ever trip to the Great British Fish & Chip Shop will probably be my last. They do, however, sell the popular Goddard’s Pies.

Where else?

Mr. Fast Fry are confusing me – they’ve stopped delivering and they’ve been shut when I’ve gone to check them out. I’m not sure if this is temporary or not but I can’t comment on their chips if they’re never open. If you can cope with the flashing disco lights in London’s danciest kebab house, the Cutty Sark restaurant actually serves up a decent portion of chips. Certainly the best of the many kebab shops and takeaways in the area.

If you’re eating in, the Old Brewery’s chips are well regarded and the the Rivington Bar and Grill do a cracking chip. Crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside and it comes with a really tasty smoked ketchup that I could probably eat with a spoon. Actually, they’d win it for me. They do takeaway chippy lunches too, all wrapped in a nice box.

Where are you getting your chips from this week?

In search of Greenwich’s best… Chocolate Brownie

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With all of the excellent bakeries in Greenwich, you’d think getting a brownie would be easy. Not so, surprisingly. You can’t move for cupcakes these days but I found just three indy bakeries selling squidgy brownies on Sunday.

For me a brownie needs to be dense and a little gooey in the middle. It needs to be heavier than a chocolate sponge. I’m a brownie purist so I don’t want bells and whistles in my brownies (for goodness sake, stop putting Oreos in them), just chocolate will suit me fine.

So which one was best?

Black Vanilla, College Approach

Oh, I truly wanted this one to be a winner. I’ve been excited about visiting Black Vanilla, which just opened last week in College Approach, but I knew when I was buying it that it wasn’t going to take the top spot. It looked dry and it was. It tasted of cocoa rather than chocolate and was actually pretty small – it was too thin to get a decent squidge. And the most expensive at £2.50.

But, to get to the cake counter you have to walk past the ice cream, and that looks phenomenal. I’m not discounting Black Vanilla altogether, I think they’re a fabulous addition to Greenwich and were very friendly when I popped in.

Rhodes, College Approach

They call their brownie the ‘best in the world’ and while the hyperbole irritates me, it was pretty good. It looked amazing. Thick, stodgy, unhealthy. Still soft in the middle despite being flaky on the top. Yep, this is one mighty fine brownie. Surprisingly not bitter despite it being so dark. It was the cheapest as well – just £1.80. Getting anything tasty under two quid is a bit of a challenge.

The downside? Not once have I seen the staff smile in Rhodes. I come here for the cake and I take it away rather than staying. A bit of a chat and a smile wouldn’t go amiss.

The Real Baking Company, Greenwich Market

A firm favourite in Greenwich Market, they were getting reading to close up when I visited. Still, I was greeted with a smile and a bit of a chat (they must have been FREEZING after standing outside all day).

The brownie was £2.40 so certainly not cheap, but worth the money. There was an unusual aftertaste to this one. Cherries, or some sort of sweet fruit. It’s certainly no bad thing. The addition of chocolate chips was welcome, too. You could eat one of these in one go, and be very happy that you did.

Verdict

It’s absolutely a tie between The Real Baking Company and Rhodes. If the staff in Rhodes could crack a smile, they’d just edge it for me. Which means obviously you should try both and make up your own mind.

Who do you think does the best chocolate brownie in Greenwich?

And if you love chocolate, why not check out  the chocolate blog from the same publisher as greenwich.co.uk