Showing posts with label chocolate. Show all posts
Showing posts with label chocolate. Show all posts

Formerly The Urban Chocolate Co, Choc-la-Te is a charming and pleasant cafe on Westhoughton's Market Street, which specialises in chocolate by the in-house chocolatier, as well as offering tasty food and drink.

I walked into the little cafe, which was bright and fresh on a lovely sunny day, and was warmly greeted and given a big beaming smile by Tracy, the chocolatier and owner.

A very good policy!
I looked at the food and drinks menu, and the specials menu which offered summer drinks. As a tea lover, I was really impressed at the tea menu, which had a good variety of loose leaf teas to enjoy, from your standard English Breakfast to Darjeeling and beyond. I chose an Earl Grey with cornflour, which was very refreshing and tasty... but as I was sipping it, I spotted rose and bergamot black tea on the shelf... I'll definitely be trying that next time! The tea was excellent quality and even came with suggested timers for brewing times. I've not seen this quality or variety of tea offered outside of Manchester City Centre's tea rooms, but most definitely not for Manchester's prices!


The venue itself has a fabulously semi-modern design to it, with beautiful big 70s style geometrics on the walls and crockery, bright colours, and fun little signs. For a small (4 table) cafe, it didn't feel too small! They also sells their own chocolates, little gifts, and greetings cards, which are placed around the edges of the main dining area to catch your eye as you make inappropriate noises of appreciation about your chocolate fondue.

From the tasty and tempting food menu I chose a classic ham and cheese toastie, and as well as being offered my choice of bread, and whether I'd like fresh coleslaw or onion chutney, it also came with some crisps and a fresh side salad. I was even asked if I'd like dressing for said salad. I was starting to like this place, they had everything, and after I found out they also took cards as payment, AND had free wi-fi? Definitely a quick way into my good-books even before I've eaten!


My ham and cheese toastie was lovely and fresh, and very tasty, especially considering it was very good value considering the quality offered. This is the quality of a city centre venue but at prices reflecting the area. Westhoughton, you're very lucky to have them!


At this point I realised that it would surely be a crime to come to a chocolate specialist and not partake, especially given that the quality of the food was so good! Tracy gave me a run-down of what cakes and bakes were on offer (and they all sounded incredible!), as well as which chocolates were available, which you could purchase for a price per individual chocolate, which is a genius idea!

I went for Turkish Delight, Limoncello, Salted Caramel and Passionfruit, which Tracy picked out of the display case using a special chocolate-handling glove! Very swish! They were given to me in a cute little teacup, and as you can imagine, they were absolutely sublime!



I will most definitely be returning here, not just due to it being close to where I live, not just because the chocolates are lovely and I want more and know I can get them boxed up for gifts,  not just because there's lots of other tasty chocolate gifts, not just because of the tasty food and the tea range which I definitely want to try more of, not just because of the friendly and happy customers and staff who gave the place a lovely atmosphere, nor the customer who highly recommended the chocolate fondue, and not just because of the idea of their afternoon teas...



...wait where was I?

...oh yes! I have to come back, because I've been told great things about their hot chocolate... the other things just happen to be a nice side-point! ;)

Go along. You'll love it.

Choc-la-Te
9A Market Street
Westhoughton
Bolton
Greater Manchester
BL5 3AH
(01942) 817 443
www.urbanchocolateco.co.uk

Choc-la-Te

by on 16:16
Formerly The Urban Chocolate Co, Choc-la-Te is a charming and pleasant cafe on Westhoughton's Market Street, which specialises in cho...
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I fancied lunch one day, but wasn't sure where to go, so when I looked on TripAdvisor, the most popular rated place in Bolton right now is The Bank, which surprised me as I actually hadn't heard of it at this point!

So along I toddled, parked up nearby, and found the place which at first glance just looks like a "café", but trust me, it's really not, it's a fab restaurant which I never knew about, right on my doorstep here in Bolton!



We were warmly greeted by the owner, who tell us about the history of the place (it was actually a bank!), the potential plans and decoration ideas, and how the venue is still a work in concept, with a bright future. It's always nice to meet someone passionate about their business, and giving good customer service. The venue itself is in simple monochromatic colours with clean lines and modern artwork, but with a traditional chandelier in the centre, which contrasts nicely.


We ordered a classic cheeseburger and a gammon dinner. Both were cooked freshly to order, which is always a nice thing to experience in this day and age. The burger was juicy, in a glazed brioche bun, and the gammon was, to quote my dining partner, "the best gammon I've ever had!" (I'll agree, it melted in the mouth!), with perfect eggs... but for me the best was the chips! Gigantic triple-cooked crispy crunchy batons of loveliness! Some of the best chips I've had, with a real crunch to them, unlike some places that claim to triple-cook chips! I'd go here again just for the chips, quite honestly!


After an enjoyable and filling main course, we decided to take a breather so that we could order dessert! It seemed like a shame to skip dessert after such an enjoyable meal! After mulling over the dessert menu, my partner went for the home made apple pie with custard, whilst I opted for the more intriguing "love in a cup". 


The desserts were good! As though they wouldn't be! The 'Love in a Cup' turned out to be a very very chocolatey cake in a teacup, with fresh cream on top, very tasty, and perfect for the chocoholics out there! I even experimented by pouring some of the custard onto it to mellow it out a little, and that worked just as well! My partner and I decided it should be renamed, the "Oh My God That's Chocolatey!".

Overall, The Bank is offering superb food for extremely reasonable prices. I'll be there again, and recommend you give it a go sometime if you fancy somewhere where simple food is done very well indeed!


The Bank
616 Bury Road
Bolton
Greater Manchester
BL2 6JA
(01204) 774 381
http://www.thebankcafebargrill.co.uk/

The Bank

by on 16:09
I fancied lunch one day, but wasn't sure where to go, so when I looked on TripAdvisor, the most popular rated place in Bolton rig...
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PLEASE NOTE: This venue has since CLOSED, but may be reopening elsewhere in the future.



I'm thrilled to say that Delicieux is one of the best places I've known to open in Bolton for YEARS! Standing where the former "Zest" once stood, Delicieux has really breathed new life into the place, the blank white outside now has strong pastel stripes down the side, and stylish new signage and decals.

Walking into Delicieux feels very different to when it was Zest. It's much more homely and the new soft furnishings, novelty cushions, and even blankets for those wishing to use them during winter months add a little comfort to what was previously quite a formal feeling and unwelcoming dining room. Solid wooden tables with a mix of chairs, armchairs and stools make it a place very easy to settle into comfortably with a pot of tea! It also has an outdoor seating area for warmer days, with a lovely view. It has one toilet, but it's modern, clean, and of a good enough size to be able to be used as a disabled toilet too.
It makes sense that it calls itself "deli and dining" as their deli section complete with both sweet and savoury offerings is well stocked and nice to see, as is their lovely local produce such as local jams, local butter, and local artisan breads are a wonder to behold, a real treat... but they also excel in both the "tea room" aspect, complete with its fantastic array of pastries, cakes and tarts, even offering some great afternoon teas, at a fraction of the cost of the places in the city centre, but with all of the quality, if not a little more; they're even looking into offering a "chocaholics afternoon tea" replacing tea with hot chocolate, and cakes with chocolates which look mind-blowingly like cakes! It must also be stated that the hot chocolate served at Delicieux is the best I've ever tasted, made with real melted chocolate! You should go there for that alone if anything! 
The juicy Delicieux burger
As well as the deli/tea room aspects, they also offer some truly great dining options with superb quality food and produce. They offer everything from a simple jam and toast, to a great big juicy Delicieux Burger! Their triple-cooked chips are some of the best I've ever tasted, especially with the "Mojo Mayo", a creation by the owner herself, who is often trying new things for the deli, baking fresh cakes, puddings, and daily specials, as well as offering special platters using the current deli offerings, so it's always nice to be asked which type of mayo you want from the three types they offer when you ask for some! When I went today she had freshly made some sticky toffee pudding pies... which frankly were so sublime they could make a grown man weep!




Their main gimmick is that they serve a fresh, home cooked, locally produced breakfast platter... and serve it at the table, in the pan! It works remarkably well, and is a superb breakfast! 


Don't even TRY to resist the cake counter!
The service at Delicieux is some of the best I've experienced in the entire country. The owner, Debbie, and her staff are friendly, engaging, and take a genuine interest in the customers. They give a really warm welcome, are incredibly professional, and manage to exceed expectations every time I've gone in! Today for example I wanted to try the sticky toffee pudding pie mentioned earlier, but instead of just giving it to me in a box to take away, she asked if I wanted to stay in, and said she could warm it up a little in the oven, and serve it with some clotted cream if I so wanted... I very much did! (Yum!) She brought it over herself, as she is very much a hands-on owner, happy to engage with the customers, work behind the counter, in the kitchen, and bringing the food out herself.

It should be noted that as it's become so popular, the parking outside the venue gets busy quite quickly, but there is also additional parking down a slope to the left of the deli itself, which is specifically for the deli's customers. The sign says "20 cars" parking down there, but I would suggest it's closer to 10 spaces. That really is the only thing I could criticise, and even then it's only because they're doing such tremendous trade that they're always so busy! However it should also be noted that they offer a fabulous "Grab and Go!" section immediately as you walk inside, so you can grab a sandwich and head out, or sit on one of the stools by the grab and go bar, and just have a quick salad and a brew before dashing off.

This is definitely an up and coming place here in Bolton, and they've obviously tried to do something different to other local establishments, and it works incredibly well.

They're open Tuesday to Sunday from 9:00am to 5:00pm, but even at 5:10pm when we were leaving, a customer walked in, and instead of the owner saying "sorry we're closed" etc, she put on her big smile and said "Hello there! What can I do for you?" . That's service, right there!

Delicieux is quickly becoming the place to be in Bolton, and certainly becoming my favourite haunt! Go now! I'll see you there!

Delicieux
889 Moss Bank Way
Smithills, Bolton
(01204) 492 300

 Delicieux on Urbanspoon

Delicieux [CLOSED]

by on 20:34
PLEASE NOTE: This venue has since CLOSED, but may be reopening elsewhere in the future. I'm thrilled to say that Delicieux is o...
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