All Hail Hanky Panky Pancakes

I may have said this before, things don't move particularly quickly in Chester and anything evenly mildly alternative is either a raging success or a tragic flop so when Hanky Panky Pancakes opened it's doors a couple of years ago it could have easily tipped in either direction. 

However, I am delighted to say that success was all that awaited this little eatery.

Moonlit Screening at the Open Air Cinema

Last weekend marked the 24th birthday of my older brother Ted. To celebrate the occasion he requested that any, and all, of his available family members and friends join him at Chester's open air cinema for a picnic, white russians and a moonlit screening of The Big Lebowski. 

We were more than happy to oblige.

Birthday, Solstice, World Yoga Day, Campfires, Celebrations & Sleeping Under the Stars

Last weekend was a HUGE weekend for family Oliver. The weekend of the 19th-21st of June marked Daddy Oliver's birthday, the summer solstice, Father's Day and World Yoga Day. A weekend this monumental needed to be celebrated in style and therefore Mum, Dad, my Godmother Sarah, and I, packed up the car and made our way up into the Welsh hills for an incredible Kundalini Yoga Retreat at Kinton Farm.

Busy Bees Make Time for Tea Hive

Once you leave a place that you so dearly called home it's a curious thing to discover what you miss about it. It's also a curious thing to find out what will sway in making the effort to return to that place that you have now left. For me, the eateries of Manchester are some of the best ever and Teahive would be up there at the very top of my list.

How to Move Home Again

The prospect of moving back to your childhood home is never an easy one but it really doesn't have to be as big a turmoil as some might assume...

Is This the Best Brunch in Town?

Last week, the girls & I arranged to meet up for a spot of brunch on one of the rare occasions that we were all free at the same time and I could not think of anywhere better to go than Moose. With an overwhelmingly large selection of all things brunch it is a highly popular spot and it is hardly surprising as to why...

A Foodie Trip to London: Day 1

Every year my mum and I head to London for a girl's trip away together involving a lot of shopping, gossiping and, of course, food. This year was no exception.

A Meeting at North Tea Power

Sometimes living alone and also working from home can become a real drag. Little interaction + little encouragement = low motivation. So a couple of weeks ago I made arrangements with my oldest friend Becky, who is in a very similar situation, to meet up and go for breakfast in order to discuss life, boys, business and all things blog related. 

Love Juice? Then Head to Love Juice

I love afternoon tea. There, I said it. In fact, it's not just afternoon, there's brunch too... and supper - in fact any meal that is not really a meal but is at the times of day when one should be at work and therefore eating cake, and generally being decadent, feels all kinds of sinfully wonderful. One of my favourite people to while away an afternoon with is undoubtedly my mother but since she has been juicing (see previous post for more details) finding places to gain appropriate sustenance has proven tricky. Enter, Love Juice.

An Evening at Teacup

Teacup is one of those absolute gems of a teashop that, come rain or shine, has people queueing out the door every single weekend. Located in the heart of Manchester's Northern Quarter, Teacup is cute and quirky without quite becoming a hipster cliché like many other places are in danger of doing these days. Although their vast collection of cakes and tea are some of the best I've ever experienced (keep reading for evidence of this) they don't just rely on their sweet treats and charm thus, therefore, excelling in all other areas of their menu too (I am still yet to find anywhere in Manchester that delivers a better Eggs Benedict). So once I discovered that Teacup were planning to begin an evening menu I grabbed my best foodie-friend Laura, and we decided to make a night of it.