[Review] Forge Bakehouse

Despite the weather not being the best (think battling the ghastly winds and erratic rain), we reached our next destination for the weekend - Forge Bakehouse. 

Forge Bakehouse is located along what is known as the Antiques Quarter - a row of antique and vintage shops scattered along Abbeydale Road. The seating area was relatively small, seating a maximum of 5 tables. The cafe was pretty full by the time we managed to grab a seat, so I'd suggest going early on the weekends.

The menu is simple, with not much variety but a good selection - one of the things I look out for at cafes. From past experience, the more complicated the menu, the poorer the quality of the food served. That's because places that serve a variety of foods would mean they have much to handle on their plate, and unless they have sufficient staff and work space... That spells lacklustre food.

Gibassier, flavoured with Orange Blossom and Aniseed (£2), Flat White (£2.50)

Foodie friend and I were joking that the heavily dusted power atop the bread could possibly be salt. Apart from the fact that the bread felt more like a doughnut due to the powdered sugar, I enjoyed how flavoursome the bread was. Tangy and airy, it would be something I'd enjoy having toasted with a slab of butter and jam/marmalade instead of powdered sugar. The flat white was rather very strong, which foodie friend later realised it was cos they added 2 shots inside. I opted for the soy flat white, which was much milder and milkier than the former. 

French Toast
Top -French Banana with Raspberry Compote, Peanut Brittle, Valrhona Chocolate Sauce and PB Mascarpone (£6.50)
Bottom - Spiced Poached Apple with Toasted Pecans, Oat Crumble, Cinnamon Mascarpone and Maple Syrup (£6.50)

I was contemplating between the huevos rancheros and the french toast, but decided that life was too short to just have something I've never had before (yup) and instead, opted for something I've had a thousand times over as a kid - French Toast. As a kid I remember making french toast almost every weekend and being glued to the TV and immersing myself in Cartoon Network.

If I had a chance to choose which to order again, I'd choose the french banana with raspberry compote. I picked the spice poached apple as the latter sounded a little too decadent, what with the PB and all. The maple syrup on the side was a little diluted (later saw that they used Clark's maple syrup and not pure Canadian maple syrup :( this has since been clarified that yes!, they do indeed use pure Canadian maple syrup instead of Clark's for their french toast), and the bread very slightly dry in some areas. However the oat crumble and spiced poached apples were nicely done - not overly sweet and the components complemented themselves really well. Foodie friend's option was much better though, drizzled with compote and chocolate, really... How wrong can it go? I really enjoyed the raspberry compote, and the PB mascarpone was pretty damn awesome. 

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Overall, I enjoyed my time at Forge Bakehouse. Service was friendly and the food was served within 15 mins - a perk at smaller cafes! The counter was also perpetually packed with people, even though seats were fully taken up. They also sell homemade bread by the loaves, which I'll make sure to take one home in the future.

Forge Bakehouse

302 Abbeydale Road, Sheffield S7 1FL

Opening Hours

Sun 10:00 - 15:00

Tue - Sat 9:00 - 18:00

You can find them on Facebook here

I was not paid nor sponsored for this review. The review was written entirely in my opinion.

[Review] Alyssum Cafe Bistro

There's something I love about weekends - Being able to sleep in, enjoying a nice cuppa whilst browsing the news, and watching the world go by through your bedroom window. But I've decided that I'm going to make the most of my weekends by attempting to visit a new cafe every weekend. 

Fellow foodie and I were cafe-browsing online (in between rushing for our essay and doing our revisions) when he found a quaint cafe nestled along Crookesmore Road. And we decided to pay a visit. And it turned out to be wonderful.

Alyssum Cafe Bistro was opened earlier in the year by a mother-daughter duo (how sweet!) and serves Greek inspired dishes, a much healthier alternative to the usual pub food you find in Sheffield. 

Although the place may be rather small - about 4 tables at most, the ambience was nothing but relaxing and homey. 

The menu at Alyssum - A selection of sweet and savory foods for both the sweet tooth and the (not so) sweet tooth

Handmade namecards - I'd give this A for effort!

Almond Flat White (£2.60), Flat White (£2.30)

The first to arrive were our drinks. Being a coffee addict (I blame law school), I ordered the almond flat white. I've always been more keen on trying coffee with different kinds of milk, and when I do find coffee joints that serve almond milk, you can be certain I'll order it. 

I do have to admit, the regular flat white fared much better than the former. I have read that any plant milk does spoil the consistency of the coffee, so I don't blame them one bit. The regular flat white was creamy and smooth, with 2 shots of espresso inside (!!) It did get me buzzing with excitement a little while after, but that's how you know your coffee's good.

Clockwise from left: Smashed avocado toast & poached eggs with pesto, a squeeze of lemon and halloumi (£5.90), Fluffy pancakes with caramelised cinnamon fruit and honey (£4.80), Smoked salmon eggs benedict (£5.90)

One of the few things I love about Alyssum are their portion sizes. It's not too big, but not too small where you'd get hungry after an hour or so. We ordered a side of fluffy pancakes to share (because why not) and they were pretty darn awesome. The pancakes were indeed fluffy and minimally sweet, with the caramelised apples coated in cinnamon almost heaven-like. I reckon I would have eaten about 6 of these aka the whole plate if I didn't order my toast.

Smashed avocado toast & poached eggs with pesto, a squeeze of lemon and halloumi (£5.90)

Avocado + eggs? Almost always a no-fail combination. I've only tried halloumi once before this and I didn't really fancy the taste nor texture. But I decided to give it a try once more and was pleasantly surprised by how it complemented the entire dish. The eggs were perfectly poached too.  

Smoked salmon eggs benedict (£5.90)

I didn't get to try much of the smoked salmon eggs benedict, but I believe Foodie friend didn't enjoy the sourness of the hollandaise. I did snitch some of the hollandaise sauce and agreed that while it is a little on the sour side, I personally enjoyed how it had a different taste from the regular hollandaise sauce you find. It didn't seem at all creamy either.

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Will I be back again? Most definitely. It makes my tummy extremely glad there are places like these around that make the journey worth travelling to. The owner was terribly sweet and even asked if the food was good! If there's anything better than good food, it's good service.

If you're ever in the area, do give Alyssum Cafe a try. I'm sure you won't regret it.

Alyssum Cafe Bistro

76 Barber Road, S10 1EE, Sheffield

Monday - Friday 0830 - 1700h

Saturday - Sunday 0930 - 1700h

You can find them on Facebook here

Review: Étude House - Wonder Pore Freshner

Prior to heading back to the UK for the start of my second semester, I was stocking up on several asian skincare products. Even though the majority of the skincare products I used were more to westernised brands (Kiehl's, L'oreal etc), I have noticed how certain Korean skincare products work just as well, if not better at a fraction of the price. I was onto my last bit of Lush's toner and after browsing through the Etude House store in Singapore's Wisma Atria, I found the Wonder Pore Freshner by Etude House (500ml). More commonly known as a toner, the product is meant to balance pH levels, ease skin troubles caused by pH imbalance and cleans the inside and outside of your pores with its special peppermint extract. It is a 10-in-1 Solution that promises deep cleansing, sebum control, tightening of pores and leaves the face feeling refreshed and prepped for both day and night. 

I've been using this for the past 2-3 months and although I don't exactly see drastic results with the condition of my skin, it has helped in keeping my face clean and fresh. One aesthetic thing I love about this product is the pump of the bottle. Instead of tipping the bottle over to dispense the product you simply pump once or twice onto a cotton pad (which is provided when you purchase the bigger bottle like I have) and gently massage into your face. 

Would I repurchase? Most likely. I like how it feels on my face after cleansing, and the pump is an added bonus for a person like myself who prefers a pump. I'd recommend using this with the Etude House Wonder Pore White Clay Clear mask to reap the most out of this product. I do have this here with me but I haven't gotten around to using it simply because I'm too busy using my Lush pots up :p

You can find the Etude House Wonder Pore Freshener online here in Singapore and here if you're overseas.

Love,

thehungryunicorn

 I was not paid nor sponsored for this product review. The review was written entirely in my opinion.

Lush: A skin + hair care review

Lush prides themselves in using all natural ingredients in their products. I've been a long time fan of Lush, not just for the quality of the products they produce but the results it gives my skin. I've recently experienced a mini breakout due to collagen I've been consuming (age and stress is unfortunately beginning to take a toll on me) and was on the lookout for products that would alleviate irritated skin. 

Lush has been an advocate of being against the use of animal testing and is seen perpetually giving back to society in the form of charity pots and participating in animal campaigning. I recently picked up Angels on Bare Skin (£6.75/100g) a face and/or body cleanser that consists of ground almonds that help to exfoliate the skin, lavender oil that balances and calms and kaolin, a type of clay that draws out impurities. I can't bear to slather such huge amounts on my body, so it's mostly reserved as a face mask. The lady over the counter couldn't stop raving about how this helped brighten and cleanse her skin. I've been using it for a week and I'm pretty sure this is a cleanser I'll run back to when I want an all natural, gentle cleanser.

Another product that's been highly mentioned is the Mask of Magnaminity Face Mask (£5.50/125g). As much as I love the fresh face masks Lush offers, I find that I can never seem to finish a full pot before the expiry date. The jovial sales keeper recommended I try one of their self preserving masks. I'm not a big lover of minty scents to it, but I wouldn't complain since does soothe the redness on my skin. The mask is made with peppermint oil to stimulate, marigold oil to treat the skin; evening primrose seeds and aduki beans to gently exfoliate as you remove it. There’s also mineral rich kaolin to nourish, antibacterial honey, and peppermint oil to stimulate the blood cells just under the surface of your skin to leave it looking bright and refreshed. Since I'm more of a face mask junkie than a face sheet, I've always loved face masks that come in pots. It dries up and feels more effective than slapping a sheet of face mask for 20 mins on my face, constantly making sure it wouldn't slide off my face. I naturally gravitate to this twice or thrice a week, especially when I don't have other face masks on hand.

I've only recently discovered the Cosmetic Warrior Face Mask (£6.50/75g), a gentle and balancing fresh face mask with antibacterial tea tree and fresh garlic working together to cleanse. What, garlic?! you say? No worries, the scent of garlic is far from noticeable! The scent is relatively hard to describe but it does have a thicker consistency that feels like paste when applied on the skin. It's thick and sticks on your face like super glue, which is great especially when I'm multi-tasking.  This mask is the bees knees for troubled skin and combats spots. Tea tree is also present in this mask which aids in killing those nasty red bumps that appear on the surface of your skin.

Ever since I arrived in the UK, my hair has been in its worse state. I've been told by a hairdresser here that the reason why my hair has been dropping at an alarming rate is due to the water:( Unfortunately, I haven't figured out a cure for this but the lady in Lush told me that the Cynthia Sylvia Stout Shampoo (8.95/250g) would help with weak and thin hair (which is what I'm facing now). You must be wondering whether the word 'stout' really does mean that there's beer in this shampoo. Lo and behold, there is. And that's the magic! Stout is full of protein, which helps with the hair body and strength. Cynthia Sylvia Stout compromises of beer, vinegar, and lemon juice to give your locks a glossy sheen. I've only tried this twice (it doesn't leave any smell of beer, no worries) but it definitely does strengthen my hair and prevent breakage. It doesn't help with the hair loss, but I'm hoping I'd find a cure for that soon.

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Thanks for reading my humble review and if you'd like to tell me what your favourite products are from Lush, please leave a comment below! I'd love to hear from you guys. x

Love,

thehungryunicorn

 I was not paid nor sponsored for this product review. The review was written entirely in my opinion.