The Geordie Tourist.

When my mam and I decided we were going to Manchester there was one thing (amongst a couple of other things) that I really wanted to do, go for afternoon tea. So I got straight into researching places to go. I came across one called Hey Little Cupcake which sounded like it was right up my street.

It’s based in Spinningfields and I can only describe it as the cutest, prettiest cupcake shop I have ever seen. Honestly there are just so many hues of pink everywhere. Even the tables and chairs outside were pink.

The décor inside was fantastic too. The furniture was bright white, pink seat cushions and gingham tablecloths. The floor was pink and white check which was so funky and chic. I loved the masses of art work on the walls. They all had Hey Little Cupcake on them but there were so many different designs. It almost felt like a little art gallery kind of space. There were these amazing social media things on the wall to represent their Facebook and Twitter handles.

When we went in I stood and looked at all of the different cupcakes that they make. I love cake and it’s even better in cupcake form. They had so many nice flavours such as Eton Mess and Red Velvet.

We were the only ones in there. It’s quite a small place and they only have a few tables so I think it’s worth booking in advance in you want the afternoon tea option.

The cakes and sandwiches and things came on a vintage looking cake stand. We got egg and cress and ham and cucumber sandwiches that were shaped like cupcakes. I wasn’t too fond of the sandwiches. The bread was a bit stale and they just weren’t the best that I’ve had. Cupcakes is what this place is good at so I wasn’t worried.

We got the usual scones with clotted cream and jam and then some chocolate covered strawberries. I love a good chocolate covered strawberry. Whenever and wherever is always the perfect time for chocolate covered strawberries. (Ok I think I’ve exhausted that.)

Now for the main attraction, the cakes. We got three mini cupcakes each. One was chocolate with mint flavoured icing. Another was a red velvet one, and another was normal vanilla sponge with purple icing. I’m not going to lie I was disappointed that they were only small. For a cupcake place I expected a bit more of a bang. 

We couldn’t actually eat everything anyways and ended up taking the cakes home in a box to have later on. I’m pleased we waited. They tasted good, were really moist and the flavours were great, so in the end it was good that we only had the small ones.

It cost £12 each for the afternoon tea. Overall it was a good experience. The staff were lovely and friendly, the decor was just amazing. I loved the flavours of the cupcakes and it was just a nice little day out.

You know I love afternoon tea as much as the next person and its even better when they all aren't the same. This place definitely had a little something extra. I think I'd like to try some of their bigger cupcakes and some different flavours if I ever go back.

Have any of you been to Hey Little Cupcake?

The second day my mam and myself spent most of it walking around the town. We spent another good chunk of it trying to find particular places. I’m a planner. When I know I’m going somewhere I hunt out places to go. We had booked to have afternoon tea at a place called Hey Little Cupcake. We spent a good twenty minutes following the maps on our phones to try and find it. I have a separate post on that so I’ll say more about that later.

We also went to The John Rylands Library. Think gorgeous Gothic building full of ancient books and rare manuscripts. I am a massive book nerd, and spending time walking around a huge, antique library makes me feel like Belle from Beauty and the Beast. (I wish) I love exploring places and just finding out something new. I didn’t even know Manchester had this big famous library. The outside looked gorgeous to start with and the inside was a cross between a cathedral and something else. The stained glass windows and the old wooden flooring were amazing. I took so many pictures.

After the library, I dragged my mam on a mission to find a place called Ginger’s Comfort Emporium. If I thought it was hard finding the cupcake place, it was nothing compared to this. It’s located in a place called Afflecks, (Manchester's Northern Quarter) which is basically a cooky, creative shopping centre type place that houses all of these different kinds of cool and eclectic businesses and shops. It took a while to find that. Then when we got inside we were walking around like lost sheep. Honestly we had almost given up until we spotted it poking out of a little corner.

I just knew that I couldn’t go to Manchester without paying a little visit to Ginger's Comfort Emporium and sampling something. Ever since I knew I was going that's the first place I wanted to go. Again, I’ve made a separate post about that so I won’t say too much. Just know that it was probably one of the best milkshakes that I’ve ever tasted and that even a few hours later I was still full after drinking it, and that it affected me when we went for afternoon tea. Boy did I struggle. 

In the evening we were supposed to be going to the Cornerhouse to see a play called Kafka's Monkey, but it got cancelled at the last minute. So instead Geoff (my mam's fiance) came to meet us and we went to the cinema instead.

We went to the Odeon in the Printworks to see Jurassic World. I thought the film was amazing and working at an Odeon myself, I now want to go to each one just once so I can see how different they all are. (Sad I know, but what can you do.)

You can check out the first part of my trip here.

Have any of you been to Manchester lately?
Have you see Jurassic World yet?