Tea for you and me

Join me on my epic quest to find the best tea ever

Tag Archives: pancakes


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Chineside

Photo of the seaside in Bournemouth. White clouds in the sky, blue calm sea, yellow sandy beach with two small figures sat on chairs.

This cafe has one of the best views of any sit-in cafe I’ve ever been to. Chineside is a two-storey cafe on the beachfront in Bournemouth. You can go for a paddle, walk up the beach, cross the couple of metres of tarmac promenade and you’re there. They have two takeaway kiosks facing the promenade so you don’t even need to put your shoes on if you want a cup of tea. I chose to put my flip-flops back on and go for a nice sit down and a cup of tea on the upstairs terrace area.

The seating area upstairs is open air, which was just what I wanted on a slightly overcast morning that had the promise of sunshine later. I chose a table in the corner that gave me views of the promenade in front of me and the sea to the side. The upstairs terrace was half full of people – various conversations and the noise of cutlery on plates. Under it all was the sound of the waves, over and over and over. The best soundtrack to any cup of tea.

Photo of a cup of rooibos tea next to a teapot and milk jug on an open air table in the Chineside cafe in Bournemouth. Behind the table are glass panels through which the sea and beach can be seen.
Photo of American-style pancakes with egg and bacon and maple syrup on the side on a white china plate. The plate is on a wooden table and above the plate is a cup of rooibos tea, a teapot and a milk jug. Chineside cafe in Bournemouth.
Photo of the beach, sea and promenade as seen through waist-height glass panels from Chineside cafe in Bournemouth. A cafe table with a jug of at milk is in the foreground.

I had a pot of rooibos tea with oat milk and the American pancakes with a fried egg and streaky bacon and maple syrup (which I asked for on the side). All of it was good and the pancakes weren’t too heavy. The menu was all breakfast items but that’s to be expected as I was there mid-morning. I’m assuming the menu changes later in the day.

If you’re going to be in Bournemouth then I’d recommend coming here for a great sea view and some good tea and food. If you’re not going to be in Bournemouth then you should go visit, nothing like the seaside and a paddle for making you feel properly on holiday.

  • Teapot? Yes, a metal one that poured well.
  • Leaf tea? Reader, I’m ashamed to say I forgot to check. There was a teabag corner sticking out of the pot but it might have been one of the open ones that you fill with loose leaf. Forgive me, I’m a bit out of practice.
  • Milk jug? Yes.
  • Price? £2.55 for a pot of rooibos tea, 30p for oat milk, £9.95 for the pancakes.
  • Cake? Yes, a glass cabinet downstairs with different cakes in.
  • Toilet? Yes, unisex toilets upstairs (no lift that I saw but I didn’t check). Separate male and female public toilets and a disabled public toilet (RADAR key operated) outside next to the cafe.
  • Go again? Yes.

Chineside, off West Overcliff Drive, Westbourne, Bournemouth, BH2 5JF.

Visited on: Friday 15 September 2023


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The Breakfast Club, Spitalfields

12 – 16 Artillery Lane, Spitalfields, London, E1 7LS.   (View on map)

The cup is not really this small, it’s just that the pancakes are big.

Outside was grey but inside The Breakfast Club it was a bright, shiny morning. Even the toilets were cheerful – the ladies toilet is decorated with ‘My Little Pony’ wallpaper. The cafes are a homage to breakfast and the 1980s and this works well.

I plumped for the pancakes with berries, maple syrup and vanilla cream; along with some English Breakfast tea. I was a bit disappointed that the tea came in a cup, but at least the cup was big and the tea bag was teapigs.

The only American style pancakes I’ve ever had for breakfast prior to this were from McDonald’s and so I wasn’t expecting much. These were amazing – light yet filling, sweet yet savoury. I don’t know what vanilla cream is exactly (maybe just vanilla flavoured whipped cream?) but I’m now a big fan.

Teapot? No, a cup and saucer with a tea bag.
Leaf tea? No, though it was a tasty tea bag.
Milk jug? Yes.
Price? £2 for the tea, £6.50 for the pancakes with berries.
Cake? Not when I went, it was too early in the morning. They did have some cake listed on their lunch and dinner menu.
Go again? Yes. I would like to go again and try the ‘All American’ pancakes – pancakes with bacon, eggs, sausage, potatoes and maple syrup. I’ve always been sceptical about this combination, but I think I trust The Breakfast Club enough to give it a go. I’d also like to try going in the evening. After I’d been EM told me that the fridge I was sitting next to opens up in the evening and you can walk through it into a club. I’d like to be able to say I’ve walked through a fridge.