Afternoon Tea at Butter Avenue

So we returned. Didn't I say we would?

So more about the Afternoon Tea at Butter Avenue. We were greeted by the friendly staff, most of whom remembered us from our first visit. Our table was reserved and we were given the choice from two sets: Lumière and De Luxe. Since we grabbed lunch at The Burger's Priest nearby, we went with the Lumière set. We were a bit nervous that we would be too full, as you get a bit more desserts and drink choices if you go with the De Luxe one.

The fun part was being able to smell and read the description of all the available tea choices. I went with one of the more popular teas (as our hostess informed us). A tea with sweet, roasted, and caramelized almonds with sweet apple pieces. The red colour comes from adding beetroot.

From the samples of tea, Howard picked Darjeeling, one that he was comfortable and familiar with.

Our amuse-bouche arrived! A mini croissant with smoked salmon and dill, brioche, and two mini bacon and cheese quiches. Anything with smoked salmon wins over Howard's heart. The brioche was delicious. The quiches had the texture of a light and airy egg sponge, also very tasty.

Along with our tray of tarts and cakes, we also got to choose a macaron from the display cases.

Our hostess suggested we start from the left to the right. We had a taste of the pistachio cream puff with a white chocolate glaze. A nice and easy way to start off the tasting.

Then, the cassis (blackcurrant) mousse topped with a blueberry.

Their newest cake, cheesecake garnished with a sliver of strawberry. I'm not usually a fan of cheesecake because I find them too dense and heavy (but Howard loves them), this however, I enjoyed! It was very light and soft, just the right texture for a bite size.

Raspberry mousse, deliciously tart and light!

Their terre et neige cake, a matcha mousse, chocolate sponge cake, and vanilla mousse.

Finally, we finished with the nutty dark chocolate cake with dark chocolate mousse, chocolate sponge cake,  and a chocolate rice crispy base.

I have to say, everything was delicious and delightful, but I was a little bit disappointed with the macarons this time around. I had purchased some extra ones to take home and some of my macaron shells were too hard and hollow inside.

Birthday Weekend Lunch

I just wanted to share my birthday weekend treats with you. Howard and I started off being really good! Bright and early, we both went to the gym - step class for me and the elliptical for him. It was such an uncharacteristic January day, sunny and warm, so we went downtown to have lunch at Nadege Patisserie. We've been before to pick up pastries, but we hadn't tried their sandwiches yet!

My favourite of the two was the smoked salmon, cucumber, dill, and cream cheese! A delicious buttery and flaky croissant with the crunch of the cucumber. Smoked salmon and cream cheese, always a winning combination.

We tried their breakfast sandwich which consists of bacon, scrambled eggs, cheddar, and tomato. They heat it up for you so that you're not eating room temperature eggs and bacon.

The first dessert we tried was this green fuzzy-looking cube with the raspberry garnish and cute Japanese decal. Inside, the matcha green tea cake is composed of two layers, the top being raspberry mouse and the bottom being brown rice pudding.

Unable to resist, we tried two more desserts. The salted caramel mousse, which looks like a mouse, was very rich. Breaking it open, we were surprised to see that there are layers in this dessert!

Finally, our favourite of the picks that day, the raspberry tart. Seeds removed and filled with a syrup or jam, the raspberries themselves were a dessert on their own. But, on top of that scrumptious pastry cream, just wonderful!

If you are going to only pick one dessert, I think Nadege's tarts are worth a try. On previous visits, we've had the grapefruit and earl grey tart, a personal favourite of mine, and the mango coconut tart. They all have a great balance of sweet and sour.

PS: Took the photos on my iPhone. I need to remember to bring my camera out more often!