Time for T&Cake...

What better reason to plan a road trip to Huddersfield than the promise of cake? T&Cake in Almondbury has been on our radar for a while now, and a dreary Saturday afternoon in January seemed the perfect opportunity to banish some blues with a cake fix.

Stephen and Tracy Jackson have hit the nail on the head. Their menu boasts a delectable combination of comfort food and sweet treats, and is complimented by a colourful array of specially blended teas and coffees. 

You can’t book tables at T&Cake, so I called ahead to get some advice. The lady I spoke to recommended arriving at around 11.30am for lunch to avoid disappointment. She wasn’t exaggerating! We walked through the door bang on 11.30am, and took the last table. Within about 15 minutes there was a sizable queue of people waiting to be seated. 

The Food: 

It’s only polite to have a main course, even though I could have quite happily stuffed my face with every cake in the joint. The sandwiches and ‘Things on Toast’ are no run of the mill list. They keep the classics such as the club sandwich, but also have interesting combinations like treacle-roast ham with spiced pineapple relish. We tried the welsh rarebit, the fish-finger sandwich and the hot shredded pork with pickled apple. All were reassuringly ‘chunky’ in appearance and filled the significant hole which had developed during the car journey from Horwich. No complaints here. I would, however recommend getting a side of chips as all came with either a few salad leaves or a handful of crisps. Or, perhaps you are not as greedy as I am…

The Tea:

We sampled two teas; the T&Chai and their namesake T&Cake. I’m not normally a huge fan of chai, but I was lured in with the promise of cinnamon. It was worth the risk. This was really delicately spiced. T&Cake is a totally different experience. It smells of marzipan, but tastes of berries. Beverage alchemy at its best! 

The Cake:

I’m a girl who likes cake. Genes passed from my cake loving father. Although I appreciate a pretty cake, I’m all about the taste. We sampled the famous almond-berry cake, a chocolate brownie, the carrot cake and the lemon drizzle cake. All appeared on pretty little plates with cute-as-a-button cake forks.

This is clearly where T&Cake excel. The almond-berry cake is like a firm victoria sponge with a tangy jam, subtle almond taste and a zingy frosting. I liked this a lot. So much so, I bought more to take home! The brownie was reassuringly dense. I’m fairly confident this would kill the faint hearted, and provides enough stodge to immobilise most for at least an hour. Their carrot cake is moist with just the right quantity of frosting, and the lemon drizzle can only be described as a citrus sensation. You get it. They make ace cakes.

All cakes and teas are available to take home. They even sell home made dog biscuits for the pampered pooch! I’d definitely recommend T&Cake to anyone who enjoys a slice (or two) of cake. However, those with a more savoury palate will not be disappointed either.

Constructive Criticisms:

• Parking - it was a bit tricky parking outside, as you can only stay for an hour on the high street. It’s possible that locals know of better spots though.
• Service - the service was friendly, but a little slow at times. I think I gave poor Tracy a small case of heart failure when I asked for some takeaway items when there was a queue.
• Not being able to book - we travelled quite a way to get to T&Cakes. We were really lucky not to wait, but I imagine by mid-afternoon things could get a little rushed as tables are required for waiting customers.

Highlights:

• Cakes - even by my greedy girl standards, they were impressive!
• Choice of different savoury dishes - we took ages trying to decide what to have, because everything sounded divine!
• Overall experience - we travelled 50 miles each way to get to T&Cake. We left with takeaway goodies and full tummies. Not much wrong with that…

T&Cake Video: http://vimeo.com/34847235