The Exploding Bakery

Sounds messy! But luckily this little exeter bakery was very much in one piece when we visited. We stopped by this bakery upon more recommendations for my regional special piece, sadly it didn't make the final cut but it's defiantly a must if you are in the area.
For a start the coffee was excellent, they usually brew the very trendy (and very tasty) Monmouth coffee but the weekend we visited they were serving a different brand however it was still strong and went well with our baked-on-site cakes! Everything is baked in their open plan kitchen- very similar to Royal William Bakery however its much smaller and more of a take-out service than a sit down and chill out for hours type place. The general vibe i gathered whilst there was that they take a very relaxed approach to the baking biz- from stating on their website that the foccacia is "f***ing good", to the fact we were served by a very nice barista who was happy to make us lovely coffee even though they were minutes from closing!
We enjoyed coffee's and vegan chocolate banana bread which was absolutely divine. I have never tried vegan cake before (shocking considering i eat any cake placed in front of me no matter the ingredients), but it wasn't lacking in flavour in ANY way, it was still moist and gooey like banana bread should be, in fact it was so filling and sweet i had to save half and eat it later in the hotel! Yummers.

Best for: coffee and fresh treats to go
Best day: first thing- its right next to the station, perfect for a coffee commute
Exploding Bakery

Holly x

Bel Green Cafe

For the second instalment from our efforts at eating our way through Devon for my regional special piece we have Bel Green Cafe. The lovely Bel Green is situated on Magdalen Road, a leafy quiet street just on the edge of the main centre of Exeter.
This is not a hungover builders cafe pit stop. Okay, so you can go there hungover, (we might have bin, just a bit, ok, a lot. I blame Rachel) but try not to be as it will spoil the doughy sourdough and the freshest, richest sausages i have had in such a long time. Who knew pork could be described as rich? Well they were! But it is not for the days when you are feeling the after affects of too many tequilas. Definitely more suited for brunch with the family or the boyfriend or for a chilled coffee and a book session alone. The poached eggs were cooked to perfection and so were we after sitting in the baking autumn sunshine that flooded through the big windows into this little cafe. I could have spent all morning there drinking tea. It also serves as a vintage shop filled with kitschy household goodies like rolling pins and aprons which suit the cafe's rustic, slightly new england feel. The breakfast menu alone left us spoiled for choice and i believe they serve pizzas in the evenings too.

Best for: fresh, local hearty brunches in a calm setting with post brekkie browsing
Best day: saturday mornings before a walk into town
Bel Green Cafe Twitter
Bel Green Cafe

Holly x