Pitmedden Gardens

I was invited for a cup of tea at Pitmedden Gardens by Mother Hubbard and Monster in Law.

It was lovely.  Although it was a sunny day, it was not really pleasant enough to go for a walk in the gardens, especially at a cost of £6.50 each, as it was quite windy.

We enjoyed our tea though, although in my case, it was a hot chocolate...

The Victoria sponge I had was delicious, definitely homemade.  The Mothers has scones and seemed to enjoy them.

The cafe itself was smaller than I expected and full of ladies of a certain age who 'do tea'.  The staff were friendly and I couldn't have faulted the service.  It was quite expensive, but this was to be expected of a National Trust Cafe.

I'd happily go back.

Yvi's House of Tea, Inverurie

I came back.

I knew I would.

I couldn't resist.

Check out those lumps!

Mother came with me.  She seemed to like it too.



This time, I had tea!  It was delicious.  I had some sort of pina colada inspired blend which came with passionfruit syrupy sugar lumps.  Mother Hubbard had some sort of lemon based variety, I think, with mango syrupy lumps.

I was famished, so I opted for a pretzel burger from the specials board.  It was cooked to perfection, although the bun was very full and it was quite saucey - so a bit of a burger-in-your-lap hazard.  But totally worth the risk!  The pretzel bun was soft and a pleasant alternative to the norm.  I came with crisps and a lovely, fresh salad.

Mother Hubbard chose blueberry bacon waffles.  I tried not to sway her decision, but I knew she would like these.  She asked for a half portion - I guess I don't get my appetite from her!

Mother Hubbard - caught unawares

I will, of course, return here before long.  It's not often I eat out at the same place twice in less than a week.

It must be special.

Yvi's House of Tea, Inverurie

This is a place I had heard about of a number of occasions.  The most recent being last week when my friend, Stuart, posted a couple of Instagram updates showcasing the fantastic food on offer there.  I was instantly jealous, having not seen visual proof of the tastiness available.  I demanded to know why I had not been invited and was replied to with an invitation to an Yvi's House of Tea brunch the following Saturday.

We arrived at around 11.30am.  The small cafe was not as busy as I had anticipated but took no time at all to fill up with hungry customers seeking their dinner.  There was an extensive drinks menu to look at, mostly tea.  There is every tea imaginable.  I'll admit I thought the teas were really quite expensive...until I saw what was coming.  I stupidly ordered a coffee - I should have known this was a choice I'd come to regret, not because it wasn't nice, but because the teas were clearly much nicer.  The clue is clearly in the name - Yvi's House of Tea, not Yvi's House of Coffee!

Duh, Kirsten!

My companions all had various teas.  They arrived in wee teapots which were set atop a candle trivet thingymabob - you know the sort you often get in Chinese or Indian restaurants to keep food warm?  They were accompanied by small pots of sticky, sugary, syrupy lumps which were all in different flavours, depending on which tea was chosen.  Stuart and Nicola explained to us that they had sussed out that these were available in jars for purchase near the cake counter.  We sipped our drinks from cute china cups with saucers as we waited for our meals.


The only downside that we found from this place were the teeny weeny tables - two people would have satat our table comfortably but four folk was a bit of a squeeze and we found ourselves putting the table decoration and empty teapots and cups onto the floor to make more room for our food arriving - although these were whisked away as soon as our waitress came back to us.

There is a large blackboard painted onto one wall which is updated with the daily specials.  I opted for soup from the specials board and then half a bacon and peach waffle.  There are several different waffles on the menu - both sweet and savoury.  I couldn't decide whether I wanted sweet or savoury to I opted for a combination of both!  Waffles come in half size for those who have a smaller appetite (not usually me) but I thought I might be quite full from the soup, and I might want a cake, so asked for a half portion.

The soup arrived and was delicious, clearly homemade and very filling.  The waffles arrived next...

I was brought a full sized waffle! Hallelujah!
The lady who brought them (I suspect she may have been the owner) apologised as they were placed infront of me as the order has been misheard in the kitchen and a full sized portion was made.  I assured her there was no need to apologise - I was delighted.

Alan was clearly delighted with his chocolatey waffles too! 

This emoji springs to mind...

Patisserie Valerie, Union Square, Aberdeen

I know, I know, I've only just started this blog and I'm already posting duplicate locations.

*hides face in shame*

I really just wanted to use up that second voucher!

This time I went with Alan.  He was desperate to go after hearing about my previous experience.

We arrived late and, again, we were seated inside, next to the table I previously sat at with Mother Hubbard.  We had a different waitress this time who, although pleasant, was not quite so chatty as the last lady.  The tea (breakfast for Alan and peppermint for me) arrived along with our tower of goodies.  All the sandwiches, scones and cakes were the same as last time so I was wise as to what was going to be my highlight of the tea.

Unfortunately, the sandwiches were again slightly dry as if they had been sitting out for a short while, but this did not put us off - especially Alan who never turns down food.  I let Alan have three of the four scones and he enjoyed them with all of the jams.  This time, instead of marmalade, there was honey, much to his delight.

The mini victoria sponge was delicious - I did not try this last time as I was so full - and they were so light I could have eaten several.  Again, the carrot cake was delicious and one of my favourite parts of the tea.

We noticed the 'Summer Menu' on the table which offered three courses for around £13 (or two for £10).  We left thinking that we might come back to try this offer as many of the courses sounded a bit different and very enticing.

Again, another lovely afternoon tea at Patisserie Valerie.

Patisserie Valerie, Union Square, Aberdeen

Today I went with my mother to Patisserie Valerie in Union Square for a prosecco afternoon tea.  I found that a voucher given to me by my friend was due to expire tomorrow (Wednesday) so, as I hate to waste anything, I thought we had best use it up.  I also had another voucher for afternoon tea, this time without the prosecco, given to me by my mother in law.

We took the bus into Aberdeen and were greeted at Patisserie Valerie by a lovely lady who sat us inside the shop - I had only ever sat outside in the booths so it was a nice change to be sat inside.  I explained that I had a voucher and she explained that tea and coffee were also included.  She nipped off to get our glasses of prosecco.  As we heard the pop of the cork, mum and I pondered how restaurants keep the rest of a bottle fizzy when only a glass or two is poured.  Our waitress explained upon my asking that there is a special bottle stop which they use to preserve the fizz.

A tower of treats arrived along with our tea (mum) and coffee (me).  On the first tier were wee finger sandwiches (cucumber, chicken and pesto, salmon, ham and mustard, egg mayo).  The sandwiches were nice, if a little dry as if they may have been sitting out for half an hour or so.  My mum found the ham and mustard to be very mustardy - it appeared to have bright yellow English mustard oozing out of the sandwich - so very strong indeed.  The cucumber sandwich had the opposite problem - hardly any taste at all.  It could have really been done with something else added to it.  There was also a small vegetable quiche each which was, to my surprise, slightly warm.  It was lovely.

There were scones, of both the plain and fruit variety, on the second tier.  They came with butter and four different preserves - blackcurrant, raspberry, strawberry and marmalade - and a ramekin of whipped cream.  They were of good size and tasted great.

On the top tier was a selection of mini tasty treats - a victoria sponge, some sort of berry jelly/mousse thing, a chocolate mousse cake, carrot cake and two chocolate eclairs.  These were all delicious, bar the berry one which was slightly gelatinous for my taste.

The waitress who served us (unfortunately I did not catch her name) was absolutely lovely and I was saddened to see that a table of two men in their late 30s behind us were a little rude to her as she tried to make polite chat with them.  She handled this gracefully and I was pleased to see that it did not put her off making conversation with other diners.

We were both fit to burst by the end of our tea, and set up for a days shopping.  I would absolutely recommend this to others.