Yumchaa Café: London - Review! + A summery bank holiday

A summery bank holiday Sunday... & a delightful trip over to Yumchaa Café: Tottenham Street, London. 

 Happy days...

Yesterday was simply the most fun, & spontaneous day out ever.

For starters, I got to spend it with this beautiful girl: AMY!!

And, on top of that, it was just super sunny, and so, so warm. We had such a chilled out, girly afternoon sunbathing on the steps of UCL with the lovely Yuan, reflecting on first year and reaping the opportunity to have mini photo shoots in between sips of our frozen frappes; whilst simultaneously warding off nosey pigeons who were coming waaaay too close for comfort (Although we will blame that on the chip eating chick behind us).

We also got round to planning the final details for our week in Italy - which is looming becoming excitingly nearer!  (Praise the lord that the university Wi-Fi works outside). Bring on Venice, Florence & Rome!! We simply cannot wait!!

We had also gotten the chance to visit the amazing Yumchaa café in Fitzrovia – this was actually great, since I’ve wanted to go there for ages (it’s just so pretty!) but have never really got the chance to visit it before.  We were in the mood for a lunch that was both light and cheap (student lyfe, ha). We were actually just en route to M&S food for a classy ‘not just any’ sandwich type-of lunch, when Amy spotted these elegantly squared white windows just off of Tottenham Court Road belonging to the cute little Yumchaa café, and remembered that she had actually been there before so it was guaranteed to be a second-time scrumptious. We were totally sold out on this and headed straight over. I was actually surprised when Amy described it as a café – doesn’t ‘Yumchaa’ sound like an upmarket sushi bistro?  Nonetheless…

The inside of the café is pretty cool. It is just so white, clean cut and airy. The counter is directly perched at the far end of the café so that you can see it as you walk in, but it means that you also have time to look around the place/check out the seating situation (there was plenty) before the staff jump on you. I thought that this was kinda nice; since I can’t really stand hose café’s where the counter is pressed right up to the adjacent entrance and you feel under pressure to order something right away. Here however, the staff were super welcoming and let us dawdle around + eye up all of the food for a bit before we were ready to order (we are 2 of the most indecisive people ever, so the fabulous cake selection was destined to be tricky).

I asked the woman at the counter if she was cool if we took photos and she said this was fine (I know that some places can be a bit funny with it), so we just used this an excuse to delay our decision making.

Soon enough, we both addressed our uncompromisable sweet tooth’s, and took the chance to go halfsies on a generously stuffed falafel wrap duo, in addition to 2 cheeky slices of cake mania….

If I’m being honest, the brownie had originally looked kinda dry and not very dense or rich (Love my stodge). I’m not even too sure why I got it since at the time I was actually battling a carrot cake and butter cream-type craving…but omg! How wrong was I…it was dense, fudgy, buttery, moist and just…purely heavenly. It tasted like milk chocolate – and not just cocoa! Maybe they had put chocolate chunks in the recipe?

Even though it was super rich, it wasn’t as sickly as some brownies that I have had – such the ones I’ve bought at borough food market which must be about twice the size (somehow!). But then again, this isn’t that surprising since brownie recipes are so easy to vary but create a product which can’t really change that much in appearance…If you decide to get this then, beware: I’m 90% sure there were nuts in it, so be ask before you buy. The picture really doesn’t do this brownie justice. Go and try it for yourself!

Amy chose the chocolate velvet cake with icing. I had a taste of it and it really was literally pure velvet - just so ridiculously smooth and moist, – is that even possible for a crumbly cake? I don’t know! But Yumchaa struck the balance perfectly. Not too sweet either! (And as I say, we have utterly unrivalled sweet tooth’s, so this is really saying something!).

As you can tell, I have stuck to the dessert first rule, but here’s our yummy falafel wrap half. Amy had hers toasted. I don’t know why I didn’t either, but I kinda semi-regretted my decision half way through…*note for next time*.

We didn’t actually try any of the loose leaf tea which they are apparently famous for – but this is definitely something to go back and try!

The atmosphere of the place is so lovely! Pure tranquillity! The design is based on simplicity and minimalism, but in a detailed kind of way. The end of the restaurant where the counter was had a load of really unusual décor + design on the walls; I especially liked how the ceiling & lighting were done, I guess this is the trend nowadays!

There was also a bunch of folk chilling out with their laptops, teas and coffees since they have free Wi-Fi – I only wish I had known about this place during term time! Yumchaa is such a breath of fresh air in contrast to the mainstream coffee chains and bakeries. But then again, maybe it was only quiet since it was a sunny bank holiday Sunday- it’s hard to imagine that this place wouldn’t be popular as a working lunch spot.

Then something funny happened. We walked out after our beautifully satisfying afternoon tea – only to march straight into Starbucks to buy 2 giant frappes. I blame Amy - but Amy blames Happy Hour -(The amazing buy one - get one free frappe deal which conveniently started as soon as we walked in).

The little guy behind the counter had the nicest eyes ever. We have no idea who he is, but he was just so friendly and couldn’t stop smiling at anyone and everything. We can just call him eyes man of TCR Starbucks who fills cookie crumble frappes so high with chocolate cream that they overspill through the lid + explode all over your hands and pale denim jeans (fab life experience). Definitely not complaining though, the frappucino’s were 100% perf...

Frappucino’s. Quad. Sunshine. Friends. Can a summery bank holiday Sunday even get any better than this? We definitely felt sorry for all of the people who were still drifting around the campus going to and from the library…studying is a tough life.

Yuan joined us for the last half of the afternoon :)

It was so peaceful. Uni was pretty quiet since the majority of exams are slowing down here now. The air smelt like summer. You know that tropical, grassy + humid smell that lingers in the air right after sunny BBQ’s and long afternoons at the beach? That was all around.

All in all:

1.       Spontaneous meet ups are the best.

2.       Triple that if it’s sunny.

3.       And triple that if you are with the best company.

4.       We will definitely return to Yumchaa to try the carrot cake, teas, and the Wi-Fi.

Today is bank holiday Monday. Its 7am and I’m writing this before a 9 hour waitressing shift. Fun times! Hopefully the weekend will keep me going for the rest of the week! L

Have you been to Yumchaa? What’s your experience of it? Is there anywhere else in London comparable to it that we can try too?!

Did you do anything special this bank holiday weekend?

Tash xo

The classification of a Foodie: Are you a Foodie?

“Do you think about food, all the time? Do you read the blog posts and the restaurant reviews and the culinary magazines? Do you derive meaning from eating...?”

This is Joshua Ferris asking you approximately what % of your life is consumed by consumption. As compulsive as it may sound, pretty much any of the many Foodies alive today will respond to every single one of these questions with a heartfelt and resounding yes. And no, there is absolutely nothing wrong with them...

So, are you a foodie? 

I am going to explain to you why you most probably are a foodie - whether you realize it or not. Undeniably, we all live in a world which is becoming increasingly dominated by an emergent new food culture that has sparked mass international interest…

Foodies according to Ferris: 

“We make pilgrimages to the great restaurants. We commune, we perform rituals, we pore over holy texts, we proselytise. We celebrate and sacrifice. And of course, we make war.” 

Although I must admit that I’m not entirely sure what the phrase: ‘make war’ actually refers to, the ambiguity conveys just how patriotic a foodie can be about his her own ‘cult’…Vegan? Nutrionista? Solylenite – “An individual  so immune to the pleasures of food that he will willingly consume a beverage with the taste and consistency of mucus so long as it provides an unfussy meal with the minimum daily nutritional requirements?” – see Ferris’ complete list here. Cynical as the titles may seem, we all really do belong to a food cult; albeit if that cult boils down to “he of the 99p cheeseburger” - who simply doesn’t care to add yet more dimensions to simplicity of human fuel.

In his article for the Guardian, Ferris tried to highlight the sheer changes which he experienced for himself as he transitioned from being a crappy, gluten addicted eater (later diagnosed with celiac disease) , to being a re-born again foodie who has himself become rather ‘religious’ and mindful about his body + taste sensations...

Ferris documents how this journey has hugely impacted the quality of food that he begun to select, and the transition has also greatly changed the way which he chooses to enjoy it.  Having reverted from “cupboard snacks of nuclear cheese” and “vegetables boiled to nutritional obsolesce”, he probably strikes a blunt chord with most of his readers, the majority of whom at some point in their life have indeed succumbed to the luxury of man-made plastic-like snacks and anything else quick, be it skittle-like cereal or microwave dinners...

“We ate without thought, without intention, simply to feed our bodies and derive the predictable comforts that fat and sugar provide”.

This is an easy trap to routinely fall into. After-all, 'food' itself is a staple of a basic kind. However, in certain forms it is perfectly capable of making us all too-comfortable with the stodgy comfort that it  lends us with when we are promised a 2 minute fat-fix or the much needed sugar high which has been circulating in the health + fitness columns of late.

I for one, have actually felt this lazy and addictive affiliation with bread, or specifically: bread and peanut butter. (When it becomes your 3^rd meal and 2^nd snack of the day, bodily differences are well and truly felt. It gets to the point where any of the pea-nutty, micro-nutritious health benefits are pretty much offset by the surplus of stodge sitting in your lower belly that is weighing you down and refusing to digest – nevertheless, exams came first and this routine becomes way too enjoyable). 

As an alternative, Ferris  implies that it isn’t just the bare consumption of any old ‘food’ whichthat is important, but rather, the entire sphere of thoughtfulness and mindfulness into which we are allowed to invest in under the title ‘foodie’. As the article title “Holy Guacamole” suggests, an avocado is will no longer be an avocado. Instead, sacredness becomes a vitamin of its own. This is the supplement to foodie conversion. How deficient are you?

In her 2013 book: “Food and the Self”, Isabelle De Solier distinguishes how the ‘Foodie’ is a product of globalization: trans-national flows of “food, tastes, media, capital and people”. It seems that all of these special ‘pilgrimages’ to places of food and keen investment into the world of healthful culinary infusions stems from our ability to access the worldwide communication (I.E. the internet), and the knowledge which has been generated through the sharing of recipes, photography, blogging, culture, and health trends. 

You see, what Solier shows is how the identity of the ‘foodie’ is tightly woven into the existence of the blogging world and the ability for absolutely anyone to publish their own beliefs, rituals and cookery ‘books’ into their own customized space…The internet has given these hungry newborn foodies an ambitious refuge. 

We are consciously moving away from the once favored realm of convenience and into a world of effort, customization, and design of food.

Simple things such as cooking or dining out have become leisurely inside of this ‘runway world’ - the foodie just totally enjoys every single bit about his hobby. Like this, we can see that the foodie himself is a product of production and consumption. Foodies simply love being able to create, eat, and repeat - on repeat. Sounds like fun. How can you become involved? 

Being a foodie is an easy identity to become carried away with – whether this is conscious or not. After-all, the foodie has recognized this life-long sense of self-formation and the aspect of themselves which for some reason, really does become defined by the captivation of a uniting food culture. 

Essentially, food is an art – be it the presentation of a dish, or the choice of ingredients; the excitement of a dinner party or even the decision to bake blondies on a rainy day…And this is all utterly reflected in the 21st century’s visible knock on obsession with health, nutrition and things ‘clean eating’ and even body image. The legacy of one foodie onto another is endless in a world where beliefs + ideas are easily inflicted. After all, you are what you eat. #preach. 

But Ferris writes that: 

“Food was a revelation. I explored and studied and tasted and learned how to judge. Eating became a way to know myself, my preferences and the limits of my adventurousness. I became that most irritating but apt of designations – a foodie”.  

Like this, I think that the most important message here is that the foodie does not deserve the obsessive and la-la identity assigned to them by those who don’t cherish food, production + consumption in the same way. Sure, there are cults, fads and trends in the world wide web of cooking, nutrition and dining – but at the end of the day, the pleasure derived from these things starts from the inside – the foodie’s ability to get in touch with their senses and pair material practices from daily life with their senses and sentiments. It is all too easy to become fazed in an era where everybody is routinely talking about all things health, fitness and food – there are a scarce few of us who haven’t been somehow tainted by contemporary health crazes or beliefs about what we ultimately should/shouldn’t be eating.

Food has been made into a way of life, and as a result, it has different meanings & associations for every single person in the world. An interest in food starts differently for everybody; for Ferris, his happened to be the recognition of a lifestyle where he had been dismissing the luxury of choice + variety, to such an extent that he began to harm his own health. 

Every aspect of 21^st century culture blends into the world of foodies. To me, it makes perfect sense to see the food-opshere exploding so rapidly in recent times. Everybody has their own findings and interests to share, or an 'other' that they want to become involved in. As Ferris emphasizes, once you have established a sense of mindfulness, and you have begun to serve your own culinary + cultural curiosity (and nobody elses), then you are “in heaven”. Ultimately, I guess that this is the end which the foodie seeks…. since being a foodie brings with it an innocently blissful sense of unity into an otherwise mainstream life.    

And hey, that explains my blog, your blog, and all of the other blog you follow and their followers too. Food critics, restaurants, diners, reviewer’s travellers, food photographers and readers of food, health + lifestyle columns are all actively involved in the foodie world more than they realize. Kinda cool, huh?

What does being a foodie mean to you?

Do you think that the networking of foodies is an unexplored aspect of modern society? Is it possible to not be a foodie in the 21^st century? They are all good questions! 

Let me know what you think! J

Sources:

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/may/24/holy-guacamole-how-became-born-again-foodie

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Food-Self-Consumption-Production-Materializing/dp/0857854224