After going through a financial planning session, I've decided to cut down on eating and drinking out for budgetary reasons. I guess it's good that I've got a backlog of posts (including the remainder of the posts from my trip to New York last year!) to catch up on!

That being said, I did find myself at Bea's of Bloomsbury yesterday, having just under three hours to kill after spending a relaxing afternoon in the park just chilling out with CG. As Bea's has now extended their operating hours - they now open until 7 pm or 8 pm during the week, and until 6 pm during the weekend - I thought it was a good place for me to just hole up and catch up on some reading before heading off to my next appointment. I also needed to take a photo of the shopfront, given that I didn't manage to do so the last time I was there as the cafe was closing up.

Bea's of Bloomsbury

My decadent choices for the day were: a chai latte (£2.60) and a brownie (£2.80).

All that one needs for a relaxing afternoon

The brownie was delicious, just the right combination of sticky and sweet. It reminded very strongly of the kladdkaka I had at the Scandinavian Kitchen a few weeks back, except not as sweet. I'd definitely rate this as one of the better brownies I've had in London, although my personal favourite is still Konditor & Cook's Boston brownie.

Brownie

The chai latte, as others have found out, was sensational. This smelt really nice and spicy, and tasted very much of my favourite Indian drink, masala tea. Though it was a latte, it wasn't overly milky, which is a great plus point for me; while I am not lactose-intolerant (I think), I am not overly fond of milk (although, strangely enough, P. is the other way around).

Chai latte

This time around, as I was sitting on the raised level (the same level as the kitchen), I got a better view of the photographs adorning the wall. I really liked the large photo of a city at night as seen from above. There's just something about the streak of lighting which depicts the hustle and bustle of any metropolis. I'm very much a city girl, and I love cities at night, so perhaps that's why this photo grabbed my attention.

Bea's of Bloomsbury (interior)

Don't let the photo fool you though. Bea's was fully occupied up until five minutes before closing time (which is when I took the photo, as I try not to take photos with people in them as not everyone's comfortable with that). It was definitely a heartening sight. More importantly, even thought I was a solo grazer sitting at a rather spacious corner table for up to three people - and a solo grazer reading a book at that - none of the waitstaff even tried to hurry me along.

I didn't see the Cookie Monster cupcakes this time around, so if you're hankering for one, I'd advise calling up and ordering them a day in advance. I've got some girlfriends who'd dearly love to try one, having tried and failed to bake them!