Lily Vanilli or “The Queen of Cakes” according to the Evening Standard has a small bakery/coffee shop just off Columbia Road. Lily had been on our radar since the House of Hackney pop-up earlier this year and we’d heard great things about her bakewells so we thought we’d better check it out.The small shop is tucked away in a pretty little courtyard amongst a selection of trendy and vintage furniture shops. There aren’t many seats and as it only opens on a Sunday (Flower Market day), you’ll be lucky if you manage to bag one – but the counter stools are usually a safe bet.
We sampled a selection of sweet and savoury treats including a Nosausage Roll (or something like that) which is basically a sausage roll with no sausage…Nosausage Roll, you gedd’it? Crammed with a sweet potato and onion herby mixture the homemade roll with flaky pastry was a good choice.
Red Velvet cake was another delight our only grumble was the cake was a little dry but the butter icing worked a treat. Washed down with two lattes, the bill clocked in at just over a tenner which is pretty good value for homemade goodies and the cake slices are big enough to share.
A word of warning though, if you think you’re going to pop in for a coffee think again. There is no way you’ll be able to resist the tasty looking treats on display.
6 The Courtyard, Ezra Street, E2
www.lilyvanilli.com
www.lilyvanilli.com
