A taste of Honey: The Best Cupcake in Lagos

The only thing better than a cake is a cupcake. Sadly, Lagos is not one of those cities where you can just roll out of bed and into some divine patisserie to get a cupcake, they are far and few between and not always filled with the best offerings. Recently, I have received tons of mails asking for my expert intel on where to get above average cupcakes, and was stumped that I honestly could not recommend any. My search for the ultimate cupcake in Lagos had thus far led me to the reality of rock buns parading as cupcakes and mini hills of coloured margarine in the name of icing.

I had almost resigned to a fate of swallowing rocks topped with margarine when I discovered Honey's Cupcakes. I stumbled on her website and was pretty blown away by the selection of cupcakes she had. They looked too good to be true and I could not wait to find out if indeed they tasted as good as they looked. (i am looking at you cupcake girl with the nasty yet good-looking cupcakes at the Lagos Food Fair 2014!!). 

My excitement quickly turned to despair when I found out that Honey's Cupcakes was an online store, which meant the looong process of placing an order. Luckily, after a bit of correspondence with Honey herself (yes, I am resilient) , I discovered that Honey's Cupcakes was re-launching a pop-up shop at Stranger Lagos, a concept store at Lekki. 

The Cupcakes: Created by an Art graduate turned baker, Honey's Cupcakes are hands down the most deliciously decadent cupcakes you will find in Lagos, trust me, I have searched. Each cupcake was deliriously fresh, and not the mediocre plain ol' vanilla or chocolate you can find in the city. With the richest ingredients sourced from various parts of Europe, every cupcake is a work of art.

The Bountiful: This was my absolute favourite. It is a chocolate and coconut cake topped with coconut butter cream with coconut flakes and reminiscent of a bar of Bounty, hence the name I guess.

The Strawberry Lane: Topped with a piece of fresh strawberry , the strawberry lane cupcake oozes right down the middle with a light strawberry sauce and little bits of strawberry through out.

The Delight: If you love chocolate like I do then The Delight would be a pure delight for you to savour. This cupcake is topped with a generous amount of glazed chocolate and filled with "dulce de luche."I will admit I did not know what dulche de luche was, but google did and it turns out to be a confection derived from slowly heating milk. Yummy!

Get your dulche de luche on

The Drunken Fig: This was interestingly my proclaimed teetotaler's favourite cupcake. The perfect merger between figs and a dibble of whisky, though not overpowering may not be suitable for those under the legal drinking age. I am pretty sure enough of this will leave you a little light-headed.

Eat Responsibly !!

The Hostess with the Mostess: This little dark chocolate creation boasts of a marshmallow filling with very generous chocolate topping. If you are not drooling by now, there is something very wrong!!

The Very Vanilla: If you like your basic vanilla cupcake, this might appease you. Sure it's vanilla with a copious amount of tasty vanilla bean butter-cream, but right down the middle is a vanilla surprise. 

the new classic

Order online: I am positive that by now you are dying to have a taste of Honey's Cupcakes for yourself, so place an order at honey@honeyscupcakes.com or call 08121601289. Check out the honey cupcakes website for an updated version of her menu which offers twenty(20) different flavours of cupcakes. Imagine these dreamy cupcakes at your parties and events.

The Pop-up Shop: If you can't wait to place an order, head on down to STRANGER LAGOS, at No. 3, Hakeem Dickson Road, off Victoria Arobieke, Lekki Scheme 1, Lagos. Honey's cupcakes are available at the pop-up shop on SATURDAYS ONLY!!

Wallet Control: At N 500 per cupcake, Honey's Cupcakes does not do a lot of damage to your wallet. Half a dozen cupcakes cost N 3,000 and a dozen cupcakes cost N 6,000. 

With amazing flavours, a personalised touch and a commitment to the environment with eco-friendly packaging, Honey's Cupcakes are set to fill the void in the luxury cupcake industry(Yes, that exists!). If you have tasted cupcakes better than Honey's anywhere in Lagos, be a dear and drop a comment.  

* Dedah Eats was a guest of Honey's Cupcakes. Many thanks to the warm and receptive CEO of Honey's Cupcakes-Honey !!

*Dedah Eats will be rewarding the most consistent "commenter"of the year with a box of  cupcakes in December. 

Zaza Bazaar : Newcastle Upon Tyne

While I pride myself in discovering awesome places to eat in my home turf of Lagos, it's even more fulfilling to discover the most amazing places to eat outside of my jurisdiction(sorry for the legalese), and that's just what I did when I sniffed out Zaza's Bazaar in Newcastle Upon Tyne.

Zaza's Bazaar is any foodies dream come true, with cuisine from at least four different continents under the same roof. It is an insane buffet styled opportunity to sample dishes from various parts of the world while ironically being in the U.K. So while observing my rules to a successful buffet out, Buffet Slayer, I made my way through the offerings.

The Ambiance: With its many vibrant segments, Zaza instantly gives the feeling of a really cool street market(fyi, no such thing exists in Lagos). The various countries are represented with their indigenous designs and huge neon signs. The atmosphere is filled accordingly with music from the represented countries, so very quickly your ears are filled with an unobtrusive mixture that ranges from mariachi to Indian pop.

The Countries 

Japan 

First stop on this international food flight was Asia, where I piled on a Japanese favourite; Sushi. Anyone who knows me knows that I am not a fan of fish, so to taste what I assumed was just raw fish was kind of nerve racking. After a pep talk/orientation on how not all sushi was raw fish, i decided to give it a shot.The Takuan Maki and essentially all the sushi rolls that I tried were a labyrinth of rice with either radishes or cucumbers in the center, with of course some part of fish elegantly nestled on top or in-between. Did I think it was awful? No. But the crunchy center had me imagining I was chomping on fish brains, so yes, while I tried it, I probably won't willingly do that again.

definitely an acquired taste 

Thailand 

Its not Asian cuisine without a little rice, so I just had to try the Thai Curry Rice with mixed vegetables and sweet and sour chicken.

India 

It didn't make sense to leave Asia with just two countries in my tummy so a pit stop to India was in order. I had the Jeer aloo and Pulao rice with paneer jalfrezi, which in plain English is Baby Potatoes cooked with whole cumin and rice with curry, which was amazefest!

Italy

The trip to Italy was made worthwhile by the pasta bolognese which was made fresh to order by the amazing and super cute chef.

You have to love a man who can cook 

Meaty, Cheesy, Al dente Goodness 

The lasagna was simply perfection and put to shame the store bought microwave version I had previously been stuffing my face with.

The real McCoy 

The trip to Italy would have been incomplete without a few slices of pizza.

England

The English section was a representation of quintessentially British cuisine from fish and chips, minced pies, mash and peas, pretty much a lot of what I had been consuming on a daily, so I had to pass (almost at my breaking point here)

Mash, Peas, Fish and Chips a' plenty! 

A "drive by" through the salad bar was in order.

Desserts: No meal is quite complete without a few desserts. The Bazaar offers a frighteningly amazing array of desserts for those who may have enough space to tuck in. Cakes and sweets of a worldwide origin was the best way to end the adventure.

Wallet Control: As a girl on a budget, I was a beneficiary of the Monday Madness discount which guaranteed my tasting buddy a two for the price of one experience. The entire night cost just 13 pounds, the equivalent of less than Four Thousand Naira (gasp).

Staff: The staff were very nice and quite efficient with the dishes being cleared in record time every time I returned with a new conquest.

By the end of the night, I had developed a protrusion in my tummy which was reflective of my journey and with many apologies to the many cuisines I had to shun in an attempt to walk out of the bazaar with some dignity.

If you ever find yourself in Newcastle Upon Tyne, do yourself a favour and visit.

*Zaza Bazaar is located at Unit 8/9 The Gate, Newgate Street, Newcastle, NE 1 5 TG. 

French/Italian Cuisine? Oui, per favore

Just in time for French national day, I discovered a very chic restaurant that serves up not just French cuisine but also Italian. La Scala is nestled in the premises of the Musical Society of Nigeria Center, Onikan,(MUSON) home to classical music nationwide. It's strange how I've been to the Center so many times and never noticed the restaurant. So for those who have been just as oblivious of this hot spot, you are welcome.

The Ambiance: La Scala does its best to pay homage to both French and Italian influences with its decor. There is also an infusion of African and even Buddhist artifacts and artworks which work seamlessly together to create the elegant atmosphere. The large table seating and classical music wafting gently in the atmosphere was somewhat reminiscent of a scene out of one of the famous 'godfather' movies.

I can totally picture Don Corleone here

Bar stocked with the usual culprits, you can also get a coffee here

Informal seating by the bar

Erm...interesting

The Menu: At first glance the eight pages, categorized into soups,meats,fish,poultry, salads and vegetarian, did not seem intimidating. However ordering food seemed like an advanced French class, quite a tongue twister. Escargots `a la bourguignonne was just one of the words I had to pronounce, and all that boils down to is snails in garlic butter sauce.

The Food!!!:

The Entree: To be honest, asides the soups, which were pretty pricey, all the starters were a bit ridiculous. The first thing I ordered was something called a Carpaccio, which was described as thin slices of marinated beef topped with parmesan, safe enough. The waiter looked me dead in the eye and goes, 'Can you eat this?' And I retorted with an attitude filled " YES!!I have teeth," rolling my eyes. He smiled and explained to me that my beloved Carpaccio was RAW MEAT!! So let's say that the complimentary bread rolls and butter was more than enough for me. 

The bread rolls were soft and warm and served with just enough salted butter.

The Main meals:

The first hot meal was the "Supreme de volaille `a l'orange" (yes it's okay to bite your tongue trying to pronounce that). This meal is essentially two thinly sliced strips of chicken, sautéed in fresh cream and orange sauce. It also comes with a side serving of plain white rice. 

The sauce was really exquisite, but the corn, peas and carrots swimming in it just reminded me of a bag of store bought mixed vegetables. The flavours from the vegetables did not blend too well with the orange sauce, and just distracted from the rich flavour of the sauce. 

The chicken on the other hand was amazingly seasoned and cooked to perfection.

The second main meal was the "La Tamboure exotic" aka grilled croaker fish in a Hawaiian spicy pineapple sauce. This was a really bold choice for me, because I absolutely hate all types of fish, but after tasting this, I just might have a change of heart. 

Sugar snaps on the side

Two generous slices of spicy grilled fish on a plateau of mashed potatoes surrounded by pineapple sauce with diced peppers and pineapples in it was really an amazing burst of flavours all at once. 

The slice of lemon squeezed on the fish gave it a zesty flavour. Simply ambrosial.

Dessert: For dessert I was expecting a continuation of the French theme with chocolate pastries or airy souffles, but I was disappointed with the mundane option of either ice-cream or fruit salad. It was as though whoever designed the menu just couldn't be bothered to think of anything unique.

The ice-cream was rich and creamy but honestly, I could get that any good ice-cream spot in Lagos.

Wine: What's a french restaurant without wine eh? La Scala has an extensive supply of wines and champagnes (which I spied some bishops knocking back). 

If you are staying away from the bottle, not to worry they make a mean and affordable Chapman, and you can pretend it's red wine.

Portion Control: I actually expected the meals to be much smaller, so I was pleasantly surprised that each meal could feed a party of two. The idea is not to get stupid full. If you have a really healthy appetite, then a plate should be just fine for you.

The Staff: The waiters were clearly heaven sent as they saved me from ordering raw meat. They are excellent food guides. Make sure you ask them for their recommendations, they'll be sure to help you make edible choices. 

Like all fine dining, La Scala is NOT CHEAP!!A three course meal for two will set you back about N 15,000.

15 what!!?

Pocket change for some but not for all. But if you are looking to impress, this is the perfect setting for a power lunch to broker some multimillion transaction or just a cute dinner for two, your call.

La Scala is open for lunch from 12 p.m-3 p.m, and dinner's served from 7 p.m t0 11 p.m.

They've added an extra 30 minutes

*La Scala is located within the Muson Centre, Onikan, Lagos. Call 08032963051 for your reservations. 

As always, feel free to leave your comments and/or questions. Au revoir and happy French National Day.