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Where to find a great slice of chocolate cake?
I'm still dreamin… I checked previous posts and there hasn't been a chocolate cake one for a few years - where would you recommend I go to get a slice of warm chocolate cake with cream (or ice cream)?
I'm still dreaming of a delicious slice of cake I had years ago in a little cafe on my birthday in Conwy and this year I'll be celebrating my birthday in London. I've tried cake at places like Hummingbird Bakery but what I really want is a cozy little cafe that will warm up the slice and drizzle cream over it. Can you recommend somewhere in London? I'm staying near Victoria and happy to travel to get a special birthday slice.
tbh if you're near Victoria, the Albertine on Strutton Ground might be worth a try. it's a proper old-school spot tucked away behind Victoria station, does a warm chocolate fudge cake with clotted cream for about 7 quid. not flashy but they'll heat it up no questions asked, and it's got that cozy canteen vibe you're after. walkable from your hotel if you fancy a short stroll down Horseferry Road.
Your best bet near Victoria that nobody's mentioned is the cafe inside the Royal Horticultural Halls on Greycoat Street. It's a concrete brutalist building which sounds odd for a birthday cake stop, but they do a warm chocolate and almond cake with proper double cream for about 6 quid. The hall itself has these massive windows looking out over the garden, and it's usually quiet enough that you can sit and enjoy it without feeling rushed. Three minute walk from the station, and if the weather's nice you can take your slice out to the courtyard.
yeah skip the chains, go to the coffee house on rotherhithe street if you're up for a bit of a trip. it's a tiny spot near bermondsey, they do a warm chocolate and hazelnut cake with vanilla ice cream that's genuinely homemade, not a microwave job. about 30 mins from victoria on the jubilee line to bermondsey then a short walk, but you can also stop by maltby street market after for a wander, makes a nice birthday afternoon
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What are some innovative ways to anonymously compare rental prices in a city?
SpareRoom's "rooms wanted" ads are underrated for this. people post what they're currently paying alongside what they want next, so you can scrape a rough sense of going rates by postcode without anyone knowing you looked. it skews young and flatshare heavy tho, so not much use if you're after 2-beds in zone 2.
Another one is just the depozit or tenancy deposit scheme data. not public-facing, but your council's housing officer can tell you median rents from deposit registrations if you email them under FOI. takes weeks, but its proper anon and nobody clocks u.
Rightmove and Zoopla only show asking rents, which are often 10 to 15 percent above what a place actually goes for, so they're a poor benchmark. The trick I've used is the ONS Price Index of Private Rents, which breaks things down to borough level and is genuinely anonymous since it's aggregate data, no listing or account needed. For something more granular, the London Renters Union runs a rent reporting tool where you submit what you're paying with your postcode and it maps it against others nearby, though the coverage is patchy outside the inner boroughs.
the openrent "rent check" thing is decent for zones 3-4 where the unions tool barely reaches. also worth checking the london.gov.uk planning portal for new build applications, they list "affordable" and market rent figures per unit in the viability assessments, which is basically the developer telling the council what they expect to charge. bit of a faff to dig through but its public, anonymous & nobody knows ur looking