{REVIEW} Hummingbird Bakery

On our recent trip to London I made a concerted effort to visit a Hummingbird Bakery. I had bought one of their cookbooks and was very impressed.

Having a look around Notting Hill, we came across their Portobello Road outlet, one of five they have in London. Quite an unassuming exterior, from a distance I didn’t even realise what the shop was.

The cute window display with Jubilee cupcakes gave the game away, but so did the AMAZING smell wafting from the door. It was almost like someone had put a lasso around me and dragged me in. The warm, sweet buttery aroma was so overwhelming, our mouths were watering so much we had to buy something. The range was well displayed and it was easy to see what each delicacy was. I plumped for the Black Bottom cupcake and my partner opted for a Red Velvet cupcake. Even though the smell was divine we were still full from breakfast and asked for them to take out. The only slight niggle I had was the rushed service. I was aware that the Portobello Road outlet was the smallest and it was busy, but the experience just felt a little impersonal.

We had them later on with a cup of coffee and they were as good as they looked. The Black Bottom cupcake especially, with it's chocolate sponge and cheesecake centre was delicious. The presentation was great, but I couldn’t help wonder how much the fancy box and bag contributed to the overall cost.

A great bakery, only let down by the quick service, which may just have been due to the large amount of people in the store (that's London for you!). But this won’t put me off and I will try another one of the bakeries next time I am down – even if it is only for the incredible smell!! (Honestly if I could bottle the smell and pump it through your screen I would, it was soooo good)