I swung by an award-winning cafe in Oldham town centre which has been praised for its 'selflessness' and high standards of hospitality, to see if its breakfast and treats were as 'bittersweet' as its name suggests.
The cafe opened in the stunning Grade II listed Old Town Hall in August 2020 and, although it is a relatively new kid on the block, Bittersweet has snowballed.
It has a reputation of supporting community initiatives and charities, as well as giving Oldhamers a helping hand amid the cost-of-living crisis.
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Last year, the cafe was also recognised with not one but two impressive accolades, the 'most community orientated restaurant and cafe' of 2023 in the north west and 'UK SME inclusive hospitality champions'.
Speaking to The Oldham Times last year, Dr Rufzan Bibi said the cafe's success is "testament" to its "inspiring team" - and an inspiring woman she is herself at the helm as, beyond cafe life, she is an accomplished research scientist, lawyer and entrepreneur.
Her works include studies in cervical cancer at St Mary's Hospital and even the niche area of appendiceal cancer.
Dr Bibi's research has even been published in several studies but even between all this, she's had children, represented women in business on panels and remarkably passed law school to open her own law firm.
With all this in mind, I was hoping a quick bite to eat on a summery mid-morning would fuel me with inspiration for the rest of the day.
So here are my thoughts.
The venue and the staff
The cafe itself sits in a stunning stone building that is flooded with light. You literally can't miss its gigantic windows though I do like that once inside, there is an air of privacy to the cafe.
You don't feel like you're being gawped at by people passing by or distracted by whatever is going on outside.
A staff member greeted me with a beaming smile and sat me down at a cleanly polished table with a menu.
I was greeted by a staff member with a beaming smile who found me a clean, quiet table and brought me a menu.
The food
I ordered at the front desk and opted for the shakshuka breakfast and a white hot chocolate to kick off my day.
However, I soon forgot about being thirsty when I was presented with a mountain of heavenly white hot chocolate.
It was so creamy and fluffy, I needed a straw to break through the huge dollop of whipped cream. But no complaints here - it was stunning and I had to stop myself from inhaling it all within seconds.
Then came my shakshuka breakfast which unfortunately was a little disappointing in comparison to the grandeur of everything else.
It did have a bit of a kick but the toast was a tad pale and cold while the egg was overdone.
I found the spinach in the middle of it all somewhat odd as well, though it does state that it comes with salad on the menu.
While I did momentarily feel robbed of my favourite part of breakfast - the dippy egg moment - I did really enjoy the spicy tomato and chickpea stew as well as the hashbrown and lamb sausages.
Feeling a little underwhelmed, I thought, well, perhaps the cafe excels in the dessert department.
To give it one last try, I ordered a Lotus Biscoff cheesecake.
Now this was a top-tier cheesecake - a crumbly biscuit base with biscoff flavours brewed within its chunky vanilla body, topped with a soft caramel-y biscoff hat and dashed in sprinkles, in in both sauce and biscuit form.
It came presented on a slate plate with white frosted sprinkles.
It really was a showstopper and I haven't stopped thinking about it since.
The cost
The breakfast came to £11.50 and as it was the most costly brunch item on the menu, perhaps it could've done with another egg or a second hashbrown to make it worth breaking into a tenner.
The white hot chocolate cost £3.50, so with a 50p service charge, my bill came to £15.50, just for the breakfast and a hot drink.
I also wasn't impressed when I was hit with another 50p service charge when I ordered the £4.95 cake after my meal, bringing that bill to £5.45 in total.
For the whole experience, I paid £20.95 and while I understand the purpose of a service charge, it's not particularly encouraging if you want to go back and order another hot drink, a slice of cake or some ice cream after your meal.
However, I will absolutely be going back to try another flavour of cake or perhaps some cookie dough, waffles and pancakes as I saw dozens of customers happily tucking into these decadent treats.
Let me know what you recommend at Bittersweet for my next trip in the comments below - or email me with other places you think we should review at Olivia.bridge@newsquest.co.uk.
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