a perfect saturday- by sarah

I live in the East End and I love the weekend there. So I thought I would give you all an insight into lovely ways to spend your saturday.

I normally start with a leisurely breakfast at The Pavillion cafe in the middle of Victoria Park. Even though the weather is on the turn the park has so many beautiful trees it looks stunning in the Autumn. With the amazing autumnal colours and the carpets of leaves to run through. Anyway The Pavilion has a breakfast for every palette, pancakes with a tower of fruit on top, a full on fry up or a simple sausage butty. And a cup of tea's only a pound!



Next I like to take a stroll up the canal that runs along the edge of Victoria Park all the way up to Angel to have a look round the Antique Markets on Camden Passage. It is a hive of treasure with everything from old Blue Peter Annuals to silver Candle Sticks. There are loads of lovely cafes and places to grab a snack, but don't fill up here as I have a cake stop planned! 



Then I would go back the way you came down the canal till you get to the Queensbridge Road bridge and turn right walking up till you get to Haggerston Park. It is such a beautiful and underrated park, there is even the Hackney City Farm in the middle so go visit the sheep and pigs. 



Then cross over Hackney Road onto Columbia Road. The legendary flower market is only on Sundays but it is well worth a visit on a Saturday afternoon when most of the shops are open but you don't have to fight 20,000 other people to look in them. The Cakehole cafe which is behind Vintage Heaven at the very top of Columbia Road, by the Bird Cage pub, boasts the finest Victoria Sponge in East London. I promise! I love that the tea comes in tea pots with mismatched cups and saucers and that everything, both in the shop and the cafe, is for sale. I also love that, unlike many cafes, this is almost exclusively an afternoon tea shop. There are no sandwiches or savoury dishes adorning the counter tops, but an impressive selection of sweet treats which change often so you don’t get bored. 



Now you may head home exhausted but filled to the brim with cake and happy.

Have a great weekend, Sarah x

ps. To check out more of London's, and the world beyond's, best cafes check out Clare's Cafe Chronicles. My sister Clare blogs regularly about her fave spots to eat and be merry.