With our regular coffee haunt Federation Coffee overrun with tourists, we decided to give the Caffe Nero in Morley’s department store a go.
At the counter, we noticed a tray of attractively packaged lemon curd treacle slices from the Bad Boys Bakery on offer – the product of Gordon Ramsay’s new TV collaboration with Brixton prisoners, ‘Gordon Behind Bars.’
They looked pretty tasty, so we decided that they were worth a £1.75 punt.
In case you haven’t seen the TV show, Ramsay’s challenge is to teach useful kitchen skills to inmates at Brixton Prison and to make a viable business out of the venture.
I’m not normally a fan of treacle slices, but – Lordy – this one was delicious!
Moist, tasty, not too sweet and with a pleasing biscuit base, this was a real treat that was very filling. I loved it!
I liked the cardboard packaging too.
Update 21st July 2012: Sadly, there are no more of these cakes for sale at the Brixton Caffe Nero. Apparently, they only had about “3 or 4 boxes” on the day we were there and that was it.
The lady serving behind the counter told me that they have received lots of calls from people wanting to know if the cakes were in stock – with most saying that they were interested in coming to the cafe if they were available.
Caffe Nero, Brixton
I was pleasantly surprised by the Caffe Nero in Brixton. I’m not a fan of chain coffee stores, but the coffee was pretty good and there’s plenty of window seats letting you watch the comings and goings around Brixton tube station.
In fact, it was while I was scoffing the treacle slice that I managed to grab the pictures showing The Bride Of Brixton running around the tube station.
Discuss the Bad Boys Bakery and the rather tasty cakes on our discussion thread here.
Related posts:
The Bad Boys Bakery Lemon Treacle Slice returns to Brixton
Cinnamon buns to die for at the Nordic Bakery, Golden Square, Soho, London W1
Federation Coffee, Brixton – London’s finest coffee?
Brixton Footlocker fire smoulders on, shops still closed [photos]
A formidable cake display, Coldharbour Lane, Brixton
Cake Shop, Ludlow Street, New York – photos and memories
Tapped & Packed coffee shop review, Tottenham Court Road, London
The Counter cafe, Hackney Wick, E3 – another great London coffee house
Cafe Nero is probably the least worst of the big chains, I’d choose them over St***ucks anyday.
Me and my girlfriend have been watching the series, so it’s interesting to hear from someone who has tried BBB produce for real.
It really was delicious!
Who’s the bride of Brixton?
Find out here: http://us4.campaign-archive1.com/?u=94816da0c3d4d039c5c835aa1&id=4dbb91707e
The recipe for the slice is on both the Channel 4 website and Caffe Nero website.
The slice is been trialed in 11 of the Caffe Nero stores unfortunately I don’t live near one but I would appreciate your description of the slice. I’ve baked the slice myself but I found it exceptionally sweet and crumbly, did you find it this way.
I contacted Caffe Nero to make sure the recipe on the website was the one in use, there had been some talk in the series that the original was to sweet. Caffe Nero confirmed that the recipe on their site was the one in use but added: ‘You are correct in saying that it is a very sweet recipe and a little crumbly’
‘Bad boys’ bakery-wonder if the victims will be celebrating this culinary delight?
Glamorising crime is wrong on every level.
@Ian, hopefully teaching the inmates a skill / showing them a way to earn a living other than by robbery etc is a *good thing*. When they have served their time, they may leave with options other than back into a life of crime. Punishment yes, but rehabilitation back into / contribution to society also – for the benefit of us all. Tasty cakes too 🙂
I posted on July 19 asking saying that I had made the slice myself but found it extremely sweet and crumbly, shoud have said wobbly.
There is a bit of a get together at the end of the month and I’m thinking of bringing along some of these slices – if I can get it right. So I have a few questions.
To anyone who has bak?ed the slice can you give me your opinion of how it turned out and if you’ve baked twice and tweeked the recipe does it appear more stable
Any of you who have tried the slice in Cafe Nero tell me what you thought, describe the slice to me. Would you buy it again? Can anyone tell me the dimessions of the actual slice itself? Can’t find it anywhere.
Many thanks for your imput.
Kevin
So can the bad Boy Bakery items be purchased and shipped out of country, or are there shops in the states that carry their product?
We REALLY REALLY want to purchase the items from Bad Boy Bakery and have them shipped here please. My husband is a former inmate and is eager to try and help support the project!!!
They usually have them in stock in Shepherds Bush Neros, next to the station towards westfield!.
The best cake of the universe!!!!
After seeing those photos and reading the comments I think that trying this cake is now a matter of life and death!!
You should be in jail, spinning yarns that cafe Nero makes good coffee