Sweet Treats: The Great British Cupcakery

Since establishing itself on the quayside, The Great British Cupcakery has become a firm favourite for northern confectionery addicts, and has become renowned for its ‘Geet Big Shakes’ . Its somewhat secluded position away from the high street has not held the mother-and-daughter-founded business back, as it has become extremely popular and earned itself a place in a number of well-known wedding magazines for its wedding cakes. I have been myself twice, first to see what all the fuss was about, and then because I understood and had become a huge fan of their undeniably spectacular milkshakes. So I decided that The Great British Cupcakery was a good place to start a new fortnightly feature reviewing bakeries and tea rooms.

The interior of the fairly standard quayside building is brightly lit, with mostly white furnishings, the starkest contrast to this being the large blackboard behind the counter and cake display area, which is tightly packed with lists of the available drinks. The tables are covered with neat and uniform cakes which have so clearly been painstakingly created and the large mason jars which contain one of the establishment’s most popular products. Staff are bright and friendly, which is a respectable feat considering how many people they must have to deal with daily. The entire scene is like one from a film; the aesthetically pleasing background for the middle-aged women swapping horror stories about their husbands, or the troubled teens complaining about their cruel peers and how they can’t wait to leave their deadbeat town. However it does have a slightly more wholesome feeling than these first impressions, and ultimately the proof is in the pudding.

The ‘Geet Big Shakes’, although a real spectacle when placed in front of you, are probably a little bit too much for even those with a large sweet tooth, but you will finish it, even if only because they cost £5 and at that price anyone would be loath to waste it. I do make it sound more difficult than it is; they are lovely, both the actual milkshake and whatever topping corresponds with the flavour you bought. The bit that is probably the hardest work is the mountain of cream that exists between those things. The cakes are of a similar nature, since more is more in this case as well, although the cakes are very tasty, and the bakers behind them clearly know what they are doing.

I did not try any of the savoury foods on the menu, but that isn’t really what they are known for. All in all, it’s worth going for the milkshakes and to sit for a while among the picturesque cakes in a pleasant warm atmosphere. You can’t really complain about the slightly expensive prices, as you do get what you pay for (which is to say a lot) and if you are a pudding fan you are pretty much guaranteed to find something to suit your taste.