Gloucester isn't a very exciting place to live. In fact, I would imagine if you asked anyone who lives here, they'd tell you it's a hole. Once a great city with a thriving dockyard, Gloucester was an important mark on the map. Now you can't move without bumping into a £1 shop or a child pushing her own child.
It's so easy to completely forget or overlook what really is around you. Everyone is guilty of not seeing things that are on their own doorstep and for me, it took a huge craving for cream teas to rediscover a hidden gem in Gloucester.
Since our local Chef and Brewer cut off our cream tea supply we've been on the hunt for a tea room ever since. Cream teas are one of those things that need to be done right. They need the right setting, the quaint tea room, not a grubby table in Starbucks job. That's when I remembered Lily's.
As today's lunch break ticked closer, it was time to check out whether Lily's was as good as Google made out. I'd walked past it a few times and each time decided that I really should go inside whilst promptly forgetting a few moments later. The sun was shining with the promise of Spring today, so we felt the timing was perfect.
I opted for a straightforward cream tea while Bobbie ordered the Cathedral tea. What arrived is what I'd refer to as 'a good spread'. We noted the scones had a particularly good crumb (that Mary Berry would approve of) and enjoyed the friendly chatter from the waiter - yah, yah. In all seriousness, it was delicious and among our reminiscing of school days we decided we would definitely be bringing everyone we knew for a visit.
With very full tummies we wandered off back through the cathedral grounds, admiring the architecture and how warm it was, then batting off some weirdos' greetings. We are in Gloucester after all.
I would definitely recommend Lily's if you're visiting Gloucester or you're a local who wants to do something a little different of a sunny afternoon. It's located opposite the Beatrix Potter museum in College Court, just a stones throw from the cathedral. You can find their website here.
