Churreria Española: 12th June 2010, 12:15pm

Churros con chocolate (churros with chocolate) is the famous Spanish treat enjoyed en route home after a late night out.

At the second meting of Secret Chocolate Lovers we decided to visit Churreria Española for thier churros con chocolate. I met up with M, A and new member C just after noon. Trying to make the most of the good weather the cafe was only serving churros for take away or with a full breakfast or lunch... so we opted for take away. For those of you that want to stop by just for the churros avoid the hours between 11am-3pm on weekends or be prepared to walk.

Luckily we were around the corner from A's garden square so we headed there to indulge in the beautiful thick chocolate and fried loveliness.

Four beautiful women and chocolate. It didn't take long for our chat to turn to sex and the benefits that chocolate has over men... its dependable, you know that you will get the satisfaction you need from it... and we questioned whether having an extended hiatus from sex made it that much more satisfying. M is the only non-single of the group thus far and was the least impressed with the combination (even though her score says otherwise) so we'll keep you posted on what we find ;o)

We also agreed that while you couldn't flat out ask man if he's 'emotionally available' taking him out for some chocolate may reveal one or two critical character traits...

G joined us just after we'd finished and the chat turned much more civilized - we used her phone to figure out which countries were part of the Balkan States... not to be confused with the Baltic States 8o)

12 churros and 4 chocolate = £11.90

"It was ok. It was good." (8/10)

"Churros were good - very good. Request a vegan chocolate option." (7/10)

"Chocolate was a little too milky - it should be bitter and thicker and the churros need to be hot. Still pretty good for London" (7/10) (A is from Spain so she knows what shes talking about)

"The chocolate was good. I like how it clung to the churros. The churros weren't as fresh as I would have liked. But on the whole I enjoyed it." (7/10)

OXO Tower Brasserie: 24 May 2010, 8:15pm

The Secret Chocolate Lovers Club kicked off at the OXO Tower Brasserie.

When M and I arrived at the bar A and G were already enjoying some calamari and squid ink with a bottle of wine.

The view from the brasserie overlooked the cityscape and the incredible sun set... but came with the pre-requisite that we were ordering dinner. So it took a bit of charm to convince them to seat us at the brasserie even though we were only planning to have dessert.

When I looked at the menu it was different to what I had seen on the internet a few weeks earlier, the chocolate dessert had alcohol which is a no-no for me and M isn't a fan either. So again with a little charm we convinced the waiter and kitchen to check if there was an alternative they could provide... and amazingly they could.

Its too bad I can't remember the names of the desserts... note to self...

Rum Chocolate... (£8, on the dinner menu) (6/10)

"The raisins added the perfect sweetness to an otherwise pain chocolate cake. The ice cream complemented the cake and I loved the rum jelly - it was sublime."

Orange & Almond Tart... (£8, on the dinner menu) (7/10)

"The anis syrup was tasty, and the almond mouse texture was good, but the orange cake was overpowering"

Chocolate brownie with chocolate mousse, popcorn with caramel and clotted cream ice cream (£8, not on the menu)(5/10 and 4/10)

"Th"
A shake of the head
"Not impressed"

"The mousse was lovely, but the brownie was a bit dry. The cream complemented the brownie and the popcorn mixed in was a creative touch"

The staff were really accomodating and overall, it was a lovely evening with the girls. All of us agreed that we'd come back for dinner though we might stick to what's on the menu.