February 12, 2015, by Gemma Coleman

Fifty Shades of Nottingham

When a man is tired of Nottingham, he is tired of life, so the oft-cited quotation runs (well, almost). This weekend is Valentine’s Day and if your current plans include curling up on the sofa with your buds Ben and Jerry and Bridget Jones (no judgement here- standard Saturday night), why not make Nottingham your date instead? Here are some of my favourite things to do in the city:

 

1. Café Crawl: Notts has a great café culture and let’s face it, who doesn’t appreciate a good slab of Rocky Road? If you worship tea, then try Lee Rosy’s (who have over 100 varieties of tea, who knew that Blue Flower Earl Grey was a thing?) or Thea Caffe where you can get a whiff of the leaves before committing. Cake lovers should try Homemade Café or White Rabbit Café and if you’re the kind of person that already has future cat names picked out, a new Kitty Café has opened where you can drink hot chocolate with a cat on your lap. You will find me there, probably trying to put them in my bag.

 

2. Galleries: What I find so refreshing about the Nottingham galleries is that they’re not just filled with decorative plates and collectable spoons (love eating with these things, not looking at them). Rather, there are two modern art galleries: the Nottingham Contemporary (which currently has an exhibition of South and Central American art) and the New Art Exchange. And they both have cafés. Sold.

 

 

3. Bagel Nash: I now realise that most of this post just talks about food because I love eating my way around a city. Although Bagel Nash is a chain, it’s a small one (currently only in 7 cities and Notts is one of the chosen ones) and so I think it’s only fair enough to include it on the list. My favourite is Mediterranean Veggie Club, which includes a whole lotta peppers, pesto and cream cheese. I would not advise eating this with company you are trying to impress, it will end up round your face. 10% student discount is also very appealing.

 

I know this has all happened so quickly, but we’ve just been spending so much time together recently. I don’t feel it’s too early to say this, Nottingham, I love you <3

 

 

 

 

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