Black Milk: The Sugar Coma you’ve been waiting for!
Black Milk is a café that is best known for their jaw dropping freakshakes. Now, freakshakes have been a trend that has taken the internet by storm for some time now. Originating from Australia, they can be defined as milkshakes topped with something to give it a twist. This gives a lot of leeway for people to go completely nuts. It range from something as simple as whipped cream and sprinkles, to having burgers balancing dangerously close to your drink on a stick. Now, these aren’t even desserts anymore. These are whole meals and they have become an obsession of mine as I make my way through London, looking for the most imaginative combinations.
On this quest, Black Milk had to be one of my stops. I ordered their most popular one: The Salted Caramel Stack Freak!Shake. When it was brought over, I didn’t even know how to start. In front of me was a towering glass of biscoff milkshake topped with an entire two-layer slice of salted caramel cake with whipped cream and biscoff crumbs to finish it off. Just saying all of that was a mouthful. I haven’t even picked up my fork yet.
Black Milk goes against the grain by presenting their shakes a bit differently. Most places have a theirs come in little mason jars. It’s a cute aesthetic that gives the perfect sized rim for the toppings like donuts for sure but sometimes I want to more. Black Milk use tall glasses that make theirs shakes really stand out amongst their peers. That also mean that their shakes need a bit more help standing tall. They used a wooden stick to hold the slice in place. It’s useful but many people around us ended up asking for a plate to put their slice on. The magic of the freakshake disappears if you can’t manage to actually eat it for fear of it all toppling over.
I decided to power through and start from the very top.. The things I do for Felix. The salted caramel cake was moist and decadent. As salted caramel is one of my favourite flavours, I have some very strong opinions on the stuff. I always have a problem with places serving salted caramel desserts that just taste sweet. The salt should be present enough to make the caramel taste become sharper and more present. I can happily say that this cake definitely delivered in that aspect, especially when it came to the icing separating the layers. We were off to a good start.
If you still have space once the cake is gone, you can get started on the actual milkshake. The drink was smooth and creamy. It was incredibly indulgent though I wish the biscoff taste was more obvious. Biscoff and salted caramel are truly a match made in heaven – I realise that now. Name a more iconic duo, I’ll wait. They also decorate the cup with extra biscoff and have chocolate around the rim if you have it in you for more.
The café is situated in the corner of the Fiorucci store in Covent Garden but with freakshakes like this, they definitely make their presence known. They’ve got other treats like their slightly less intense Black Milkshakes waffles of cereal cocktail bowls. Everything is halal except the lucky charms because of their marshmallows. Their staff are great to so you can have a lovely conversation while they are creating the masterpiece. You eat on the backdrop of the latest fashion in the store so make sure you don’t get too messy! I made sure I stayed as far away from them as I could because I don’t trust myself. I wish they had a proper place in London or at least in an area where some stray ice cream doesn’t become a very expensive mistake.
When you visit, have your camera ready. They value customers photos to the point that their entire Instagram is comprised of them. They will even reward you for the perfect shot. A repost to their story will get you 50% off your next milkshake while a repost to their page gets you one for free so you could be back for more in no time.
The sugar dream doesn’t have to stop when you step out the door. If you want to take the magic home, you can buy their Kinderella Cream online. Yes, they’ve managed to get the taste of the Kinder Bueno cream and put it in a jar. They’ve also got a sticky toffee, salted caramel and biscoff sauce if that’s what you are really looking for to make your own sweet creations.
There are some that are finding all of this to be way too sickly. This is a lot of sugar – I can’t deny that. A sweet tooth was required to get through the mountain that was put in front of me. There is no doubt that this is excessive. Does it make sense? No. Are there better meals you could be having? Yes. But there is simply such an appeal of eating things for the spectacle of it all. And these cavities-in-a-cup truly have that wow factor to them. So, if you ever find yourself in Covent Garden, looking to put yourself through the biggest sugar high of your life, this is the best place to hit up.
