Sweet Envy & The Female Factory

This weekend I had a girl date with my friend S.
We both really enjoy the simple things in life like coffee and cake, so we chose to start our Saturday afternoon at Sweet Envy (info here).
Located on Elizabeth Street in North Hobart the outside looks plain and neat but inside is a hidden treasure trove of amazing, colourful, wonderful sweet treats!

 I definitely had a Charlie and the Chocolate Factory moment!

 I'm a cupcake fan and my choices were seemingly endless.

They also have a selection of beautiful tarts, cakes and pastries as well as ice cream, lollies and biscuits.  Basically everything sweet and delicious.

I (finally) opted for the PBJ cupcake and the hazelnut caramel brulee - two cakes is just necessary sometimes.  

 

And S had the St Honoron.

 

 

And the Dexter tart. 

 

Everything in Sweet Envy looks amazing and I was very impressed with the obvious attention to detail and the amount of effort that must have gone into producing all of these wonderful specimens.

If I'm honest the cakes I chose could have done with a bit more flavour for my palette but I don't just eat with my palette. For me eating is an experience and the setting, the smells, the service and the sweetness were all just spot on.

My general rule for restaurants is like my rule for movies, I might like a restaurant but the real test is if I would go back, just like a movie. I might enjoy the movie but would I buy it on DVD? 

I would definitely buy Sweet Envy on DVD! A cupcake and a coffee is super reasonable and the setting is my idea of heaven!

After our fill of cake, coffee and gossip we went in search of a bit of Hobart history and found Cascades Female Factory. 

Between 1788 and 1853 approx 25,000 women convicts were transported to Australia mainly from Great Britain and Ireland. Around half of these women were sent over to Tasmania and were placed into one of five female prisons in the state. 

The Female Factory in South Hobart ran from 1828 to 1856 and is known to have held over 5000 female convicts and their children in this time.

 We took a guided tour of the site which I cannot recommend enough - the site itself is relatively small but the knowledge of the guide along with the amazing restoration of the site paints a sad but enthralling picture of the lives of these women.

 

If nothing else, do the tour because it offers access to the matron's cottage which has pictures and information about daily life. I love seeing what they would have eaten - so basic but it fascinates me.

For me Tasmania's convict history has always centered around the men at Port Arthur but The Female Factory gave me a real insight into the lives of women at that time and I really connected with that.
Go and have a look - take a tour if you have the time/money. You wont regret it. Info here.

I would never consider myself a history person but this has really got me interested in learning more about Hobart's history and having sites like this so close to us is just such a privilege. If anything it makes me so grateful that we have the Hobart we have today!
 
Do you have any favourite historical spots in our city? I'd love to hear some from locals!