Sprinkles ice cream and cakes, Southampton

If you ever find yourself strolling the streets of Southampton, particularly on a sunny day, step off the beaten track and head for the delight that is Sprinkles on QE2 Walk.

Don't be put off by the too-pink exterior of this corner-dwelling piece of heaven, as what awaits inside is something spectacular.

Sprinkles is an ice cream parlour, cupcake cafe. and all round diabetes-inducing eatery. It's somewhat tardis-like in that the American diner style seating inside is more than expected from the outside.

The ice cream counter is an absolute pleasure to peruse, although somewhat eradicates any chance of a queuing system as people gather round to get a good look. On the day we visited, there were 44 different flavours available, ranging from the ordinary (mint choc chip) to the extraordinary (tutti frutti, Kinder Bueno). The only other place I've ever seen that's come close to this variety and novelty of flavours is LICC in York, although LICC is a much smaller scale than Sprinkles.

So you select your ice cream choices and make your way along to the till to order and pay, but then you're faced with the cup cake counter. They aren't just cakes, but works of art, with cupcakes designed to look like sheep, monkeys, and even the Cookie Monster (complete with choc chip cookie mouth). I had a tip-off that the sheep is particularly good if you like butter cream, but I went for Cookie Monster, and had it boxed up to take home.

So if you're ever in Southampton with half an hour to spare, follow your nose to Sprinkles. But beware the come down from the sugar high -six hours on, I'm still waiting for it to kick in, but I know it's going to be bad.