Nicola M.
Yelp
THE most beautiful setting for afternoon tea. I heard Foyer and was a bit concerned..who'd think of afternoon tea in a foyer would be a grand affair? Add the five star rating of Claridges hotel and throw in some art deco splendour, 18 ft high ceilings, an elaborate chandelier and enough flowers to make Chelsea Flower Show quake in competitive fear. It's breathtaking in there. Even the lavs were wonderful! Who gushes about toilets? Well, see these and I beg you to differ. Think Gossip Girl dressing room/make up area with lamps, white towels and general luxeness. Then you go into to toilet area, which an attendant wipes down before you go in. She then turns a tap on for you upon exiting the cubicle. Excellent, excellent. They were a little rude but they didn't spoil my experience. Hell, I was donning pink lips so had to return no less than 4 times to keep my look fresh.
Now, we actually were here during Chelsea Flower Show and so, that was the afternoon tea that was on offer at the time. This includes pink champers and floral sarnies but is an extra cost. I was a little dubious about the floral sarnies and prayed that they didn't just serve those as I was hankering for a chicken sandwich fix. They served both. And kept them coming. Fabulous. The floral ones were actually heavenly. And they decorated them with edible pansies. I had lavender tea which was fairly nice, and the server even offered me two teas as I was undecided...super helpful! Hubby's tea was nicer, annoyingly. You get given a little Claridges tin of tea to take away at the end of you tea session. Love that touch.
Cakes. Obviously this needs its own paragraph. So good. So much detail. Almost too beautiful to eat. Almost. I did manage to shovel many of the morsels down. The scones were delish, though did miss strawberry jam, it was some sort of honeyed something or other. The macaroon had a rose petal on it, complete with dew drops. Sigh.
A pianist plays throughout and this never fails to bring a little tear to my eye. Dramatic? Maybe, but it really does evoke the senses a bit of live classical musique. Everything about this trip was perfect. They brought over a birthday slice of lemon and lavender cake complete with candle. Love touches like this. Speaking of touches, due to so many posing, I mean, toilet trips, I spied the sweets by the exit. With Claridges sweet bags, natch. Of course I devilled into those and loaded up a bag for the journey home. Thank you Claridges, thank you. I'll be back. Often.