Tea for Tea....Hamiltons Tea House

Hello there, welcome back to Tea With Me and Friends!

Recently a new tea room has opened in my home town, Farnham, it's called Hamiltons Tea House and of course as soon as I saw it was opening I was intrigued. Farnham, like lots of towns, is packed full of coffee shops, both independent and commercial, but we are sadly lacking in proper tea rooms. I discovered that Hamiltons is a family run business, with a passion for great service and making afternoon tea accessible. So accessible that you don't need to book! 

Hamiltons bakes their own scones daily and uses local suppliers (including the lovely Ellie from Bakehouse) to offer a menu that includes breakfast, lunches, cream teas and of course afternoon tea. They have an extensive tea menu, a great range of coffee and hot chocolate and a martini menu....so you can enjoy a cocktail with their afternoon tea! Sounds perfect doesn't it! 

I've now had the pleasure of visiting Hamiltons on two occasions, once for a cream tea and once for the full afternoon tea experience. The cream tea was my first visit and we were pleasantly surprised by the size of the tea menu, the knowledge of the staff and the general wonderfulness of the scones, which were served warm, with clotted cream and strawberry preserve.....

You can pick a plain or sultana scone and a pot of tea from the menu. The tables have tea timers on them and the staff suggest how long your tea should brew for. The crockery, like the tea room, is modern and simple. 

This Saturday, my sister Lorna was visiting and we didn't have any plans for lunch. So on impulse we popped into Hamiltons to see if a table was available, as it was a busy Saturday lunchtime we had a 20 minute wait, but it was worth it! We decided to try the afternoon tea, to discover what a non-booked tea experience would be like. It's a set menu with savouries, scones, cakes and unlimited tea all for £17.50 per person. I wondered whether offering the tea as an walk-in option would effect the quality of what was being offered, would everything be pre-made and a bit stale? After ordering our teas we had a short wait, but when the food came out we were very happy....

Two fabulous stands full of fresh food were brought to our table! Just look at Lorna looking loving at the scones (she's actually scowling at me because she's hungry and I was taking photos!). The bottom plate housed the savouries and a vol au vent, the middle plate has the sweet treats on and the top has the cream and scones.

The sandwiches were so fresh and the bread to filling ratio was perfect. We enjoyed Cucumber, dill and cream cheese, egg mayonnaise, Ham and wholegrain mustard and rare roast beef and horseradish cream finger sandwiches on white and brown breads. There wasn't a crust to be seen, which always makes me smile. Then there was a huge vol au vent, packed full of coronation chicken. The pastry was flaky and the chicken creamy and mildly spiced. A real highlight for me!

The scone plate includes two scones per person, one plain and one sultana - both were generous in size. The scones are served with butter, clotted cream and strawberry preserve. I only ate the fruit scone on this occasion...but it was fresh, baked the whole way though and not at all claggy - perfect for getting cream and jam into my mouth! I can also confirm that the sultanas in the scone were plentiful. 

Sorry this is an awful photo (I was too excited by the cake)...but each afternoon tea stand included three sweet treats. I think the selection changes, on this occasion we had a mini apple crumble concoction in the shot glass (a crumbly base, topped with apples and cream). We also had a piece of chocolate brownie and a mini lemon slice (which I know is delicious as it comes from Bakehouse). Neither of us could finish the whole stand, but we were given boxes to take the extras home in (which always makes a lovely treat the next day!) 

Our tea pots were filled up regularly throughout the afternoon tea and we were encouraged to try more than one tea. Hamiltons had just launched their Christmas tea, which we decided to try. The Christmas tea was fruity and warming, full of cinnamon and clove - really Christmassy! 

The service we experienced on both visits was brilliant, everyone is friendly and knowledgeable about the products. Even though it was busy, no one was rushed and everyone got the same warm welcome. This is the perfect tea room in my humble opinion....simple, not fussy, serving great produce and with friendly staff. I'd definitely recommend popping by Hamiltons if you happen to be in Farnham, if you want to guarantee a table you can book ahead. More information about the menus can be found on their website. 

Thank you for popping by today, I hope you've enjoyed reading about our latest afternoon tea adventure!

Rachel & Lorna

Coffee and Cake worth walking for!

 Hello there,

Welcome back to Tea With Me and Friends - we hope you are keeping well today.

As you know, we love to support local, independent businesses especially when they help with our coffee and cake cravings! Imagine my delight when I discovered that Bakehouse, the fabulous baker from Aldershot who we have featured before on the blog, has teamed up with The Coffee Cabin! 

May I present Farnham's newest mobile coffee van...Candice!

The van serves tea from T2, along with coffee from DT Roastery in Winchester, hot chocolate, and freshly baked treats from Bakehouse. Amy, the owner, is super friendly and serves the coffee with a smile, even in the awful wet, cold weather we're experiencing at the moment. 

Being a mobile offering, means that Amy and Candice the van move around the area, so you need to check out the Instagram account to find out where they are.

I have visited the Coffee Can twice now, both times they have been located on the Shepherd and Flock roundabout in Farnham (passed the pub and down the lane a little bit). But they have also spent some time in passed week at The Royal Oak pub in Wreclesham. So far I have enjoyed a black americano and a mocha, both have been delicious. I particularly enjoyed the mocha, which was chocolatey and a little bit bitter - the perfect blend. I also want to head back for a hot chocolate, which looks delicious! 

Cake-wise I have sampled the peanut butter slice and the salted caramel cupcake. As you already know I love Bakehouse cakes, which are always fresh and so full of flavour. The salted caramel cupcake was really good though, with the perfect ratio of cake to icing....it's possibly my favourite cupcake from Bakehouse so far! 

I should also mention that Amy uses biodegradable cups for her hot drinks.

If you happen to be in the Farnham area of Surrey and fancy a cup of coffee, I'd definitely recommend looking for Amy and Candice the van! I'll be heading back....there are a lot more cakes to sample!

Thanks for popping by today,

Rachel

Lockdown Baking

Hey There,

How are you today? Looking for a guilt free cake fix? If so, you've found the right place - grab a cup of tea and read on....

Banana and peanut butter cookies

For me baking is more than the act of making a cake or batch of biscuits. Of course I love the finished product as much as the next person....there is something wonderful about a cup of tea and freshly baked goods....but I also love the process of baking.

The combining of different ingredients, the stirring and mixing, folding and beating. Following a recipe or making it up as you go along (shock horror...I do that sometimes!). The smells as your bakes rise in the oven and the sight of the finished cake or biscuit. I love it all - it soothes my soul and makes me happy. Sharing the bakes with others is also pretty good, the widening smile when someone sees your cakes and sigh as they bite into a piece....alright, I'm a bit of a cake feeder!

The Covid-19 pandemic has meant we're all staying at home to slow the spread and I know we've all been coping with the social distancing in different ways. Some people are learning new skills via the internet, some cleaning their cupboards and garages from top to bottom. Some are making their way through their "to read" book pile and others are watching the whole of Netfix! For me I'm part of the baking tribe that is sharing their bakes on social media, although I have to say I haven't made a single banana loaf (I manage to eat all my bananas before they go brown). 

Easter Sunday pancakes!

I've tried lots of new recipes, enjoying taking the time to read my recipe books to pick bakes that I have the ingredients for (no longer having the luxury of nipping to the shops for missing items). I've also enjoyed a virtual baking session with a friend via video call - she baked banana brownies and I made a coffee crumb cake, it was great fun and we both had cake to enjoy at the end.

Since I've been so busy baking I thought I would share what I've made and why I've upped my exercise levels!

The coffee crumb cake I mentioned above was really good, a lovey light vanilla sponge topped with a coffee and mixed spice flavoured crumb. The crumb has a streusel-like quality to it, giving the bake a pleasing combination of textures. I also enjoyed how well the mixed spice paired with the coffee flavour. The cake was nice served with a dollop of clotted cream and a hot drink! 

I've tried my hand at several different biscuit recipes recently and found that I really enjoy biscuit making. Most of my bakes previously would be in cake form or using very basic biscuit recipes, so I enjoyed learning new techniques. 

I've made some delicious Viennese butter biscuits, dipped in chocolate and slightly fiery ginger custard creams. The butter biscuits are a pipped biscuit and incredibly light and buttery. The custard creams were a completely new bake for me and I struggled a little with the biscuit dough. I'm glad I finished them though because they were delicious.

I also made a batch of crunchy ginger biscuits which I enjoyed with a cup of super sweet Dalgona coffee (I felt like I was in a coffee shop with this luxurious homemade coffee!).

I also made slightly bizarre millionaire shortbread....the reason they were a bit bizarre in the flavour department was because I had run out of normal milk chocolate for the topping and only had Cadburys limited edition Christmas gingerbread chocolate to melt! Slightly odd flavour to mix with the dreamy caramel, but I enjoyed them anyway! Millionaire shortbread always hits the spot with its combination of shortbread, caramel and chocolate.

I hope you've enjoyed taking a peek at my latest baking creations. As our government has announced that the lock down will last at least another three weeks I'm sure there will be lots more bakes to follow so watch this space! If you have any recipes you think I should try, leave me a message in the comments below!

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel

Birthday Cake in Lock Down!

Hello there cake lovers!

I hope you are all keeping well.

It's been a while hasn't it....all my blog posts seem to start like that at the moment! Well, it's now April 2020 and the UK has been social distancing and staying at home for three weeks now as part of the emergency response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Wow, it's like I'm writing a novel or horror movie, who would have thought that 2020 would start like this!

Personally I've worked from home for five weeks now and because I live alone, I've not seen any of my friends or family in five weeks too....its been an odd time, full of ups and downs. But I haven't started talking to my plants yet, which is always a bonus! But that's not what you're here for....you're here for the cake!

So, in the middle of all this I turned 41...

Yep....I decorated my house with balloons!

….those of you that know me, know that I love my Birthday. Its time to celebrate with friends and family, and have a good time. I had been dreading the day if I am honest, but on reflection it wasn't that bad at all and I managed to enjoy the day. I took the day off wort time crafting and talking to friends, I received lots of Birthday love.....plus there was cake!

Isn't that the most beautiful cake!

It comes from the BakeHouse Surrey a local baker called Rachel who is based in the Guildford area. I contacted Rachel via Instagram on a whim because I decided last minute that I wanted to enjoy some fresh cake on my birthday to cheer myself up and I'm so glad that I did.

Rachel talked to me about my cake requirements....size of cake, favourite flavours etc. I opted for vanilla cake with fresh berries and then sat back and waited for the big day. Rachel's cakes on Instagram all looked really pretty and so I was excited for the delivery.

When the cake arrived I was slightly overwhelmed, it was taller than I expected and so pretty. It was topped with fresh strawberries, pieces of fresh chocolate brownie and homemade passionfruit macarons. It also featured a drip finish and had tiny hearts around the bottom

The sponge itself was fresh and light, with a good vanilla flavour and the cake was filled with buttercream and jam. The perfect combination!

The Brownie pieces on the top are super delicious - they have the right gooey, dense texture and a great chocolatey taste.... I wish I had more! Rachel also makes traybakes and cupcakes as well as big celebration cakes. Information on getting in touch are all on the Instagram page (link above).

I had already decided to make myself an afternoon tea for lunch on the day and the cake took pride of place.....

I am so pleased that I reached out to Bakehouse Surrey, everything about the transaction and delivery was easy and efficient and the cake really made my day. 

I'm probably going to be living off cake for breakfast, lunch and dinner for a while now! 

I hope anyone else who is celebrating their Birthday at the moment has a lovely day....don't forget to eat cake!

Thanks for popping by today,

Rachel 

Cat Food Cakes - Halloween subscription box

Hello there,

Welcome back to Tea With Me and Friends - I hope you're ready for some spooky treats today!

I've been an admirer of the Cat Food Cakes creations for a long time now - the cakes always look so scrummy on Instagram and the flavours sound amazing. It's a bit of a mission for me to get over to her bakery, which is open on a Saturday morning....but I've discovered that she also offers mail order boxes of scrummy treats! Available as a subscription (a cake subscription is possibly the best subscription ever - just imagine.....cakes arriving through the post every month!) or as one-off boxes, it's a great way to enjoy some scrummy treats yourself or to treat a friend.

I decided to try out the Halloween themed box from Cat Food Cakes (you know I love a good themed cake!).....and I wasn't disappointed! The treats were all freshly baked and well packed, so they arrived in perfect condition. Each box has a cake pot, cake pops, brownies, a marshmallow and bar of chocolate - something for everyone...

Cat Food Cakes - Halloween Box

It was so exciting to receive the pink box through the post - what a wonderful treat! Unboxing the treats was also fun as it was all themed, including the napkin and bar of chocolate! Now you'll have to forgive me because I got a little excited and although I have sampled everything, there aren't photos of everything - whoops! 

The cake pot was divine - a pot of spiced pumpkin cake with vanilla cream cheese buttercream. It reminded me a little of carrot cake, but better! The cake was moist and well balanced with the buttercream. I ate mine in several sittings as the pot is quite big, it was really easy to decant the cake and buttercream from the pot.

The two spooky cake pops on sticks were huge! Made with vanilla cookie dough and dark chocolate chips, dipped in white chocolate. They were super sweet, but balanced with the dark chocolate chips. 

Now I'm afraid the brownie was where I managed to not take photos! In my box I had one slice which was stuffed with marshmallow and Oreo cookies and a slice of blondie decorated with sprinkles. Both were soft and scrummy, brilliant washed down with a cup of tea! The chocolate one was probably my favourite. Again the portion size is very generous, as you get a big bar of each brownie in the box. 

Finally you have the bar of chocolate (which I haven't tucked into yet) and the coconut marshmallow which will be going into my next mug of hot chocolate!

All in all you get a great variety in the box and the portion sizes are great throughout. You can cut the various bits into smaller pieces and enjoy a taster plate! The one-off box is £29.99 including delivery (you get a 15% discount if you subscribe), and the cakes are all fresh, well made and oh so enjoyable! There are different subscription / gift options - take a peek at the website for more information. 

Have you tried any other mail order cakes that I should know about (this is a brand new world to me!!), if so leave me a comment - I think I need to investigate more!

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel 

Time for something cute from Peggy Porschen!

Hello there,

Welcome back to Tea With Me and Friends!

I've finally made it to the Peggy Porschen Parlour in Belgravia and I wanted to share my experience with you. I've wanted to visit the Parlour for ages, it looks so pretty and the cakes so scrummy, I wanted to see whether it lives up to the hype and Instagram love!

Located on a corner, its pink exterior can be spotted from the end of the road....

I visited when they still had their Winter Parlour decorations up from the festive season, designed to compliment their Cosy Collection sweets and treats.

The interior of this tiny parlour has shelves full of pretty bakes that you can buy to enjoy at home - its really gorgeous!

The Parlour is a small space and because of this they do not take reservations (they also ask that you return tables after an hour), you just have to turn up and keep your fingers crossed! There is seating both inside and outside, but be warned.....it's cosy! If you arrive and there are no tables free and you don't want to wait, you can have any of the cakes available as a take away option.

As well as the standard menu of cupcakes, layer cakes and tray bakes, the Parlour also offers seasonal specials. Among others, the standard flavours include chocolate heaven and salted caramel cupcakes, lemon, raspberry and rose layer cakes and chocolate brownies. The menu is extensive, but all the cakes are on display and the staff are knowledgeable if you need some help picking your treat.

The Cosy Collection, which was available when we visited, included the Cosy Cashmere layer cake - an almond sponge layered with a smooth coconut buttercream. There were also starry snowmen cupcakes, either in a chocolate flavour or gingerbread and lemon flavour and a variety of cute iced biscuits.

We opted to try a slab of chocolate biscuit cake (and slab is the right word....it's a very generous serving!) and a gingerbread and lemon starry snowman cupcake. The chocolate biscuit cake was like a rocky road bake, it was indulgent and scrummy - packed full of pistachios and marshmallow. You could probably share it between two people though as it was very rich.

The cupcake was super cute to look at....just look at that tiny snowman!

The cappuccinos we enjoyed were also rather pretty looking....

But I bet you're wondering what the cupcake tasted like....was it all style and no substance? I'm please to report back that it was absolutely delicious! 

The sponge was moist but light, and full of spicy gingerbread flavour. The topping was a lemon cream cheese frosting, which again was light in texture but well flavoured. Together the flavours blended really well and made for a very enjoyable cupcake. 

Although it looked like a big blob of frosting, the ratio between cake and sponge was just right. Nothing was too sweet and I really enjoyed this cupcake. Plus it was really cute....just look at that tiny snowman....

I really enjoyed my visit to The Parlour, the prices are a little expensive but the quality of the food was great. I would also probably only visit with one other person as there isn't much space (we watched a group of five squeeze around a table the same size that we had for two).

If you'd like to see more about Peggy Porschen's Parlour pop by their website

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel

Time for....some tea and ice-cream!

Hello there!

Welcome back to Tea With Me and Friends.....it may be winter time in the UK and a bit chilly (read I've been wearing my big woolly hat!), but that doesn't stop me enjoying the odd ice cream!

Recently we paid a visit to Fortnum and Mason (I love a wander around the tea and china) and was tempted into The Parlour for a cup of tea and an ice cream! Based in the corner of the second floor of Fortnums, the ice cream display is on view to shoppers as they peruse the beautiful teacups on sale. It's a very tempting display!

The Parlour is home to award winning ice-cream creations, Fortnums tea and coffee and both sweet and savoury delights - the perfect place to spend an hour or two!

It's usually really busy, so imagine my delight when I realised we could get a table (probably something to do with the temperature outside!). Once seated we were left with the menu to decide on whether we wanted a piece of cake (perhaps a piece of carrot cake or a pear and orange marmalade tart), something savoury (amongst other items they have a spiced sausage roll and crab and prawn cocktails), one of the pre-designed sundaes (I'll tell you more about those later) or perhaps we wanted to create our own ice cream sundae - picking our favourite flavours and adding toppings such as whipped cream, fresh strawberries or chocolate sauce.

There are plenty of ice cream flavours to pick from, and if you fancy something lighter there are also sorbets as well. From salted caramel to banana split, from rum and raisin to mint chocolate chip - you'll be spoilt for choice! There are also three different vegan ice creams on offer, including a chocolate and cashew blend.

I opted to enjoy a two scoop ice cream with whipped cream, enjoying chocolate and cherrilossus flavours together. The chocolate flavour is smooth and probably one of the best chocolate ice creams I've had the pleasure of enjoying. The cherrilossus had a bitter dark chocolate base and featured cherry compote and nuts - although this was nice, the plain chocolate was better. I can also vouch for the honeycomb flavour which I had a sample of previously. 

The ice cream was served in a fun sundae dish and looked quite wonderful when it was served....it was also rather large.....

Just look at all that cream - they didn't skimp there! 

They also gave me the cutest heart shaped spoon to eat the ice cream with. 

The tea was served in a tea for one pot, with a really pretty bunting pattern. Each pot gave us about 2-3 cups, which was a really good serving.

Now I promised to tell you about the sundaes, although I didn't try one on this occasion I did drool over the descriptions in the menu for quite some time!

You can pick from five different sundaes, or alternatively there are two vegan sundaes on offer. The menu includes the traditional Knickerbocker Glory featuring strawberry and vanilla ice cream, with chunks of pineapple, raspberry coulis, Italian meringue and popping candy - designed to make you smile! The other one that caught my eye was "The Original Dusty Road" which included coffee and chocolate ice cream, butterscotch and chocolate Sauce, Chantilly cream, chocolate flakes and scrummy coffee beans! I think I'll need to revisit and try this one!

I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to The Parlour, the service was quick and friendly and the staff were knowledgeable about the different ice creams. The menu includes a good variety of food and drink....if you don't fancy ice cream there will be something else to enjoy!

To find out more about The Parlour, pop by their website

Whilst we were in Fortnums on this occasion, I also found a rather beautiful tea set that I thought I would share....

The set is by Richard Brendon and was designed especially for Fortnum and Masons. I just love the colours and pretty chevron pattern.

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel

Time for Tea.....St Martins Lane

Hello there,

Happy New Year!

We hope that you've had a tea-riffic Christmas and wish you a sweet new year full of tea and cake!

Afternoon tea at St Martins Lane, London

At the end of last year Becca, Lorna and I enjoyed a Narnia themed afternoon tea at St Martins Lane in London. You may remember that we've visited St Martin's Lane previously and we're always keen to revisit when they have a new theme.

Although the Narnia themed tea is no longer available, I still wanted to share the photos with you.

Afternoon tea at St Martin's Lane is served in the Den, which is a beautifully snug space....perfect for a winter themed tea. When we visited The Den was dressed with lots of cosy throws and we even had our own pretend wood burner!

Tea at St Martins Lane is served on pretty Ted Baker china.....which I just love.....

as well as the patterns, I love the art deco shapes of the handles. 

The afternoon tea sweets are served on a contemporary stand, with the savoury items presented on a separate plate. There is one item per person....so no need to share or fight over the best looking sweet treats!

Afternoon Tea Stand, St Martins Lane London

This was a serving for three people, the stand does look a bit full!

There were three savoury items on this afternoon tea menu.....however as you can see from the photo below there was not a sandwich (finger or otherwise) in sight:

Ham, mushroom and cheese turnover
Tuna, avocado, tomato and sweetcorn wrap
Spinach and parmesan swirl

Afternoon tea - St Martins Lane, London

I'm going to be honest here....this was not my favourite selection of savoury items.....I'm not really a fan of mushrooms, avocado or spinach....however I ploughed on anyway.

The turnover would have been lovely without the mushrooms, it was hot and the pastry was crisp. Becca, who loves mushrooms, assured me that the mushrooms were good. The wrap was nice (despite the avocado), but I would have preferred a sandwich (call me old fashioned!). The swirl was altogether too spinachy (spell check says that's not a word, but I don't care) for me, but the pastry was lovely. 

Moving onto the scones....there was one each....but they were massive....

Massive scones at St Martins Lane

The flavour of the scones was good, along with the cream and raspberry jam, but the texture was a little claggy for me. I think this was due to the size of them rather than anything else - you really needed a lot of cream on them!

The sweets looked good and included a pretty Aslan head which I couldn't wait to try:

Snowball chestnut, blueberry
Aslan chocolate & caramel bonbon
The wardrobe almond biscuit, pear & pecan cream
The Ice Queen's Crown coffee tart
Turkish Delights
Mini mince pies

There was a good choice of sweet treats, meaning there was something for everyone. However, they didn't all hit the spot.....

I loved the coffee tart (coffee is always a win for me), the Turkish Delights were refreshing to enjoy at the end of the meal and the mini mince pies were packed with flavour (again I love a mince pie). I also enjoyed Aslan's head (sounds a bit weird I know), but it was super sweet and a little too big to enjoy the whole head - I think we probably ate one head between all three of us. 

We couldn't really taste the flavours in the snowballs and the wardrobes were a little bit confusing with the biscuit textures and the pears.

The service as usual was friendly and professional and the waiters all knew the menu well. We could change our tea choice throughout our time in The Den, or decide to enjoy a cup of coffee or hot chocolate instead.

As well as scrummy afternoon teas, St Martin's Lane has a beautiful lobby with lots of photo opportunities.....

All in all we enjoyed our latest visit to St Martins Lane and will no doubt visit again in 2019. To find out more about the latest afternoon tea adventures at St Martins Lane pop by their website

Thank you for popping by today - we look forward to seeing you again soon!

Rachel & Lorna