Time for.....a little cake!

Hello there,

Welcome back to Tea With Me and Friends!

Sometimes you just need a little bit of cake....isn't that right? Well last weekend Lorna and I had that exact feeling. We were in London for the day and didn't need the full afternoon tea experience, but fancied something a little sweet. When we spotted a Paul Bakery we decided to pop in for a sweet treat!

If you've not heard of Paul before, you are in for a treat. They are a family business, which started in France five generations ago. They are now 127 years old and have bakeries in 33 countries around the world. They are passionate about bread - baking high quality, hand-crafted breads everyday. Luckily for us they are also rather good at patisserie, cakes and flans! A Paul Bakery counter will always leaving you spoilt for choice and drooling a little!

On this occasion we opted for a Praline Eclair - Eclair Paris Brest and a Delice Framboise Slice (or a raspberry slice to you and me!)....

Patisserie from Paul Bakery

The eclair is made of light choux pastry with toasted flaked almonds, filled with praline cream and topped with caramelised hazelnuts.

While the raspberry slice has two layers of Genoese sponge and raspberry mousse and a layer of raspberry jelly, finished with a raspberry glaze and fresh raspberries.

And as you can see....they are big enough to cut in two and share....

Big enough to share - Patisserie from Paul Bakery

At £3.55 each these are a treat, but they were fresh, the flavours were great and they were a good size. The eclair was sweet and crunchy, but the pastry was so light, while the slice was the perfect mix of sweet and tart and again was incredibly light. 

What's your favourite Paul cake or pastry? We'd love to hear from you!

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel and Lorna

Afternoon Tea News!

Hello there,

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

Lorna and I were recently in London, strolling down the Strand, when we came across the latest offering from The Savoy....

Melba at The Savoy

Melba is actually located on the Strand and offers passers-by take-away, gourmet treats - all the menu at Melba is created by executive pastry chef, Ludwig Hely. Peek inside and you will discover a selection of sweet and savoury pastries, takeaway sandwiches, hot and cold beverages, Savoy gift items and an amazing selection of a new hotel signature item... éclairs.

Melba at The Savoy - eclairs

Melba at The Savoy - more eclairs!

We were particularly interested in the afternoon tea items that you could buy, from freshly made finger sandwiches all packaged up to scones and mini pots of cream and jam - you could easily pick up all the treats you need for a picnic afternoon tea!

Melba at The Savoy
Sandwiches

Melba at The Savoy - scones and muffins!

Melba at The Savoy is open from morning to night, seven days a week! We took a peek inside this time, but we didn't buy anything - but if you have indulged do let us know what you thought!

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel & Lorna

Time for Tea..... The Portrait Restaurant, London

Hello there,

Welcome back to another afternoon tea post from Tea With Me and Friends, this time we have a lovely guest post for you from our Twitter friend Victoria who recently visited the Portrait Restaurant. Lets read about her London afternoon tea adventure.....

Trying to pick a venue for afternoon tea in London when you're from Rutland is no mean feat!  Thanks to another friend who lives in London, my friend Suzie and I chose the Portrait Restaurant for our afternoon tea.  Our criteria was "good, but not too smart", knowing we'd be needing a rest from all those galleries!

The Portrait Restaurant, run by Searcy, is on the top floor of the National Portrait Gallery so amazing views of London rooftops are the incredible backdrop.  Luckily, our table was next to the window and we could enjoy being almost eye to eye with Nelson on top of his column.  Due to the incredible view, the tables are packed in and it felt a little claustrophobic as we were weaving our way to our table.

Photo shows Suzie with our tea!

Quite radically, there was not a finger sandwich in sight.  The selection of savouries were a smoked salmon blini, a chicken brioche and a cucumber, dill and cream cheese sandwich on the tiniest slices of bread.  Sweet!  Possibly the only disappointment was that the bread for the cucumber sandwich was slightly dry.

Onto the scones in the middle.  All four scones were plain and fresh, to be served with strawberry jam and clotted cream.  Suzie apologised for cross-contaminating the jam and cream, but wolfing down the fluffy scones were the order of the day!  By this time we'd moved onto our second glass of champagne each, at a cost of £10 per glass.

Finally, the top tier.  Thankfully, there were two of each sweet treat so no arguing took place between us.  The mocha and gold leaf eclairs felt a little stale, but the rest of the top tier couldn't have been tastier!  Who would say no to a passion fruit macaroon, a mini fruit tart or, my favourite, the homemade bounty bar?  Not me!

All of this was washed down by Tregothnan loose leaf teas.  Divine!  Afternoon tea is £24.50 a head, with the champagne being charged as extra. 

Now doesn't that sound like a wonderful afternoon tea? I love the sound of the homemade bounty bar!

A huge thank you to Victoria and Suzie for sharing their afternoon tea with us - if you've enjoyed a tea that you would like to tell us about please get in touch, we'd love to hear from you!

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel

Time for something a little bit different....Afternoon Tea Masterclass at One Aldwych

Hello there!

On Saturday Lorna and I spent a wonderful morning at One Aldwych hotel in London with five other ladies, participating in an afternoon tea masterclass led by Head Chef Dominic Teague.

One Aldwych Afternoon Tea Masterclass
Photo from website

The morning started with breakfast in the Lobby Bar where we indulged in tea and coffee, fresh pastries and fruit while we got to know the group and also Dominic. The session was going to be a relaxed affair with as much or as little participation as we each wanted. After we had finished breakfast we were led down into the main hotel kitchen just behind the Axis Restaurant.

In the kitchen we were each presented with a One Aldwych apron, and asked whether we wanted any drinks...we could have tea, coffee, orange juice, a glass of bucks fizz or a glass of champagne. Now this was something that I wasn't expecting, and I have to say it was a lovely touch. We then all gathered around and watched as Dominic and his Pastry Chef led us through three afternoon tea recipes.

Dominic described each step as he went through the recipes, answering questions and letting us see into the various bowls and pans as he went. As he got to the end of each item, we all had the chance to participate.

To begin with we made vanilla and blackberry macaroons. Once the filling and the macaroon batter was made, we got to pipe macaroons onto large sheets under the watchful eye of Dominic and his Pastry Chef. It was great to get professional piping tips as we went along. Once these were baked we got to match up the halves, and add the blackberry and chocolate filling.

Some macaroons got a bit squashed...
the bubbles may or may not have helped!

My finished vanilla and blackberry macaroons!

I was so pleased with how mine turned out...the most professional looking macaroons I have ever made!

Next we made eclairs that were filled with a chocolate creme pat, and dipped in a chocolate glaze. Again, Dominic showed us how to make all the elements required, and once the batter was ready we piped our own eclairs.

An action shot! Eclairs in the making!

Once backed we filled them and dipped them ourselves........

Eclairs being filled!

Finally we made fig tarts with a sweet pastry....something I have never attempted before.

An action shot of
Chef Dominic!

During the whole time we were in the kitchen Dominic was very friendly and attentive, even though the kitchen was preparing for the lunchtime and afternoon tea service. We were also offered drinks throughout our entire experience.

Once everything was made, filled and dipped we moved into the Axis Restaurant with Dominic, to enjoy afternoon tea. We enjoyed a selection of sandwiches and warm scones, with our tea and glass of bubbles.

One Aldwych afternoon tea sandwiches

Fresh scones - dressed the Tea With Me and Friends way!

Then we got to sample some of the items we had made......

The sweet treats that I finished!

It was wonderful to see our own creations served!

All in all I had a wonderful time, I met some lovely people and got some great tips to take home to my own kitchen. Spending time with a professional chef and watching them in action is a brilliant experience and I would highly recommend this experience for anyone who is interested in baking for afternoon teas. We all left with a box of our sweet treats, the apron and also recipe cards so we could recreate the treats at home.

The masterclass costs £150 each, but I feel this was good value as we did eat and drink a lot, and we spent a lot of time with Dominic. Anyone expecting a full on baking class should look elsewhere however, given the  amount of time we had we covered a lot, but Dominic did most of the work! This experience is also great as people with any skill level will enjoy it.

If you haven't see the One Aldwych afternoon tea yet....it's based on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and is creative, fun and very scrummy! Read the Tea With Me and Friends review here.

One Aldwych Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Afternoon Tea
(photo from website)

To find out more about the afternoon tea masterclass pop by the One Aldwych website.

Also, pop back to our blog later this week to find out more about Head Chef Dominic Teague in our "Meet the Chef" series.

I'd like to thank Chef Dominic for his time on Saturday, Lorna and I had a fab time and we will be putting our skills to the test creating an Easter afternoon tea for our friends!

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel and Lorna

Time for Tea.....Rosewood London

Hello there,

This weekend Lorna and I were lucky enough to be invited to sample the afternoon tea at the newly opened Rosewood London hotel in Holborn (a two minute stroll from the tube station). I know of the hotel because I have viewed their event space previously and I knew that the hotel itself is very elegant and oozed opulence, so we were very keen to experience their afternoon tea offering.

The Rosewood London opened in October 2013 following a refurbishment of the previous hotel on the site. The hotel celebrates the local area and allows guests to enjoy luxurious surroundings. As Lorna and I arrived at the hotel quite early, we headed into Scarfes Bar for a cocktail first....well it would be rude not too!

The bar is beautiful...full of comfy seating, a roaring fire and a large collection of antique books. They have a good cocktail list, offering an unusual selection of cocktails.

Cocktails at Scarfes Bar, Rosewood London

We managed to spend an hour in the bar very easily, and before we knew it, it was time to head to The Mirror Room to enjoy a spot of tea. The Mirror Room is truly elegant, with lots of seating for both couples and larger groups. At one end there is yet another fire and also the cake table. The room is kept quite dark, with the atmosphere being driven by candles on the tables, soft lighting and slightly controversially piped music.

The elegant Mirror Room
Rosewood London

 Now, usually I take photos of the menu to remind myself post tea of the selection we indulged in....but this time I did not so we will have to rely on my memory!

After being seated we had the choice of a champagne afternoon tea at £49.00 each or the traditional afternoon tea at £39.00 each. Having already indulged in a cocktail we opted for the traditional tea. 

We also needed to select tea from the selection on the menu, there were several black teas, a white tea, green teas, a yellow tea and herbal infusions to pick from. I opted for the delicate white tea and Lorna went with their yellow tea. Teas were served in individual glass teapots, which suited the modern surroundings of the Mirror Room.

Once tea was served we were brought our sandwich selection on a rather cute stand.....

Afternoon tea sandwiches
Rosewood London

Now, I have to say that these were the most dainty looking creations that I have seen in a while. Perfect rectangles and not a crust in sight - they were nearly perfect, except the bread was a tiny bit dry on the top. We enjoyed a cream cheese, radish and black pepper sandwich (sounds a tad bit weird, but tasted wonderful), a cheese, ham and smoked butter sandwich and the most amazing egg mayonnaise sandwich I have ever eaten! I think it may have also had some onion in either the egg mixture or the bread....it was delicious! 

In fact all three fillings were lovely, and the softer fillings were actually pipped into the sandwich - adding to their beauty! Take a look at this egg sandwich.....

Afternoon tea sandwich - Rosewood London

Now, here lies a little disappointment for me....as I would have loved another one (or two) of those sandwiches. However, while I was away from the table the waiter whisked our empty sandwich stand away and returned with the scones without asking Lorna if we would like more sandwiches. I did question this after our tea with another waitress and she assured me that we should have been offered more sandwiches....so if you do indulge in tea at the Rosewood London and fancy more sandwiches, don't be shy to ask for them if they are not offered!

The scones were served warm.....really warm....as if they were fresh out of the oven. They were served with clotted cream, lemon curd and strawberry jam....all served in silver pots or containers.....

Warm scones - Rosewood London

Now, my disappointment at not having a second helping of those tasty sandwiches was eased by the fact that there scones were amazing! We had two, very good sized scones - one plain and one fruity. The scones looked lovely, with a good glaze on the top. They had a lovely crunchy exterior, but were light and fluffy inside. The lemon curd was tart and zingy, a taste explosion! The strawberry jam was equally as good, really fresh and sweet. 

Once we had finished our scones, the sweet treats were brought out on another beautiful cake stand.....

Sweet treats
Rosewood London

Now this is where tea got a little controversial again, if you look closely there is an amazing selection of sweet treats on that stand. There were six different items, plus petite fours.....but they were all different! Now I don't know about you, but I hate that conversation about who is going to eat each sweet treat at tea when there is a selection like this! However, all the sweets were a good size and so Lorna and I decided to split each one, making sure we could both try them all!

Afternoon tea sweets - Rosewood London

The selection of sweets was divided into distinct flavours, with a top fruity tier which included an amazing raspberry macaroon. A zingy citrus tier which featured a passion fruit eclair. And finally a chocolate selection featuring a rather scrummy piece of Opera cake.

Afternoon tea sweets - Rosewood London

The sweet treats all tasted divine, the textures were great and everything was so fresh. Once we'd demolished all the sweets we were offered more cakes, we could either enjoy something from the selection we had already enjoyed, or we could have something different! Yes, it turns out that there were even more sweets to try!

Now being ever so slightly greedy, I decided that I did want to squeeze one more thing in (I have no idea how!) and I took a recommendation from the waitress. 

She brought me a rather large piece of passion fruit cake.....

Afternoon tea - Rosewood London

This was also amazing, very zingy and light....but I couldn't finish the whole piece!

All in all this was a wonderful afternoon tea, everything tasted wonderful and there was a great variety. I was a little bit disappointed that we weren't offered more sandwiches and it took a while for the waiter to notice that our teapots were empty, but all the waiters and waitresses in the Mirror Room were extremely friendly and professional.

At £39.00 for the traditional tea, this is a treat, but I think its worth it. The surroundings are wonderful and the afternoon tea is very tasty, we definitely enjoyed our glamorous afternoon!

I'd like to thank the Rosewood London for their kind hospitality.

Thank you for popping by today,
Rachel