Balthazar London, The Bobbi Brown Afternoon Tea

Recently my very good friend, Jade, was in London for a whistle-stop break, having recently moved to Abu Dhabi. This coincided with a family wedding and trip to Ireland for a week of her stay, so we had a very small window of opportunity to catch up so booked something lovely, befitting the occasion.

We both love an afternoon tea in London, and both love good make up, so the Bobbi Brown Afternoon Tea at Balthazar – a celebration of the brands’ 25th year, in sandwiches and confectionary was the obvious choice.

These were some of the best afternoon tea sandwiches I’ve had in a while, with a nod to tradition in the cucumber sandwiches and smoked salmon with a lemon crème fraiche – both delicious. We opted out of the egg mayonnaise, as neither of us is keen on egg, so just loaded up on more of the alternatives, but absolutely devoured the grilled chicken with guacamole – slightly more modern and a mouthful of heaven. 

Bobbi Brown afternoon tea at Balthazar, London

The true star of the sandwich show though, was a definite homage to the New York heritage of both the Bobbi Brown make up brand and Balthazar; a pastrami, pickle and mustard fougasse - insanely good. The bread alone was like a culmination of all that’s good in Mediterranean produce, olive oil, olives, sun dried tomato and then topped with a strong, salty melted cheese – just divine, and the filling oh-so New York and oh-so good. Perfection.

Staff here, were very willing to replenish the sandwiches too and offered before we could ask which is a nice touch and isn’t offered everywhere.

There was a plate of both plain and raisin scones – equally warm, soft and crumbly with the mandatory clotted cream and jam – perfectly acceptable and glorious with our English breakfast tea.

However the true masterpiece from the kitchen’s head pastry chef, Regis Bearegard and his team of artists, were the very recognisable and iconic Bobbi Brown make up items in confectionary format. 

Bobbi Brown confectionary at Balthazar, London

There was a sache torte, the traditional Austrian chocolate torte with a rich, unctuous chocolate cream filling, but this had been re-imagined as the Bobbi Brown gel eyeliner and the filling was in fact, a blackberry jam. Visually very attractive and a treat for the taste buds too.

A marshmallow red dusted kiss was perfectly edible but did fall slightly short of the taste and artwork sensations of the remaining cakes.

The foundation stick was a tempered chocolate cylinder filled with a delicious praline mousse and on top of a passion fruit sticky biscuit – it looked fantastic and tasted great too.

My favourite two items were the infamous shimmer brick that Bobbi Brown is well-known for and any self-respecting make up lover has in their armour, this was a rhubarb tart, infused with Champagne – what’s not to like? The other favourite being the rouge; a redcurrant macaroon with a lemon Chantilly filling, really delicious and very recognisable.

The Balthazar Bobbi Brown afternoon tea is reasonably priced at £27.50 for the basic afternoon tea or £37.50 with a cocktail or glass of Champagne. I can’t indulge at the moment due to my pregnancy, but Jade certainly did.

Each guest also receives an invitation to have a personalised lip make-up lesson at the Covent Garden Bobbi Brown store too, which is a fantastic coup.

My daughter, Bridget is nearly two and she woke up from her pram thirty minutes before we left – the staff were incredibly accommodating of her too, and this made all the difference for me. This is the second time I’d been to Balthazar with her in as many months – it’s becoming a family favourite for us.

The Bobbi Brown Afternoon Tea will be available at Balthazar until Thursday 29th September and is available daily.

Hong Kong: Afternoon Tea at The Peninsula Hotel

The Peninsula Afternoon Tea

During my stay in Hong Kong in November with my little girl and parents, we were invited as guests to The Peninsula Hotel for their much lauded afternoon tea.

One of the top hotels in Hong Kong, overlooking the impressive Victoria Harbour, The Peninsula, is an impressively luxurious space. The lobby is decked with high, gilded and ornate ceilings, the room is traditionally decked out with extremely high spec furnishings, with staff in immaculate formal white dress who possess an incredible attention to detail. The shops within the lobby included the likes of Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Prada, Chanel and Louis Vuitton – to name just a few. This is a five star establishment and it shows from the offset.

My parents and I enjoyed the traditional afternoon tea which arrived, dainty and beautifully presented - with a slightly Oriental take on some British classics.

The savouries included a selection of sandwiches, such a chicken with ginger mayonnaise - the chicken was so fragrantly light and moist it was delicious. There was a multi-coloured club sandwich which included a couple of different smoked fish, which was absolutely superb, a cucumber and then there was a little cheese and crab tartlet, which had the lightest, flakiest pastry and was just enough for a mouthful. We ordered more of the same. 

Traditional scones were accompanied by clotted cream and jams and were crumbly, light and delicious. 

Scones

Pastries included a chocolate tartlet that was rich, opulent and clearly made from some seriously dark chocolate - delicious. 

Pastries

A shot glass filled with a confection that was a nod towards a Pina Colada - a coconut creamy mousse at the bottom with a pineapple coulis on top, really unusual and really beautiful.

We had a small, delicate raspberry panna cotta - my Mum's favourite and a small slice of fruit cake too, rich and dense, exactly as fruit cake should be.

Considering the decadent surroundings of The Peninsula, Bridget, who was keen to be wondering around holding onto one of our hands, was welcomed most warmly by the staff, and indeed other guests. There isn't anything 'stuffy' about this venue. We ordered for her some homemade chicken nuggets with chips from the children's menu which came with on Peninsula crockery and cutlery too, which I thought was a lovely touch - we actually went to the hotel store after to try and purchase them as a souvenir but sadly they were out of stock.

Children's crockery

Bridget's children's meal

Afternoon tea costs $358HK per person which equates to approximately £35 - however on this occasion we were guests of the hotel.

The Peninsula is one of the most revered hotels in the world so if you are visiting Hong Kong, I'd highly recommend you visit and take tea to enjoy a fantastic tradition in truly gorgeous settings.

My family in the lobby

Me and Bridget in the lobby at The Peninsula

A Vegetarian Afternoon Tea, Hix at Selfridges

My friend Larni and I are going to New York in a mere five weeks for six days of fabulousness and we have been doing a lot of shopping to prepare for our Big Apple wardrobe, a lot! A recent West End retail jaunt on a Sunday was completed by taking in a pre-arranged vegetarian afternoon tea at Hix Restaurant & Champagne Bar at Selfridges.

We planned our shopping trip to finish up in Selfridges and then relax over tea and cake  and as I’m not a vegetarian, I wasn’t sure how much I’d enjoy a selection of savouries minus the meat, but I needn’t have worried as it was all very appetising.

We each got our own stand filled with treats and at the price of £21.50 per person, it  represented really good value for money. There was a good selection of teas to choose from, although Larni and I are not the most sophisticated when it comes to our tea and just opted for an ordinary breakfast blend. I was a little disappointed that we were presented with chipped tea pots that I felt should have been replaced, but this was the only down point we noticed at Hix.

The savouries included finger sandwiches with a duck-egg mayonnaise, Larni really enjoyed these but I bypassed as I don’t enjoy eggs unless they are baked into a cake. We also each had a naughty but nice mini cheese toastie which was lovely and it was nice to have a little hot savoury alongside the other cold options.

The other two savouries included a tomato crostini topped with a sliver of hard cheese – not the most creative, but certainly tasty. And finally, my favourite - a little sourdough toast topped with delicious homemade guacamole – wonderful.

Onto the sweets,  the most exciting part of the tea – five portions of utter deliciousness. Firstly we each had half of a plain and a fruit scone topped with the obligatory clotted cream and some strawberry jam. The scones were cooked perfectly with the perfect balance of sweet and savoury and were offset beautifully with the accompaniments, they were, for me a very welcome introduction into the sweet coma I was about to enter.

We had been advised to eat one of the treats quickly – this was basically the equivalent of a fancy Tunnocks Teacake  but with a twist. It had a biscuit base, was filled with a glorious pistachio ice cream and then encased with delicious dark chocolate and then finished with some sweetened pistachio shards. Unusual but divine and great to have something I’ve never encountered when having afternoon tea elsewhere before.

We had a mini lemon meringue pie too which was equally impressive. The pies were tiny little pastry confections filled with a rather fluid citrus centre, only a couple of bites to eat, but the kind of bites where you really savour the flavour. The meringue topping was OK as a contrast in texture but was a little bland.

The final confection was the finale for both Larni and myself, and what a showstopper. A rather perfectly portioned wedge of rich chocolate cake, that was moist, unctuous and almost gooey in texture, with a gorgeous flavour of chocolate and topped with a silky chocolate ganache. This is the type of cake that usually I would have a dollop of cream with, but you just didn’t need it, it was pure poetry on a plate – perfection.

Service was perfectly polite at Hix and we were seated with a view down onto the ground floor of Selfridges which was great for people watching and there’s nothing better than enjoying an indulgent afternoon tea at your own, slow pace whilst watching the world frantically go by.

 

Afternoon Tea at Quince, The Mayfair Hotel

A birthday celebration

I can’t think of a finer way of celebrating a double birthday than by taking afternoon tea and a glass of fizz with good company. Back in April I did just that at Quince in The Mayfair Hotel for my boyfriend’s mum and sister’s birthday jaunt.

The Mayfair Hotel is plush and stylish throughout, and Quince is laid out in a salon style. We ordered a bottle of Prosecco as we arrived and enjoyed a glass in the bar area before moving to our table for the five of us.

We chose our various teas from the friendly and attentive waiter and these soon arrived with our two stands filled with loveliness.

Afternoon tea is such a classic tradition, so it was great to see Quince’s offering had a slightly modern twist in comparison to some of the places I’ve been to before. The layer of finger sandwiches for example, included salmon with cream cheese and chicken with avocado – traditional, but then a cheese with a spicy red pepper sauce and a smoky chorizo filling too, all of which were just lovely.

We each had an oh-so classic plain scone which came with the almost obligatory clotted cream and strawberry jam but also with an apricot chutney which was equally delicious. 

The sweet layer was absolutely beautiful to look at, and the taste matched the aesthetics. A tiny, delicate vanilla macaroon with chocolate cream, which was melt-in-the-mouth light, sat with a small portion of baklava – one of my absolute favourite sweet things. Both were fantastic. 

A little raspberry tartlet and a rich portion of unctuous, gooey chocolate cake completed the baked goods – I only managed a bite of the tart, which was once again excellent, but the chocolate cake was truly divine.

An additional sweet treat was included in the tea selection - a passion fruit panna cotta in a little shot glass. This was sweet but spiked with a lovely sharpness from the fruit – which almost worked as a refreshingly light palate cleanser – superb.

Our waiter really was a diamond – Claire, one of the birthday girls and the organiser, wasn’t keen on the chicken or salmon sandwiches as she doesn’t eat mayonnaise or cream cheese, and our waiter provided us with a few extra alternative sandwiches, at no extra cost, which was nice. But after ascertaining that it was a birthday celebration, as we paid the bill Claire and Tina were presented with a lovely little cake and a plate beautifully decorated with fruit and chocolate wishing them ‘Happy Birthday’ which was a really nice touch. 

We all received a little box of chocolates on leaving Quince too, which was a nice reminder to take home, and they certainly didn’t last long as they too, were exquisite.

Afternoon tea at Quince at The Mayfair Hotel is priced at £29.50 per person or you can go for the Champagne version for £41 and enjoy a glass of bubbles alongside your tea. We were quite content with another bottle of Jeio prosecco alongside our tea.

I would thoroughly recommend The Mayfair Hotel for afternoon tea – as well as fantastic service and great food, I think the price is quite competitive, especially given the standard.

A birthday celebration to remember – thanks to Claire for organising and here’s to our next celebration.

Cream Tea at Home

Home-made Raspberry Jam and Plain Scones

After my fruit picking experience last week I was left with a rather large quantity of raspberries and decided I would make some jam.

Tying in with my ambition to bake more, what better opportunity than to bake some plain scones, a firm favourite served with lashings of cream and a generous spreading of jam.

After all no afternoon tea would be complete without deliciously buttery cream scones with jam.

Raspberry Jam

800g Caster Sugar
800g Raspberries, washed
1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract
2 Tbsp Lime Juice

This makes enough to fill two 400g jam jars - which will need to be sterilised.

Pre-heat oven to 180C and place a small plate or saucer into the fridge to cool.

Place sugar on a baking tray and place in the oven for 8-12 minutes till it's warmed right through.

In the meantime pop the raspberries in a large saucepan and put on a low heat till the fruit has softened.

Once the sugar is warm pour into the fruit and add the vanilla extract and freshly squeezed lime juice.

Cook up to a boil and then simmer quite vigorously for 30-40 minutes.

To sterilise the jam jars remove the lids and place upside down in the hot oven for 15 minutes or until the jam is ready.

To test if the jam is ready, take the cold saucer from the fridge and get half a teaspoon of the mixture and pop onto the plate. This will be very, very hot, so leave for two-three minutes to cool, then press against it with your finger. If it starts to wrinkle up and feel firm, then it's ready. If not, keep on the heat for a further five minutes and test again. Repeat until ready.

Once ready pour into the jam jars and place a round of baking paper over the top and an elastic band. Once this has completely cooled down you can put the proper lid on.

This makes for a gorgeously sweet jam and is perfect for spreading on toast, crumpets, scones or for use in baking such as jam roly poly or jam tarts.

Plain Scones

225g Plain Flour
2 Tsp Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp Salt
30g Caster Sugar
150ml Milk
50g Butter

In a bowl mix the sugar, flour, baking powder and salt and then use the rubbing in method to mix the butter in. Using only your fingertips after a few minutes you should be left with a breadcrumb mix - similar to that of a crumble topping.

Slowly add the milk, bit by bit till this forms a firm and pliable dough.

Turn out onto a floured side, making sure your hands are floured too and flatten out into a circle, which should be over 1cm thick.

Cut out the scones. (Traditionally these are made round, but I made heart-shaped ones).

Put onto a tray lined with greaseproof paper which has also been greased.

Brush the tops with a little reserved milk and bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown.

Place on a wire cooling rack and allow to cool.

To serve cut in half and layer on some extra thick double cream or some clotted cream and a generous helping of the raspberry jam. Not mandatory to have tea with your scones however from my point of view - advisable.

Cream tea in the comfort of your own home - wonderful.