It’s national afternoon tea week, and I got to celebrate the occasion at the glamours Kensington Hotel, in relaxing surroundings with delicious treats on the menu. Their new afternoon tea is served in the newly refurbished Drawing Room, a blend of traditional with accents of modern decor. The traditional British afternoon tea was accompanied by an exclusive cocktail, unique for this event, made with Half Hitch Gin, Camden Lock’s Malawian Black Tea & Calabrian Bergamot infused gin.
The tea at The Kensington Hotel is supplied by The Rare Tea Company which founded in 2004 by Henrietta Lovell. They source and provide the world’s best tea from sustainable and independent farmers worldwide. They collaborate with many of the world’s finest chefs and restaurants, including Noma, Momofuku and, now, The Kensington.
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| The Rare Tea Company |
The Kensington Hotel Classic Afternoon Tea
I never had starters before an afternoon tea – it was awesome addition to the proceedings.
Summer vegetable tart with broad beans & girolle mushrooms – the pastry had the right consistency, and seasonal toppings worked well together; Crab Tartine with pickled cucumber had a lovely mix of texture; The creamed duck pate and blackberry cornet were very much like foies gras, Pea and gorgonzola arancini with basil cream hit the spot!
Smoked salmon & chive crème fraîche on malted brown bread was very appetising; the cucumber sandwich and cream cheese was deliciously fresh as it was the chicken and cranberry sandwich. I liked the micro herbs garnishes that came with the sandwiches, small but powerful!
Amalfi lemon éclair filled choux with glazed meringue, and mint had the right notes and freshness; Bitter chocolate macaron with sea salt caramel as expected mouth-watering; the strawberry tart with edible gold was so glam! The pastry had the right snap!
Passion fruit & apricot mousse was literally melting in the mouth!
The freshly baked scones with strawberry jam & Devonshire clotted cream were just amazing!
The service at The Kensington Hotel is charming and attentive. Our waiter explained each course and was very knowledgeable about the tea. They remove and replace plates between the starter the main event. It’s true that we eat with our eyes first. Mine eat the beautifully presented food as soon as it arrived at the table. The table was entirely set with white linen, powder blue and white china and silver service. They check periodically if we need anything including fresh teas. Perfect afternoon tea at reasonable price.
The afternoon tea costs £35/person or £45 with a glass of champagne
They have a gluten-free menu too.
The Kensington
109-113 Queen’s Gate
London
SW 7 5LR
Tel: 020 7589 6300
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Disclosure: I was a guest of The Kensington on this occasion.
I havent had a proper afternoon tea in ages, this looks so nice!
This afternoon tea looks amazing! My Mum wanted to treat me to afternoon tea the last time we visited London, but we just couldn't seem to fit it in – I will try harder next time! 🙂
Looks lovely, especially the pastries!
Nicola // pink-confetti.co.uk
Woah this looks insanely posh and tasty. I would love to have afternoon tea at some point as it looks so yummy! xx
I have never had a 'proper' afternoon tea! It looks amazing, I prefer coffee but love pastries! Kaz x
Oooh I didn't know it was afternoon tea week! This looks like a good one, too, and those stripey cups are gorgeous <3
Jess xo | The Indigo Hours
That looks absolutely gorgeous and I love the plates and cake stand too.
Ooh National Afternoon Tea week sounds great, I would love to go to afternoon tea one day and your pictures look delicious!
I absolutely love a good afternoon tea – it's such a nice way to treat yourself. x
I keep saying I am going to go for afternoon tea but still haven't got around to it. I love how eerything is minature so if you can't decide you can have everything haha