I have come to a conclusion that a perfect way to start a working week is by having Afternoon Tea!
After chatting on twitter with Emma whom is another Kiwi based in England we decided to meet up and eat cake; and this meant trying out the Charlie and the Chesterfield Afternoon Tea which is based on Roald Dahl’s classic tale at The Chesterfield Mayfair Hotel.
The Afternoon Tea starts with a fizzing bubbly drink to tickle the taste buds before the Cake Stand appears with your delicious and crazy treats as one would expect from Willy Wonka himself.
Sandwiches
The gluten free sandwiches were provided on soft white bread with a selection of fillings – there wasn’t anything crazy about the fillings however I did find there wasn’t really enough filling inside them unfortunately.
Scones
Inbetween a lot of chatting, I moved onto the scones which three were provided on the gluten free option of the Charlie Inspired Afternoon Tea.
Once again the scones didn’t disappoint and passed my scone test with flying colours – they were easy to cut into, they didn’t chip a tooth and were very yummy.
I actually only had one during our tea experience and took the other two home in a doggy bag and they were still eatable a day later which is surprising for gluten free scones! I need their recipe!
Pastries
This is the Pièce de résistance for this Afternoon Tea as it takes on a quirky turn with the Pastries. Say hello to the Wonka Bar, cupcakes, macaroons and a Golden egg (almost like a creme egg!).
The gluten free option of Pastries is on the left and the normal Charlie and the Chesterfield Afternoon Tea Pastries are on the right. I am surprised that they are almost identical to be honest.
I loved all the Gluten Free Pastries, everything tickled my tastebuds which is why I requested a few more Willy Wonka treats for the table.
Tea
As you would expect we had the Chocolate Tea option as it seemed wrong not to partake in Chocolate Tea.
Atmosphere
Emma and I had Afternoon Tea in the Conservatory on a very rainy Monday evening and it was a lovely area to take tea as it was so quiet and cosy.
Service
The service was fantastic, our booking was for 5.30pm (late for Afternoon Tea however we girls need to work unfortunately!) and we didnt leave till just before 9pm. We were surprised that we were never asked to leave and that we kept getting asked if we would like refills.
All the cake tiers are refilled free of charge and at the very end you are given gobstoppers at the very end and asked if we wanted any other sweet treats as we left – there are large jars to raid as you leave the hotel.
For me the best part of the Charlie and the Chesterfield Afternoon Tea was the golden ticket; such a nifty idea – basically if you go back for another Afternoon Tea before May 2014, take the ticket in with you and this is when you get to open the golden ticket and see if there is a prize inside!
Would I go back – definitely; I have a golden ticket that I need to open and it’s sitting beside me driving me crazy!
The Charlie and the Chesterfield Afternoon Tea starts at £32.50 pp and is only available until the 1st of September – there is still availability so get booking!
xx
